Are you on a diet?
To answer that, let’s go back to the day when I started my #fitagain journey in April 2018. My BMI classification was obese and with a spine injury my age group shouldn’t have in the first place, my doctor had long been recommending that I lose some extra pounds. I’ve been pushing aside my doctor’s suggestion, instead I looked for another doctor in the hope that he’d tell me a new recommendation but to no avail. It’s either I lose weight and live a healthier life or suffer endlessly. I found myself wanting to create a life I'd be proud of and a life people around me could emulate. That’s when took the first step forward and never took a step or two back ever again. It was one of the many decisions that I should learn to live by day in, day out. As one of my fitness mentors would always remind me Fitness is a lifestyle. Once you’re in, there’s no turning back.
At the start of the journey, I was on an intense, restrictive low-carb diet. My only source of carbohydrates before was 2 slices of wheat bread for dinner and another 2 slices of wheat bread for dinner, and the rest were all meat and vegetables and absolutely no snacks in between meals. Just water, a lot of it. And yup, that means no rice for me for weeks, too! Sharing here one of the meals I prepared myself. A time came when I had to know what exactly goes into my meals and there’s no other way of knowing and making sure I get to eat healthy than cooking it myself. The photos are steamed chicken breast and steamed broccoli with pure cucumber lemon smoothie without milk or sugar for my drink. It’s refreshing although I might’ve added a lot of lemons. 😅
Preparation required effort and patience. I had to prepare food before lunch, glad we had tools/equipment in the office. If you’re truly dedicated to changing your life or an aspect of it, remember that there’s something you can do about it. Your vision without action is nothing, bear that in mind.
Now, am I still on a diet? Yep, a balanced one. No longer a restrictive one since I've cultivated the values of discipline. I can now eat anything in moderation. 😎👌