Here is a list of books and blogs that I've found informative and inspirational as I try to eat better and live better. The list is relatively small now, but I plan to add to it as I go along.
Books:
-The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. This book is wonderful. It give a really comprehensive look at food production and what we eat in America today. I think if anyone wants to read just one book about food and eating then this is the one they should choose.
-The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson. This book basically outlines the primal lifestyle and the 10 "rules" of the primal way of life. It includes lots of information about diet, fitness, general well being.
-Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes. Taubes is a respected science journalist and this book is a great history of the study of nutrition, obesity, heart disease, and other related issues. Taubes explains how the current conventional wisdom on diet and exercise came to be. It's very science heavy and not easy to read, but includes tons of important information.
-The Vegetarian Myth by Lierre Kieth. This book is written by a former vegan who eventually came to terms with eating meat. Overall it was pretty touchy-feely and felt a little more like a long diary entry than a scientific work, but it still did have some interesting information about the damage mono-crops like wheat and corn can inflict on the environment. Kieth also has a lot to say about living a sustainable lifestyle.
-The New Rules of Lifting for Women. I decided a while ago to focus my workouts on heavy lifting, but I didn't really have any idea what to do in the weight room. This book is a really great introduction to lifting, and I enjoy following the workouts. I pretty much ignore all the nutritional advice, but it might be helpful for some people.
-Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. I loved this book an would recommend it to anyone. It describes how Kingsolver and her family moved from Arizona to a farm in Virginia and their year long journey in local eating. The narrative was artfully interwoven with information about the current state of the food industry today, and overall it was a compelling read; a wonderful story packed with important information.
Blogs:
-Mark's Daily Apple. This blog is written by Mark Sisson and most of the information found in The Primal Blueprint can be found here. He also posts in detail about the science behind the primal way of life, and includes work out tips, recipes, and success stories.
-A Year Without Groceries. This blog is written by a woman who made a decision with her husband not to buy groceries from a traditional grocery store for an entire year. They also went three months without purchasing any food at all. I love to read about how they grow their own food and raise their own animals for meat on a relatively small urban lot. They also have blog called Dog Island Farm that is specifically about the farm. Overall this family is highly inspirational and a big part of the reason I decided to blog myself.
-Life on the Balcony. A great blog about container gardening. This blog has information about ornamental plants also, but there are plenty of posts about growing food in a limited space.
-Urban Organic Gardener. This is another blog about container gardening. It contains a lot of tutorials for how to build your own containers and is pretty much food plant focused.
Movies:
-Food Inc. This documentary goes in detail about the state of agriculture in the United States today and includes some pretty horrifying information about how most meat is grown and slaughtered. I think watching this film was really the beginning of the end for me. It really made me think about what I was eating and encouraged me to begin to change my eating habits.
-Fathead. This movie was made in response to the documentary Supersize Me. It talks a lot about dietary fat and whether or not it is good for you and the effect of eating too many carbohydrates. Funny and informative at the same time.
-King Corn. The makers of this documentary moved to Iowa for a year to grow an acre of corn and try to see where it ended up. This movie explains how corn has infiltrated our food and why you can barely buy anything from the grocery store that doesn't have corn in it.
