How I Learned to Eat Well for My Body

I’ve always been an athlete. For my entire life, I’ve been involved in fitness and athletics in some way, shape, or form. As a kid I played soccer, basketball, and lacrosse, and I swam as well. By high school I was swimming competitively– often practicing twice a day, spending hours in the pool. I’d grown accustomed to always having a fast metabolism and eating pretty much anything my body craved without having to think twice. 

It wasn’t until college when I stopped swimming competitively that my body started to understand the gravity of how much I was in the pool and the true intensity of my previous fitness level. At that point, I wasn’t practicing like a swimmer, but I was still eating like one. Like before, I still wasn’t thinking about what I was putting into my body; only now it was different. I wasn’t using all that energy in the pool. 

This is when my real journey with fitness started. I realized that I needed to find new ways to be active in order to compensate for the loss of my competitive swimming. That’s when I started running. Running gave me the same high I used to get from the pool. I started practicing yoga, cycling… just about anything I could do to get my body moving again, I was doing. Not only was I able to begin eating as I wanted again, but I also found new energy. I felt this energy within myself, and my body was satisfied again.

Up next? My vegan journey. Initially, my decision to become a vegan was morality driven. I have always been an animal lover. However, as time moved on, I began to feel the positive effects that veganism had on my body. By removing dairy from my diet, I unintentionally eliminated a large amount of saturated fats from my diet as well, which improved my cardiovascular health. I found that I could amp up my workouts for longer periods of time without feeling burned out to exhaustion. Since I removed meat and added salt, my cholesterol is more steady, keeping my heart healthy and happy. Eating all raw, non GMO, natural foods gives me energy and makes my body incredibly happy.

My fitness journey, like many things in life, is ongoing and constantly improving and changing. I love my new lifestyle and am thankful for the positive effects it has had on my mind, body, and soul. Getting into a fit lifestyle will forever be the best choice I have ever made in my life, and I hope to be able to share that change with others!