Living the Healthy Choice

Now that you know a little more about me, let's start with something that I've been feeling really strongly about and that I feel that has contributed greatly to my current stability: eating healthy and being as active as possible! I know that everyone's activity/exercise restrictions or capabilities are different, so I will mainly be focusing on the benefits of changing my diet.

All my life I have been blessed with a fast metabolism, so after I stopped all exercise after my diagnosis I stayed pretty skinny, but in no way did that make me anywhere near to being "fit" or "healthy". My energy levels were constantly low throughout high school and I generally always felt tired and in need of naps. In fact, I'm pretty sure every day after high school I would come home and take a nap. However, because my mom is a strong believer in a well-balanced diet, I always did have a decent amount of vegetables and fruit in my diet, so I definitely wasn't the unhealthiest person on the planet. I probably was the pickiest eater though (don't get me wrong, I still am)! I hated wheat bread, I hated bananas, I hated the majority of vegetables, and when faced with options, I'd always pick the unhealthier, "tastier" choice. I'm pretty sure I ate a lot of chips and junk food every day or whenever I felt like it, and no matter how much my sister, who is studying nutrition in college, or my mom urged me to eat healthier, I paid no attention. It wasn't until I started college that I realized how much I needed to change my diet.

Being at UCLA has definitely been a blessing. Ranked one of the best in the nation for our dining hall food, there was always a plethora of opportunities to choose the healthy choice. Being around people who ate healthy and sick of feeling tired and weak all the time,  I decided it was time to live the healthy choice. I started by making the switch from white bread to wheat bread, from pizzas to salads, and from Frosted Flakes cereal to Special K with strawberries. I made myself suck it up and eat things that I would have never done before, such as oatmeal, spinach, kale, and beets, and I basically cut off junk food from my diet. It was definitely tough in the beginning, but eventually I felt my energy levels increasing and I felt so much better physically and mentally. I did some yoga during the winter quarter of my freshman year, and I began going to the gym five times a week for an hour. By the end of the school year, my energy levels were great and I felt amazing and as healthy as I could be. In fact, I was healthy enough to travel Europe that following summer of 2013 with my family, and just this past March, I was well enough to go on a camping trip with a bunch of my friends for spring break!

Nutrition and diet plays a huge role in helping our hearts and bodies function at the best they can be, and if I was able to have any advice when I was first diagnosed with heart disease, it would have been to change my diet, exercise lightly, and live the healthy choice. Junk food every now and then is definitely not going to hurt you, but as long as you eat it in moderation and balance them with healthy meals, you should be fine. If you are in my situation or know anyone with heart disease, I really strongly encourage healthy eating and as much exercise as possible to help you feel the best you can. Even daily 30-minute walks to go along with eating healthy is a great step in the right direction!

Disclaimer: I am in no means a nutritionist or a dietitian, so if you would like full advice on how to change your diet and balance your nutrition, please seek one out. I am just speaking from personal experience! If you would like me to post some examples of some meals that I eat, feel free to let me know :) In fact, if you would love for some ideas to get you started, you can check out my sister's blog here!

A picture from my spring break camping trip with a bunch of my friends back in March! :)