A Dietitian’s Confession: Journey to a Healthier Life
In January last year, I was set on my New Year's goals just like everybody else: build new habits and be physically active. I knew that I needed to move more since my work mostly involved sitting for 8 hours. And I did—I jogged with a friend for almost 3x a week and even signed up for my first 5-km race, which I successfully finished. Everything seemed to be going well.
My optimism was shattered when I got my blood chemistry checked. I discovered that I have high triglyceride levels, and my cholesterol was borderline high. As a Dietitian, this was a hard pill to swallow. I felt like an embarrassment to the nutrition community. But instead of giving up and wallowing on self-pity and self-blame (which I did maybe for a few days haha), I decided to find the root cause of my high lipid profile.
I searched far and wide for the answers on Mr. Google on what might caused these abnormal levels (I know, as a researcher, that’s not really a good place to start, but desperate times call for a desperate call of judgment). Only to find myself looking back at my food diary.
I keep a food log of what I eat in a day as a reference for what I won’t eat the next day (Variety ika-nga). But I noticed that my choice of food for breakfast wasn’t varied at all. They were consistently high in fat. I really love the palabok sold in front of the office and the sisig in one of the carinderias. I even had a weekly tradition of “Sisig Wednesdays”. While these foods aren’t inherently bad, my diet lacked balance. It was heavy on saturated fats and meats, lacking vegetables and fruits. It was an eye-opener for me.
A reminder that healthy habits require more than just physical activity; it requires a combination of proper diet and exercise.
I needed to preach it to myself.
The coach became the coached.
Around that time, I started adding more fiber to my meals, while still keeping my diet within my budget’s reach. I became more conscious about what to add to my meals and incorporated moderation, variety, and balance more into my lifestyle.
When I got my blood chemistry checked again, the results were all “normal”! That’s when it truly hit me – being “healthy” can be achieved by a balanced diet and exercise, without compromising your food preferences.
If you’ve read this far, I want YOU to be intentional as well.
I’m starting a 21-Days of Fiber Series wherein I showcase 21 food items rich in fiber that you can add to your meals. Stay tuned!
Comment fiber if you’ve reached this far!