When I entered university in 2015, I was hyper-aware and terrified of gaining the “freshman 15”. Some Context: Pre-University I was fairly active in high school. I trained in dance several hours per day each week; I swam every other morning; I ran with my friends during school lunch hours; and I walked everywhere. However, when I started university I realized that my underlying low self-esteem and eating disorder was not completely healed. Since learning about the dreaded freshman 15, I brainstormed several ways in which I could avoid gaining weight with very low effort in University. What I decided to do?
Unfortunately, my grande plan did not work.I didn’t end up cooking healthy meals. Rather, I purchased heavily processed, high fat foods like chocolate covered almonds, nut mixes, granola bars, muffins, sugary yogurt, and ice-cream. I also didn’t dance—at all. I’m not sure how much weight I gained. What I did put on was vaguely noticeable to myself and to others, but looking back at photos before and after my freshman year, the difference is visible.. The Journey
Fast forward 3 years and some pounds later, I decided to proactively change my lifestyle. I realized that heavy drinking, eating french fries and pizza after partying, restricting and binge eating, studying with sugary snacks for hours without moving, and taking transportation everywhere, were really bad habits. I knew if I continued down this path, in a few years, I wouldn’t be able to look at myself and appreciate what I saw. Not only would my appearance represent unhealthy lifestyle habits, my overall physical and mental health would deteriorate. Beginning in winter 2018, I woke up between 6am and 7am every weekday morning to exercise. I jogged for 10-30 minutes. It seemed like very little exercise, but it made a huge difference in enforcing an exercise routine. My diet was still vegetarian in early 2018, and I had a problem with over consuming ice-cream and cheese, nevertheless, I made small efforts to monitor my caloric intake. I tried my best to maintain a caloric deficit and eat balanced meals. The Transformation: Mind, Body, and Soul I often fell off my regime. I tended to fall back into restricting and binging behaviour, skipping gym sessions, and engaging in excessive drinking, especially in the summer of 2018, but I never lost sight of my end goal. I was so determined to transform my lifestyle, that I forced myself to exercise everyday and forgave myself if I binged on some nights. This constant cycle of not giving up, forcing myself to exercise even when I didn’t want to, and slowly changing my eating habits is what resulted in a permanently transformed lifestyle. At the end of 2018, I was inspired by my grandmother and aunt to become vegan. In early 2019, a day without exercise was dreadful and my taste for natural and unprocessed foods grew more distinct. My binging and restricting behaviour decreased, and I was happier overall. My biggest tips are:
It’s okay to mess up, just forgive yourself and move on. That’s how I attained a healthy mindset towards exercising more and adapting to a well-balanced diet.
0 Comments
Ingredients:
Instructions:
Enjoy! 4 Servings 238 kcal/serving Ingredients:
Step 1: Prepare Sweet Potato
Step 2: Filling
Step 3: Layer
Step 4: Bake
*Optional: Pair with Avocado Ingredients:
Instructions:
Enjoy! Ingredients:
Step 1: Prepare Grain
Step 2: Protein (Select 1-2 protein choices)
Step 3: Vegetables + Fruits
Step 4: Toppings
Enjoy! |