Personal Dietary Modifications.

Personal Diet Modifications.

As I Stated in my introduction, as fitness professional I know the importance of consuming a healthy diet. I also know that to achieved optimal physical wellness, physical activity and proper nutrition will have to go hand in hand (Anspaugh et al 2011). . Ever since studying the dimension of wellness, and their interconnectedness with one another, I have been quite surprised to discover however some simple lifestyle choices could affect multiple dimensions of wellness (Barwais et al 2014). Poor diet is a lifestyle habit that affects overall health immediately or in the long run (Sizer & Whitney 2013), I try to avoid long-term consequences by eating nutrition-dense meals.

My dietary strengths include the consumption of good carbohydrate, vitamins, minerals, proteins, healthy fatty acids and fiber-rich foods. I truly believe that the body craves what it is fed, and I have always loved fruits and vegetables, I am not one of those who have an aversion to produce and had to force myself to eat them. I love to snack on fruits, and I love to eat raw or oven roasted vegetable as a side to almost every meal. I also enjoy whole grains as a staple at least once a day; again I love the texture of whole grain breads, pasta, and oatmeal and often use whole-wheat flour in my baking. I absolutely love lean meats like chicken, and salmon and tilapia. I try to eat one on these at least once a day, and especially salmon at least once a week. The perfect quick meal I often prepare for myself is ‘Pan-Seared Salmon and Roasted vegetables’; I also love to add nuts and avocados to my salads.

Here's a link to my favorite recipe:

https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=skinnyms.com/cumin-scented-pan-seared-salmon-with-balsamic-roasted-vegetab&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

My dietary weaknesses include snacking at inappropriate times on not so healthy foods. I have a sweet tooth and often cannot avoid the temptation of cake and since I bake often for my family it is difficult to avoid. I also don’t drink enough water, I drink water before, during and after each workout, and however I would drink homemade sweet tea and lemonade with most meals. While I try to prepare all my meals with very little oil, I have a penchant for adding butter to staples like steamed rice and vegetables; I also often enjoy a few slices of whole wheat bread with butter spread on it.

I have already slowly started making changes to my dietary plan to help me consume healthier meals and meet recommended dietary guidelines. I started going to bed earlier to prevent the ‘midnight snacking’, what ever I can’t get done before 9pm will have to wait till the next day. I also started to offer my family more fruits and fruit and vegetable smoothies as a healthier sweet treat alternative and have temporarily stopped baking sweets. I also reduced the amount of sugar I put in homemade sweet tea and lemonade, I have also limited my kids and I to one cup a day, after which we must drink water when thirsty and with remaining meals.  I also reduce the amount of butter I put in foods, and I only prepare meals with butter once a week. I am also opting for peanut butter sandwiches as a snack as opposed to bread and butter.

Another strategy that not only keeps me from over-indulging but helps me meet guidelines is an app on my phone called MyFitnesspal, I find that when I see the calorie content of what I’m about to eat I am more likely to consume more nutrition-dense foods than calorie-dense foods.

References:

Anspaugh, D. J., Hamrik, M. H., & Rosato, F. D. (2011). Wellness concepts and

 Applications. (8th ed.). New York: NY, McGraw-Hill Higher Education

Barwais, F.A., Cuddihy, T.F., & Tomson, L. (2014). Adult Total Wellness: Group Differences Based on Sitting Time and Physical Activity Level. BMC Public Health, 14 (1), 1-15

Sizer, F. & Whitney, E. (2013).  Nutrition: Concepts and Controversies (13th ed.).  Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.