Inday Iskariray

You know your body’s changed for the better when you order a regular Ice Blended Coffee and one cheese muffin at The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, and you already feel sick and ready to puke halfway through the meal. I used to be able to finish off more than this. And my sweet tooth used to want more than just a regular-sized blended drink. But after months of working out, making better food choices, paying better attention to my body’s hunger and satiety signals, I finally have this. Your body really is a highly-advanced, well-oiled machine that knows exactly what it NEEDS to operate at its best. It’s up to you to listen to it and make the choice: between sitting on your ass or exercising, overdoing sugary drinks or filling up on water, eating more whole foods or eating none at all. Take note that I am not pushing any specific health philosophy here, my point is that we are only given so much opportunities in a single day, so it’s up to the individual to make the best of these opportunities to better himself MOST of the time. There is no “perfect” way. However you do it, as long as it fits your individual need and personal value system, and you do it consistently and wholeheartedly, you WILL get there. Me, I made minor adjustments to my diet such that I wasn’t eating so much junk food and that I was eating more protein, followed by fruits and veggies. I DIDN’T DEPRIVE MYSELF—except I only ate when I was hungry, and stopped when I was full. I strength-trained three times a week (I started doing Stronglifts 5x5 last month), and tried to get enough sleep every night. Today’s non-scale victory is a major milestone for me, because ever since I was little I’ve had a complicated relationship with food. Even until now I still feel a little unsteady in the presence of it, especially during major occasions when there is an abundance of delicious dishes to try. But today I didn’t even think twice when my body told me it didn’t want any more. I prompty asked the barista to doggie-bag the rest of my meal.

Your baby steps, your better choices really do add up. I’m so happy.