I am so excited to share my first article with you! I’m originally from Turkey. Almost 10 years ago, when I was living in Istanbul, I read a book about Hawaii and dreamed of living here. I couldn’t speak English,
I am so excited to share my first article with you!
I’m originally from Turkey. Almost 10 years ago, when I was living in Istanbul, I read a book about Hawaii and dreamed of living here. I couldn’t speak English, didn’t even have a passport, but I always believed in my dream. Why am I telling you this? I just want to share this with you to make sure you never forget your dreams. I am living my dream, and you can, too!
Do you know what “diet” means? This may surprise you, but the word diet actually means “daily food allowance.” So really everyone is dieting, just by eating our food each day. But it’s up to us to choose what we eat — nutrient-rich healthy food, or nutrient-poor food.
Most people, unfortunately, don’t know much about nutrition. Actually most of us know more about our car or our phone than our body! There is a reason we need food: for energy, and to grow and repair cells. If you start to learn about nutrition then you can control how you gain or lose weight. For example, did you know that just by eating the correct balance of macronutrients (protein, carbohydrate and fat) you can lose fat 50 percent faster? Or do you know how much sugar you’re taking when you drink 8 ounces of orange juice? You just need to start asking yourself the question, “What am I eating right now.” Am I taking the right amount of nutrients for my body, or not enough, or too much? Whenever you have the answer you will learn one new thing. And there’s an extra bonus here too: studies show that learning keeps your brain young!
Almost every scientific study shows that dieting has a 98 percent failure rate – so 98 percent of the people who lose weight from a diet gain it all back again within two years. Yes, sorry, but you have just a 2 percent chance of long-term success.
Did you know the answer to my orange juice question? An 8 oz orange juice has about 6 tsp of sugar. That’s almost the complete daily recommended sugar intake for women – from a single glass of orange juice!
So the biggest difference you can make in losing weight and getting in shape is by educating yourself. Learn about nutrition. Your body is unique, so someone else’s diet will never be perfect for you — do your own studies and learn about your own body!
If you chose healthy, nutritious food then you will think much more clearly, and you’ll have a higher energy level – so you will really want to walk, run or go to the gym. Create a great life by making the correct decisions for you.
I love Peace Pilgrim’s quote: “I don’t eat junk food, I don’t have junk thoughts!”
In my next articles, over the coming weeks, I’m looking forward to going deeper into some of the specific steps you can take in creating your perfect, healthy life.
“A goal is a dream with a deadline.” ~Napoleon Hill
•••
Ayda Ersoy is a nutrition and fitness director at The Diet Doc Hawaii.
