Page 65 - May 2018 - December 2018 Issue

Eating Right, Feeling Right!

By Erica San Diego, Human Resources and Administration

What tips or learnings can you share with others who would also like Ms. Annie Rose Diaz, Contracts Senior Engineer, Tollways
to turn to a healthy lifestyle? Development and Engineering

Everything in excess is bad. Too much dieting is bad. No exercise is bad, in Have you always been health conscious?
fact now I’m ready to inject a 2-3x a week of walking in my regiment.
No
Do not compensate your tiredness from exercise by eating.
It’s ok to cheat on your diet but set cheat days and decide on which What made you become conscious?
portion of your diet or exercise you will cheat, don’t cheat on all. Example
of a cheat is eating pasta on a weekend, if you’re on a low carb diet. When the doctor from my pre-employment medical
examination told me that, “Oi Overweight ka”. That’s when I
Boost your happy hormones: realized that I am over 66 kilograms and considered
overweight based on BMI chart.
Dopamine: it’s your brain’s reward system. It’s what lights up when you are
praised for a good job you did, or that feeling of fulfillment when you What steps did you take to be healthy?
finish a job, even if it’s just cleaning your room.
Serotonin: this happy hormone is boosted by exercising. ■ Restricted myself from eating foods that are high in
carbohydrates.
Oxytocin: it’s the love hormone. Spending time with the one you love and ■ Downloaded a weight-loss application to track my
spreading kindness boosts this hormone. calories intake and engaged myself in HIIT workouts.
■ Bought a weighing scale to track my progress.
Estrogen: this hormone helps form Serotonins and protects you from
irritability and anxiety, keeping your mood steady. Extreme exercise and What are your indicators for success?
smoking (a-hem for me) deplete this so practice moderation.

Progesterone: this helps us sleep well and keep anxiety, irritability and ■ Weight lose equivalent to 2.2 pounds per week.
mood swings at bay. So de-stress like get a massage, hang out with happy ■ I can fit with my old clothes and jeans.
people, low intake of junk food/fast food.
What tips or learnings can you share with others who
And lastly when you slip up in your diet or in your exercise, just re-set and would also like to turn to a healthy lifestyle?
start again. Let’s keep it real.
If you want to live a healthy lifestyle and to be in a better
shape, you should eat the right amount of calories, drink a lot
of water, get a regular physical activity and most importantly,
develop a positive outlook in life.

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