10 Things I Learned This Summer

1. Be Flexible

From being a student, I was use to setting my own very strict schedules. I hardly ever had to change them or let anyone interfere with my plans. While for the most part I got to do that this summer too, there were times that I had to learn to be flexible. I know that in the next months as I move back in with Paul, I will have to learn that we are going to have to take each other into account when setting our own schedules.

2. Strength Training Rocks

I’ve never been so focused on working out as when I started strength training. With cardio, there is a tendency to focus on calories burned for the workout, but with strength training, it’s all about performance and getting stronger. While I hated it at first, I can’t live without it now.

3. Eating Out

Having to eat lunch at the hospital every day (I’m not complaining it was free!) was at first challenging for me. I am very use to being in total control of what I will eat all day long. Sometimes the calories were posted for meal items, but many times they were definitely not accurate anyways. Over a 10 week span, I let go of that control and focused on listening to my body, eating till I was satisfied but not overly full, and the quality of the meal. At this point, I’m only very roughly estimating calories for breakfast and dinner. Moreover, I’ve kept my weight steady (or even lost a couple pounds) throughout the summer. Yeah!

South of the Border Salad (My favorite)

Standard Fish and Veggies

Mediterranean Salad (My Salad Bar Creation)

4. Listening to My Body/Enjoying the Meal

As described above I learned to listen to my body and fuel it accordingly. I now view food as fuel for by body or medicine for the soul (if it’s a treat). The biggest benefit to learning this for me was being able to focus on the company during a meal. Although on the outside I seemed to be enjoying the meal, I was often very anxious about what I was eating and the amount…not really enjoying the company. It is now much more the opposite way around!

5. One Must Choose Health Everyday

Health decisions happen a million times a day… what we eat, if we workout, when we go to bed, doing what we love, our interactions with other people, our spiritual endeavors etc. We continually have to make those choices every single day. The same way an addict or alcoholic must choose not to pick up a cigarette, drink, or drug, we must choose health every day (for example picking up the apple instead of the donut). Some days it’s easier and some days it’s harder, but I can only be responsible for my health and hope to motivate others to do the same.

 

6. There Are Consequences to Not Choosing Health

This was an eye opener from working in the hospital for the last couple months. Having gone to graduate school for public health, I knew the statistics about people with medical issues such as high blood sugar, hypertension, high cholesterol, and high BMIs. They are at increased risk for stroke, heart attack, diabetes, and slew of other chronic diseases. Knowing that is one thing, but speaking to someone that has just had a stroke, heart attack, been diagnosed with diabetes or other chronic illnesses is another. What’s even worse is I know that I’ve only been exposed to a glimpse of their pain and suffering. Putting faces on these health problems has motivated me even further to work in preventative health. I can’t wait to begin a career that involves motivating people to take care of themselves so that maybe they may not have to endure those hardships.

 

7. I Love Writing

All the women in my family were writers, except me. I hated writing because they were so much better than me, and were so much more clever than I was. They were hard on me about grammar and spelling (let’s face it no improvement there) as a kid, so I decided math and science would be my strong points (they all hated math.) So when I decided to start blogging I wasn’t sure how it would go. I thought there was a strong possibility it would last a week and I would hate it. Turns out I’ve had so much fun and I love it! Trying to serve as a role model on my blog for living a healthy lifestyle helps keep me on track. It is also a creative outlet for me, I love editing photos and creating posts. I know I have a long way to go in website design (I am not loving this green color at the top) and learning to promote my blog, but for now, I’m ecstatic with what I’ve written over the summer. A big thank you to all my readers and supporters!

Source

Source

Source

8. 10 Minute Max Drive Time to the Gym

Driving 25 minutes to the gym is too far, it needs to be 10 minutes or closer. End. Of. Story.

9. Books on Tape Are Kind of Cool

Spending so much time driving back and forth to Arizona I listened to, two audible books. The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller and Mind Over Medicine by Lissa Rankin. I highly recommend both.

10. Appreciation For Friends and Family

I’ve been so blessed to have met two of the most wonderful people this summer, my roommates Shiou and Janet. They were always ready to celebrate with me or be there for me when it had been a hard day and I barely knew them. Their kindness and generosity continuously amazes me. Like last night they surprised me with a feast for celebrating my last day at my internship! I’ll miss them like crazy!

I’ve also got a very supportive family, future family and a group of friends that I’m extremely thankful for. I’ve already missed living with my Loma Linda roomies and seeing those friends, and I know I’ll miss Janet and Shiou, but, after two years of being gone, I’m incredibly excited to finally be moving back to Phoenix today! I can’t wait to have normal non traveling date nights with Paul. Hang out with friends face to face, and start a whole new chapter of my life!