As our team grows we would like to introduce you to our newest members. Here, one of our superstar bloggers, Melrose, talks about what got her started on her journey to better health.
Growing up, food was the apple of my eye. I particularly loved baking as a child, to the point where I decided to record my kitchen antics and call it "Melrose's cooking show". As a diabetic, one of the things I hated most was having to count carbohydrates. The carb counting was a test of delayed gratification, and only made me more excited and antsy for meal times.
My diabetes plays a big part in why I feel so strongly about health. There have been days where I wish the burden of having diabetes would just go away - the finger pricks, the insulin injections and people being overly conscious about the amount of sugar they're serving me. Good health these days seems like a privilege. It's a privilege many seemingly take for granted or easily get so wrong because of all the misinformation out there. I think that if it weren't for my diabetes I wouldn't appreciate what it means to have access to food and resources that allow me to live the quality of life I do today (or at least, not as much).
....it was in high school when my relationship with food pivoted from counting carbohydrates to counting calories instead.
That being said, somewhere along my health journey I learned to see food as something that caused both dread and shame. I think it was in high school when my relationship with food pivoted from counting carbohydrates to counting calories instead - which did anything but get me excited for my next meal. The sad thing is I convinced myself that I was counting calories for the right reasons.
We seem to live in a day and age where instead of sustainable eating habits, we adhere to fad diets and trends that leave both, our stomachs and our hearts feeling empty. I think aside from statistics, what makes the problem of disordered eating all the more “real” is hearing your closest friends, siblings, even young nieces and nephews so casually talk about how they need to lose weight or wished they looked “bigger” not because of health, but because of aesthetic reasons. One of the main reasons I started on this health journey is because I wanted to bring joy back into my relationship with food and myself. What's more, this mindset shift only happened because I decided to be honest not only about the ways I was choosing to love my body and myself, but also what actually worked for me.
I decided to be honest not only about the ways I was choosing to love my body and myself, but also what actually worked for me.
I'm still navigating my way on this health journey, but what I've learned so far is that every action you take should be done out of love for yourself. Today, I see health as feeding my body with nourishing whole foods. I see it as appreciating every last morsel of a carrot cake without the attachment of guilt. Health is about going for runs and moving my body, not because I have to reach my daily target of calories burned, but because I crave that rush of endorphins in my brain. More commonly known as “runner’s high”. It’s also about finding ways to make healthy habits sustainable, but still fun - shoutout to all those YouTube channels who acknowledge how difficult it is to live a healthy lifestyle as a student and on a budget.
I started on this health journey is because I wanted to bring joy back into my relationship with food and myself.
As part of the Blog Team at Green Karma, my hope is that our readers can take a lifestyle approach to food - one that caters to both one's mental and physical health. If you are a foodie or someone who is just looking to practise a little more self-love through informed health choices, I hope our blog posts will find you and feed you with the information you've long been looking for!
In good health and in bad....
Love, Mel