I arrived back to LA today from Indiana, where I was for five days. I absolutely loved every second of my trip, from fishing, to kayaking, to playing cards on a rainy day, to eating great and hearty mid-west food. We fished every single morning, and every evening. I used to fish a little bit when I lived on the river in Virginia as a kid, but I really needed some work… I might’ve even casted my line on my boyfriend… I will say, though, that I got pretty good at the Indiana card game “Euchre.”

I will have memories forever from this trip, but there was something more than just the memories I wanted to share with you.

My greatest take away from the trip: Not everyone can live in places that have juice bars and salad cafes. Sometimes choosing to eat healthy is an extremely difficult task. (you may be like “duhhh”- but hear me out)

The town I was visiting was incredibly small, and a 30-minute drive to the closest grocery store. The people are the nicest people in the world. They are so genuine and real it was a great break from the Los Angeles life (yes, I’m saying people in LA can be fake and rude). In Los Angeles, though, I can walk to three different juice cafes, or grab a kale salad with olive oil dressing at the restaurant next door. It’s easy. They sell great avocados and vegan dishes at the grocery store, which are also very affordable. Los Angeles is a bubble.

People in the town I was in did not know what quinoa was, or had never had kale before. They don’t even sell lots of the healthy foods I eat at the grocery store. It was a huge wake up call for me. I always thought people could eat healthy at cheaper prices, and maybe but in a little extra work with cooking it and setting a little time aside, but it’s not that simple at all. Mind you, I’m from Virginia, I’m not from Los Angeles. Even in Virginia, it was a suburb town that was an easier choice to either eat healthy or not. In a town like where I was, it’s VERY hard to eat healthy. They don’t offer healthy options at many restaurants there.

I just wanted to remind you all that sometimes choosing to be healthy is hard. Don’t get so caught up in rare greens like sweet potato leaves or crazy colorful dragon fruit. Not everyone can have these types of rare healthy foods some girls are eating on Instagram. You can be healthy with very basic ingredients. (I also decided from now on to not make a lot of my recipes with the rare ingredients I have used in the past, such as agave, or acai, which are unattainable in many places.)

You can be healthy while keeping your meals very simple. Use the resources you have. Try your absolute best. Do what you can, and you’re golden.