4.11.2016

Once upon a time...

I worked out daily, I watched what I ate, and I lived what I believed was a healthy lifestyle. I saw changes in my body, and got the compliments I hoped these changes would invite. But this was far from any fairy-tale…

I’d met my goal weight and loved that I wasn’t constantly worried about what I could or couldn’t wear during the sticky summer months where jeans just wouldn’t cut it. The pictures from that year are still some of my favourites, because being toned meant I didn’t have to pose a particular way. But looking good on the outside didn’t mean my insides agreed…

A few summers ago, I thought I was healthy, but let me explain my idea of a healthy lifestyle.

I was a calorie counter, and though I still believe this can be a useful way to lose weight, it can also be extremely dangerous. I stuck within my calorie limits like a boss, but I did this by eating ridiculous food that no adult should eat every. single. day. Did I eat much meat? No. Did I eat many vegetables? Absolutely not. But I did eat plenty of children’s snacks, canned pasta meals and microwave dinners. Nostalgia never tasted so good. I looked good, I felt good, and figured this was absolutely acceptable. That is until one day I made a trip to the doctors…

I’d be feeling faint, and as a prone anaemic, I assumed my iron levels were low. So I went to the doctor for a routine blood test to see if maybe that was the case. My iron was low, and so was my B12, but that wasn’t what the doctor was worried about.

“Kim, you have really high cholesterol levels”

Excuse me? High cholesterol? But I’ve been taking care of myself, I lost weight and I go to the gym a couple hours a day, surely this can’t be true?

But it was… at 24 years of age I had high cholesterol and boy was that a wakeup call. No 24 year old should have high cholesterol. Calorie counting meant I had a tendency to pick foods with lots of sodium. Lots of sodium = high cholesterol.

Fast forward 2 years to age 26 and here I am, probably the heaviest I’ve ever been, Would I consider myself healthy now? Absolutely not. I am addicted to pizza and pasta, and have a mean case of not being able to commit to any workout program for longer than a week. But I’m aware of this form of unhealthy, and it’s something I need to battle. I’m sharing this story as a reminder to myself that losing weight is a marathon, not a sprint, and that living a healthy lifestyle is not what I thought it was 2 years ago.

It’s time to change my once upon a time to happily ever after…

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