What an amazing weekend...weather wise. As for me, 15 hours of last minute studying on Sat and Sun and a B on my mid-term (I had another quiz on medical nutrition therapy on burns, wound, stress and surgery on Fri). The difficulty of the questions exceeded my expectations and I was nearly in tears mid-way through my exam. Giving myself a grade for my test-taking skills, I'm probably a high A for not being the best test taker. I tend to overthink and right now in my pursuit to be a RD, there is still a lot of thinking and second guessing. The body is amazingly complex and I am still struggling putting all the pieces together. But nevertheless, 150 questions and 1 hour and 54 minutes later, I was finished with my exam and I did much better than I expected. Whewww.
My training has really taken a back-seat lately...as has much of the other things I like doing for fun (ex. blogging). But, I had no trouble getting out the door on Sat at 7am for a 3hr and 30 min, 67 mile bike ride. Karel was out of town all weekend, to race 4 races in 2 days. Karel and his teammate James have ended up on the podium for almost every race they have done this weekend and the new Gearlink Pro 1,2 Team is fun to watch in action. Too bad I have only seen 1 race thus far but I know I'll have plenty to watch after April 25th.
Great job Karel!!
While Karel was off racing in Lake Mary, FL, I joined a large group of guys (and 1 other female) for a fast and fun group ride. I LOVE my saturday group ride and the people on the ride. It was Trimarni's (my tri bike for new readers) first group ride and second ride outdoors since IMWI and we had no trouble keeping up with the guys. I wanted to ride longer but my studies were on my mind. Can't wait til next weekend. Karel is off from racing and I am craving a group bike ride with my hubby.
I never realized how difficult it was going to be to be a Registered Dietitian. Throughout this week, I saw people from all stages in the life cycle. I saw people as young as 6 months and some as old as 80+ yrs of age. While interning as an acute care clinical dietitian, I can't help but think about the normal population and how much we take for granted, the normal and healthy body.
When a baby is born, the focus is getting him/her to be as healthy as possible and to obtain the necessary nutrients to grow and age properly. I can't express in words the sadness in a mother and father's eyes when their child is not growing or has developmental problems. Our role as a RD is to prescribe the right nutrients, supplements as well as tips in order to help the child grow. While in the hospital, I walk by the rooms with cancer patients and I imagine myself in the room. It's not hard for me to thank my blessings that I am healthy at this point in my life and that I am taking the necessary steps to reduce my risk for disease and illness.
Because of all that I see in the hospital, you'd think that it would be easy to talk to people in the community, because much of the population (especially those reading my blog) is fairly healthy. Maybe an altered lab or two or a few chronic conditions but overall, most of us are able to live our life how we want and not be confined to a hospital room with around the clock care.
However, for much of our life, perhaps even 20-30 years, we abuse our body. Whether it is starvation from recommended calories, nutrient timing, fueling while exercising (or after exercise) or rigorous exercise (even while injured), many people spend much of their adult life worrying about weight and trying to reach unrealistic goals and expectations with impractical measures. If the entire world was the same weight, I have a feeling no one would really focus on their body image but would rather eat for health. But with such a hype for the "perfect" body in the media (as well as in sport), it's almost as if adults don't really care so much about health but rather about image. Do you know what it feels like to be healthy? Despite having a little jiggle when you run or seeing a little bulge around your hips, do you believe that your weight classifies your success as an athlete? Do you feel as if others are criticizing your body as you are training and racing for a personal best?
With 8 months of interning behind me and only 2 more months to go, I would strongly advise the public to worry less about body image and to focus more on keeping your body healthy throughout all stages in the life cycle.
Thanks for reading!
My training has really taken a back-seat lately...as has much of the other things I like doing for fun (ex. blogging). But, I had no trouble getting out the door on Sat at 7am for a 3hr and 30 min, 67 mile bike ride. Karel was out of town all weekend, to race 4 races in 2 days. Karel and his teammate James have ended up on the podium for almost every race they have done this weekend and the new Gearlink Pro 1,2 Team is fun to watch in action. Too bad I have only seen 1 race thus far but I know I'll have plenty to watch after April 25th.
Great job Karel!!
While Karel was off racing in Lake Mary, FL, I joined a large group of guys (and 1 other female) for a fast and fun group ride. I LOVE my saturday group ride and the people on the ride. It was Trimarni's (my tri bike for new readers) first group ride and second ride outdoors since IMWI and we had no trouble keeping up with the guys. I wanted to ride longer but my studies were on my mind. Can't wait til next weekend. Karel is off from racing and I am craving a group bike ride with my hubby.
I never realized how difficult it was going to be to be a Registered Dietitian. Throughout this week, I saw people from all stages in the life cycle. I saw people as young as 6 months and some as old as 80+ yrs of age. While interning as an acute care clinical dietitian, I can't help but think about the normal population and how much we take for granted, the normal and healthy body.
When a baby is born, the focus is getting him/her to be as healthy as possible and to obtain the necessary nutrients to grow and age properly. I can't express in words the sadness in a mother and father's eyes when their child is not growing or has developmental problems. Our role as a RD is to prescribe the right nutrients, supplements as well as tips in order to help the child grow. While in the hospital, I walk by the rooms with cancer patients and I imagine myself in the room. It's not hard for me to thank my blessings that I am healthy at this point in my life and that I am taking the necessary steps to reduce my risk for disease and illness.
Because of all that I see in the hospital, you'd think that it would be easy to talk to people in the community, because much of the population (especially those reading my blog) is fairly healthy. Maybe an altered lab or two or a few chronic conditions but overall, most of us are able to live our life how we want and not be confined to a hospital room with around the clock care.
However, for much of our life, perhaps even 20-30 years, we abuse our body. Whether it is starvation from recommended calories, nutrient timing, fueling while exercising (or after exercise) or rigorous exercise (even while injured), many people spend much of their adult life worrying about weight and trying to reach unrealistic goals and expectations with impractical measures. If the entire world was the same weight, I have a feeling no one would really focus on their body image but would rather eat for health. But with such a hype for the "perfect" body in the media (as well as in sport), it's almost as if adults don't really care so much about health but rather about image. Do you know what it feels like to be healthy? Despite having a little jiggle when you run or seeing a little bulge around your hips, do you believe that your weight classifies your success as an athlete? Do you feel as if others are criticizing your body as you are training and racing for a personal best?
With 8 months of interning behind me and only 2 more months to go, I would strongly advise the public to worry less about body image and to focus more on keeping your body healthy throughout all stages in the life cycle.
Thanks for reading!