the Okinawa diet + BIG news

I have some big, life changing news.

But first.

Have you heard of the Okinawa diet? 

Okinawa, a Japanese island, is part of the greater Ryukyu islands that are located south of Japan’s mainland.

I first heard about the Okinawa diet several years ago when reading about the CR diet (calorie restriction) which is concerned primarily with longevity. The Okinawans are of interest because Okinawa has the greatest proportion of centenarians of any population & their longevity has been the study of gerontologists from all over the world.

The Okinawan diet, though not vegan, is easily veganized–it’s heavy on the vegetables (7-13 servings per day!) & whole grains/beans, light on the meat/eggs, oils, & sweets. It’s also virtually void of dairy foods, not unlike the majority of traditional Asian diets. Naturally, my interested was piqued!

Image: from the Okinawa Diet

The main idea behind a traditional Okinawan diet is that it’s high in volume & nutrients, & relatively low in calories. In other words, it has a naturally lower calorie density than most other diets while delivering a bounty of nutrients.

As a person who loves food & loves chewing (ie. eating), but also loves maintaining an athletic build, I am all over this approach. In fact, the FSL way of eating is essentially my veganized take (as an active, nursing, 30-something woman) on the Okinawan diet.

(Side note: Many, many others spin off the calorie-density or volumetrics approach–I certainly didn’t “invent” it!)

I bring this up because:

1) Okinawans eating a traditional Okinawan diet provide some compelling evidence that a highly plant-based diet is not only good for health but for longevity as well

and

2) we’re moving to Okinawa.

Yes, this lovely beach (or one just like it), will soon be just a bike ride or short walk away from home.

I can hardly believe it myself.

 Image: Sunset Beach, Okinawa via flickr

The short story about how we are soon to be American expats on this lovely sub-tropical isle: 

Joseph, my husband, is a JAG officer in the United States Air Force. This means he’s an attorney in the military. (It was quite a road to get to this awesome position, more in this post.)

We’ve lived in San Antonio, Texas for the past 2+ years.

Now it’s time to be transferred & our next assignment will take us overseas to a base in Okinawa.

Are we excited?

YES!

Do we have any idea what we’re getting into?

Heaven’s no.

But we’re adventurous, our kids are excited, & having to scale back even more in order to move overseas fits nicely with our goals to downsize, get out of debt, & live more simply.

Also, I am a TOTAL BEACH BUM.

I’ve never actually lived close to a beach, but my dad grew up in Los Angeles & spent his youth riding waves.

I’m positive that this love for water is seeped into my DNA–if given the choice, I will choose being in or around water over nearly any other activity, any day.

So living this close to the beach will provide ample opportunity to enjoy sand & surf.

We just received the assignment so I have very few details other than we’ll be moving there sometime at the end of the summer (August-ish).

Friends & family have asked me if I’m excited.

I have to say that had we received this assignment two years ago I would have been much less prepared.

But having learned some hard lessons about money, debt, things, time, & family, I’ve realized that I can be happy anywhere, & with far fewer things.

So am I excited to move to a warm, sub-tropical foreign country far from all that is familiar?

Absolutely, yes.

And, of course I’m pretty excited to be able to actually eat like a true Okinawan (minus any fish or weird sea creatures).

♥

Have you heard of the Okinawan diet? Have you ever been to Okinawa? Lived overseas?

Other bring joy posts you might want to read:

• mama burnout
• 6 years of blogging: 6 things I would have done differently
• easy garlicky peas & carrots {RECIPE}
• I lost 120 lbs. on a whole foods diet {guest post from Wendy Simkins}