• Login
  • My Cart (0)
The Chef's Garden Logo
  • About
  • Chefs
  • At Home
  • Market
  • Blog
  • Roots
  • Book
  • Help
  • Contact Us
  • CVI
  • I am a: 
Roots 2016 Culinary Conference Embraces Healthy Living
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Roots 2016 Culinary Conference Embraces Healthy Living
February 24, 2017

Roots 2016 Culinary Conference Embraces Healthy Living

One of the best ways to successfully live a healthy lifestyle is to be educated, inspired and supported by other people on the same journey. And yet, we’ve probably all listened to someone else talk about how he or she eats a clean diet, exercises regularly, gets enough sleep and manages an ideal balance between work and personal life – and left feeling discouraged rather than inspired. That’s probably because the other person’s lifestyle seemed too perfect to be achievable.

Well, in the healthy living workshop held at the Roots 2016 culinary conference, people on the panel were extremely candid about their personal challenges and stumbling blocks. And, because of that, we truly were inspired by their stories – and we hope that you will be, too. 

The panel consisted of:

  • Seasoned food writer and editor, the moderator Arthur Bovino

  • Chef Zane Holmquist 

  • Chef Phillip Speer

  • Chef Lynne Weems Ryan 


Chefs, by the very nature of their career choices, work long hours, often in what’s considered “off hours,” so quality sleep is very important – and yet, in different ways, all of the panel members have struggled with sleep challenges and have needed to find methods of obtaining quality of sleep. Here is what Lynne has to say about her personal challenges and some solutions she has found:

Phillip, meanwhile, suffered from serious sleep apnea. In fact, during sleep studies, he was waking up nearly every minute – and a significant contributing factor was his obesity. After making lifestyle changes, including weight loss of approximately 100 pounds, eliminating caffeine, not smoking, participating in regular physical activity and refusing to keep a television set in his bedroom, the quality of sleep greatly improved. 

If sleep challenges are interfering with your healthy lifestyle, here are twelve tips for quality sleep provided by a Harvard University publication. 

Providing a Living Wage

At The Chef’s Garden, we were especially interested in the discussion about the importance of providing a living wage to staff. Sustainable farming, in our view, is socially responsible farming – and that is reflected in how we treat our team, our customers, our vendors and our community. Here’s more about what the healthy living panel had to say on the subject. 

The ideal environment, Phillip says, is one where staff are paid a living wage and also have the ability to have conversations about whether or not the team is getting enough sleep and to discuss whatever other challenges they are facing. The goal, he says, isn’t to have a kitchen full of “whiny wusses,” but to have open conversations about issues that matter. 

Some culinary staff, as just one example, might work in a New York restaurant – but, because of their wages and the cost of living, they have a three-hour daily commute from New Jersey, which can exhaust them. Then, after a day of preparing wonderful food, they eat fast food tacos because they don’t have the money or time to do otherwise. If someone is paid like a child, Phillip believes, it’s hard for him or her to not live like a child. So, each restaurant model, he says, should build in efficiencies and other ways to increase revenue so that profits can be shared with staff. This is what creates staff loyalty; lowers staff attrition; and creates a productive work culture. 

Zane, meanwhile, points out the impossibility of having life/work balance when you don’t have a roof over your head, when you’re working two jobs just to keep the kids fed and the car running. Being on that economic treadmill, he says, isn’t conducive for effective hospitality. Here’s more:

Discover More Healthy Living Tips

You can watch the entire workshop on this video and discover more about how Zane lost 35 pounds; Andrew, 45; and Phillip, 100. The chefs candidly discuss other challenging issues, including alcoholism, legal troubles, health challenges and more, and Lynne also discusses her belief in the restorative power of friendship. 

 

  • Prev Post Insights into Winter Farming, Sustainable Farming and More
  • Next Post Petite Sylvetta Arugula

Share

  • Chef,
  • Living Wage,
  • Roots Conference,
  • Video

Featured Posts

  • Citrus Lace: What’s There Not to Like? Thumbnail
    Citrus Lace: What’s There Not to Like? January 9, 2023
  • Lovely (Underutilized!) Licorice Lace Thumbnail
    Lovely (Underutilized!) Licorice Lace November 3, 2022
  • Pea Tendrils: Identical Cousins, Different in Every Way Thumbnail
    Pea Tendrils: Identical Cousins, Different in Every Way September 16, 2022

Categories

  • Video
  • Farmer Lee Jones
  • Roots Conference
  • Chef
  • Team
  • #ThisIsFarming
  • Chef and Farmer
  • Stories
  • Lettuce
  • Microgreens

Archive

you may also like

  • Jerusalem artichoke: revival of interest in this unique tuber Thumbnail
    Jerusalem artichoke: revival of interest in this unique tuber
  • Propelling Team USA to the Bocuse d’Or Podium Thumbnail
    Propelling Team USA to the Bocuse d’Or Podium
  • Up Close and Personal Chef and Farmer Get Down to Earth   Thumbnail
    Up Close and Personal Chef and Farmer Get Down to Earth

Sign Up For Our Newsletter

  • I am a: 
  • Help
    • Sizing Standards
    • Customer Service
    • Shipping Info
    • Corporate Giving
    • Food Safety
  • Contact Us
    • Market
    • Careers
    • Press
    • Media Kit
  • CVI
The Chef's Garden Logo
Copyright 2023
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions