MY JOURNEY TO HEALTHY LIVING
Living a healthy, happy lifestyle
is not always instinctual. My
journey to healthy living definitely
was not. I have always
been an athlete. From a young
age, my parents always had
my brother, sister and I participating
in sports all year long,
and although I did not set out
to play collegiate-level sports,
I knew I wanted to stay active
when I began college.
I started regularly lifting
weights my freshman year of
college, but it wasn’t until my
junior year that I started bodybuilding.
Bodybuilding for me
was an entirely new concept. I
learned not only weight lifting
techniques and approaches,
but how to properly fuel and
nourish my body. It was a methodical
and disciplinary science
that promoted health in a
whole new light. The grueling
workouts were not hard for me
to grow accustomed to, but the
regimented diet proved more
difficult.
I had never paid much attention
to what I ate. I ate the
normal, American’s diet of sugar
and processed foods, loaded
with carbs and fats. I never took
into account how my body processed
those foods and how it
affected my physical and mental
performance. Once I started
eating clean, lean meat, lots
of green veggies, and a healthy
complex carb in small portions
several times throughout the
day, the outcome was incredible.
I was much more energized, saw
much better results in my body
composition and look, had a
more positive outlook, and was
so much more confident. Prog-
By Somer Stephens
26 Healthy Living | Winter Issue | 2017–2018