Personal Statement

I never really thought about nutrition before, until recently. When I was younger I was pretty healthy and active, until about 4 years ago on my birthday, that’s when it all changed. I got an Xbox 360, man was I excited, all my friends had one and now I finally got one. But ever since that day I have stopped being active and have been gaining weight and I have finally realized why I did, videogames. But I am not here to bash videogames, I love playing videogames, rather I am here to discuss my new found interest in nutrition, eating healthy, and staying active.

First of all, what is nutrition? Nutrition is the study of nutrients in food, how the body uses nutrients and the relationship between diet, health and disease. Nutrients

I have never had a healthy diet, but I want to have one. To have a healthy diet, i have found that I must balance my food in a way that suits my needs for fiber, carbs, protein etc. When coming up with a diet I must also take into account how much I want to exercise so I don’t eat too little or too much. I need to figure out how many calories I need to eat per day. You’re calorie intake varies depending on your weight, age, and activity level. There are many calorie intake calculators on the internet that anyone can use for free. I decided to try to eat under 1800 calories a day and exercise for at least 60 minutes a day. Now that I had my calorie intake and how much I exercise, I need to make a sort of meal plan. So i started thinking of food i like, eggs, bacon, chicken, steak, etc. and made a schedule based on healthy foods and foods i like. I am pretty picky when it comes to food. I don’t like eating things I think look gross, but I wouldn’t go as far as Wendell Berry, “How fresh is it? How pure or clean is it, how free of dangerous chemicals? How far was it transported, and what did transportation add to the cost? How much did manufacturing or packaging or advertising add to the cost? When the food product has been manufactured or “processed” or “precooked,” how has that affected its quality or price or nutritional value?” (Wendell Berry, “The Pleasures of Eating”. Par 3.)

"Physical activity or exercise can improve your health and reduce the risk of developing several diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Physical activity and exercise can have immediate and long-term health benefits. Most importantly, regular activity can improve your quality of life" ("Physical Activity - Its Important" Better Health Channel. Fitness Australia. July 2012). I never realized just how important staying active was until i researched it. Staying active has so many benifits, such as, having stronger bones, reduced risk of heart attack, having lower blood pressure, and having more energy and just generally feeling better. This inspired me to start going to the gym, my parents had been going for a few months and i decided to join them. I know now from experience how good exercising feels, and oh man was i sore after the first