Why a Registered Dietitian? It started with chronic disease symptoms.

My passion for nutrition came about in an interesting way.  

Like most people, I was trying to lose weight but I wanted to do it in a healthy way.  I saw the advertisements for the Special K diet and I thought that it would be a great place to start!  It encouraged eating multiple times a day, I already ate cereal on a daily basis, and I enjoyed their protein bars when I had tried them at my mom's house.  So, I decided to do the Special K challenge.  That was in 2009.

Within four days of doing the challenge I started having all of the symptoms of pre-diabetes: blurred vision, tingling in the fingers and toes, muscle weakness, increased thirst and hunger.   It was a terrifying time and I was so confused!  I saw my doctor and my blood sugar levels were high, she asked me what I had changed because I had been tested for diabetes earlier in the year since I was overweight and everything came back normal.  I told her about the diet.  She told me to get off of it because of the amount of sugar in it.

That's when I decided I needed to take charge of my health and what I was putting in my body.  

I wanted to lose weight, I knew that I needed to, because diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic diseases run in both sides of my family.   My first objective was understanding diabetes since I experienced symptoms of high blood sugar first hand.   That's when I came across an independent documentary on YouTube called Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days.  The documentary follows six people with diabetes, most of them Type 2, over 30 days as they go through a program at a holistic, raw food camp.  I don't want to spoil the video but in the end, those who finished the 30 days lowered their insulin intake requirements, including the man who has Type 1 Diabetes!  

I wasn't sold on the idea of reversing it fully, but the prospect that through diet changes and exercise they could see dramatic health improvements, not weight improvements but HEALTH improvements, got me hooked on the idea of helping others improve their health through food and physical activity!

Fast forward to today and now I'm healthy, in college pursuing a degree to do just that while working a job that improves people's health through diet and exercise!  The topic of diabetes has stuck with me and it's an area I want to focus on during my master's program.  A study, Lifestyle changes may reverse development of the insulin resistance syndrome, posted in the Diabetes Journal supports the results seen in the Simply Raw documentary but the study took place over a year.  They found that diet changes AND exercise is key to lowering insulin resistance and over time this combination could reverse insulin resistance.  Another study, Effects of exercise and diet on chronic disease,  published in the Journal of Applied Physiology also supports this idea of reducing insulin resistance through diet changes and exercise.

Studies like these give me hope for my future clients and patients as a registered dietitian.  My main focus will be preventing chronic diseases like diabetes but to know that we can improve the lives and maybe even reverse insulin resistance leaves me feeling excited for the future.

References:

Roberts CK, Barnard RJ.  Effects of exercise and diet on chronic disease. Journal of Applied Physiology. 2005 Jan; 98: 3-30.  Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15591300. April 19, 2015.

Torjesen PA, Birkeland KI, Anderssen SA, Hjermann I, Holme I, Urdal P. Lifestyle changes may reverse development of the insulin resistance syndrome. The oslo diet and exercise study: a randomized trial. Diabetes Care 1997 Jan; 20(1): 26-31.  Retrieved from http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/20/1/26.short.  April 19, 2015.

What Does It Feel Like To Be A Beachbody Coach?

Fulfilling.

If I was to sum up all of the emotions I feel about my job into one word it would have to be fulfilling.  No other job has left me feeling like this.  It's more than seeing people lose weight or improve their health.  People improve their lives!  It's seeing the transformation as someone goes through a program.  Their confidence increases, they become more open, and they're excited about life.

I'm a firm believer that exercise has an amazingly positive impact on people's moods.  I've experienced it myself as someone with PTSD and depression.  Exercise, for me, is key to my mental well being.  But I believe the changes people are feeling goes beyond that.  With Beachbody and Beachbody challenge groups you gain a new family to go along with your new lifestyle.

Yes, I know it sounds cheesy but that's exactly how it is.  When you run through a challenge group with other people, be it 21 days for the 21 Day Fix or 90 days with the P90X series, you get to know people on a personal level.  You share your doubts, your struggles, your successes, and your joy!  A challenge group can be an inspiring place of healing and love.  It's a place to make connections and grow as a person.

I believe that I have learned and grown as a person because of each of my clients.  Again, the cheese factor is high, but that is truly how I feel.

I posted a thank you to them on my Facebook but I wanted to post a thank you to them as well on here.

So, thank you!  Thank you for reaching out to me, thank you for believing in me, thank you for trusting me, and thank you for supporting me in my dream of becoming a Registered Dietitian.  It's always a humbling experience.

<3

Discover Your Purpose

I'll admit it, I have times when I doubt myself.  Am I pursuing the correct career?  Am I truly going to be successful?  Am I doing everything in my power to ensure that I will be successful?

When I start to have these thoughts I know it's time to realign myself and dig into my dreams.  Tony Robbins manages to focus my digging and get my head on straight within a hour.  This is why I wanted to share his inspirational video "Starting Over, Living with Purpose".  Living with a purpose has improved my life beyond my wildest dreams.  However, we are creatures of habit so compliance sets in.  Living in compliance isn't enough to accomplish your dreams!

So, watch this video!  Do the exercises!  Really!  And find what you want to focus on.  Don't be compliant and break the daily habits.  You'll feel better once you start.

Spring Semester at Penn State

Tomorrow is the first day of Spring semester at Penn State and I'm elated and nervous at the same time.  This isn't my first semester back, it's my second, but it will be my first semester blogging throughout it.  I had wanted to blog about my first semester back but at the same time felt terrified to because of self-doubt and nagging thoughts.  What if I fail?  Who would want to read about someone failing?  How is that inspirational?

Looking back, I regret not voicing those fears because it's bloggers that share with that level of intimacy that inspire me and, more importantly, remind me that I'm not alone!  Everyone experiences fears and doubt but I think that, for some reason, we like to pretend that the general populous doesn't.  That we're somehow different, or worse "broken", because we feel doubtful while Joe Whomever seems to always have his stuff together.  Let me tell you, they don't.  No one is 100% perfect and that's OK!  It's expected!

As far as my imperfection goes, I didn't get the C I needed in Chemistry.  In a way, I'm happy that I didn't because dealing with the class taught me a lot about what I need to change in the ways of my study habits and schedule in order to succeed.  I found out about Penn State's online test anxiety resource center, which actually helped raise my exam grades in other classes; I learned that I need to put everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) into my digital calendar instead of using a physical one like I used to; I learned how long before different subjects I needed to study to do the best I could on the exam (Nutrition and Physiology = 2 days prior; Anatomy and Chemistry = 1 week+ prior); I got a harsh reminder that studying in certain classes has to happen everyday (hence the D in chemistry).

I was also reminded that I NEED to exercise at least 5 days a week!  It has to happen.  It's how I release my stress and while I did walk around 5-6 miles a day, it wasn't the intense cardio that T25 gave me.

Now, before the semester even started, I've started my studying since my text books are in (the Chemistry book is an eBook) AND I researched resources others have used to help them with chemistry and I wound up picking up Chemistry for Dummies I and II.

Two texts that I'm going to worship this semester!

I cannot wait for this semester to start!  I cannot wait to meet my professors!  And, most importantly, I can't wait to be one step closer to my dream of becoming a Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist (they changed the title last year).

If you're studying this major to please let me know!  We could help each other!  I did get an A in my Nutrition 251 and a B in my physiology class so don't let the chem grade scare you off.  XD