Nutrition is Hard

By Paul Maglietta

Photos Courtesy of Upsplash

I love food. Honestly one of the biggest reasons I work out is so that I can eat more. Now in my 30’s I find my approach to food needing to change, but I find it exceptionally difficult to follow through. From portion control, to ingredients, macros, and more food has gone from fun treats to something I have to keep a very close eye on if I want to maintain a healthy lifestyle. My relationship with food had not always been a positive one. Growing up I had severe body image issues that I still deal with to this day and I used food as a coping mechanism to get that lovely hit of dopamine. I still remember being a child when I would stay home sick my parent would take me to Burger King to help me “feel better”, to this day I still crave it when I feel under the weather. One of the best things about being young is the metabolism. As long as I was semi active and saved the majority of my poor food habits for the weekend I was golden. all that changed in my 20’s.

Ahh to be 21 in America. A time where the last societal restriction is finally (legally) lifted and one can pursue the drink of the gods. In my case I fell in love with beer, and yes light beer and I will still defend it. After 21 my entire lifestyle changed. Although I was still working as a martial arts instructor I was not actively working out and weekends became full of beer, all nighters, and so many chicken nuggets. When I was 22 I saw my health and physical fitness getting completely out of control and decided to make a change. I wrote in a previous article about fitness that I started working out with P90x but my nutrition was not a focus. When I finally made the decision to address my nutrition I was overwhelmed by information. From protein shakes, to fasting, keto, cutting out all alcohol I have tried every style of diet you possibly can do. It is only now in my 30s that I have finally found a better strategy for myself.

Have your cake and eat it too

It took a long time, and a lot of help and support, but I finally find myself having a healthier relationship with my food. During the week I treat food as a fuel and try to remember that if you put the wrong fuel into a car the car stops working. I also managed to limit my alcohol intake during the week. Like many adults, especially during the pandemic, I found myself enjoying more to drink and using it as a way to unwind after a long day. Now I try to only enjoy drinking when I am feeling good so I don’t associate it with feeling better, the same with food. Now I am not saying to cut out everything you possibly can, that is why most people fail diets, but find one thing to limit and find one activity to do. Life is way too short to not enjoy to the fullest in as many different ways as possible.