Reflections from the Week

#isitthursdayalready?

This week has just flown by with master's class to dos and preparing for my dietetic internship. I submitted a proposed schedule to Illinois State for the next year, and I believe we have come to an agreement with the schedule. For distance dietetic internships like Illinois State, interns must procure their own rotation sites. For the past two months, there have been many a cold call and dead end. However, I also was able to find several solid sites for internship, and am so so grateful that this experience is almost here.

I am a bit nervous about starting internship and my career. There's the perpetual question of What if I fail? But failure is not the end. I have been thinking a lot about failure, for better or worse, this whole week. Failure is not the end of a journey; it can be used to grow in a certain aspect, or be sent in a totally new direction. Small failures, for example in individual coursework or a day at internship, can be utilized as a learning experience. If I fail at something in my upcoming internship, I can keep going and learn from that mistake. I hope to not completely fail at school, but even if I did, I could still use the knowledge I have gained to better those around me. Failure is tricky sometimes, but it is not the end of life's journey. Thus, I am trying to embrace the uncertainty surrounding the future, and the potential for failure or success.

Movement is so, so good. Incorporating dancing around the house, a walk around the neighborhood, yoga sessions, etc., can greatly improve stress levels and overall health. I have begun taking more walks during the less hot times of day, as it is summer. I am grateful to live in an area that is walkable; I know others are not as fortunate. If this is the case for you, perhaps try some indoor-friendly workouts. It is so nice to move those muscles after a long day of sitting at a computer or a full night's sleep in a single position. Stretching allows the body gentle movement to embrace the day. And, to put it simply, movement feels good and fits the body well.

Lastly, I have some thoughts from my childhood obesity course. If I would not recommend a dietary change to someone with a BMI of 23 due to potential health problems from that change, I will not recommend it to an individual with an obese BMI. Dearest readers of every shape and size, I hope you incorporate healthy habits into your lifestyle. Your body is beautiful and life is a gift. Let's not be harmful to individuals of any size by recommending intensely caloric-restrictive diets. It's not helpful. It's difficult to get the daily macro and micronutrients one needs to survive and thrive when restricting daily calories. Instead, foster a healthier lifestyle by adding a variety of foods, and incorporate gentle movement into a daily routine. Perhaps this will cause weight loss, perhaps it will cause muscle gain, but the real goal is a healthy lifestyle. Ideally, this will cause better management of chronic illness and will improve laboratory values. This is what I hope to promote in my future dietetics practice.

These are some of my thoughts from a stressful, but good week. I know it's a bit tangential, but I hope y'all enjoyed this food for thought.