My name is Jenn and I am self confessed healthy living addict. I am a kindergarten teacher with the New Westminster School District and can usually be found up to my elbows in paint, playing tag on the playground, or swarmed by my twenty minions while we navigate our way through their exciting and influential first year of school.
While I love being a classroom teacher, I am embarking upon graduate studies to expand my knowledge in Health Education and Active Living; a field in which expertise is so greatly needed in a school system where often children and their families come to us so unequipped to live happy and healthy lives. With my continued education I am excited to learn from the diverse group of individuals in my program and to implement innovative ideas and initiatives into my practice. I would love to someday move sideways in my career path and work as an educational consultant or programmer within Health Education in collaboration with communities or schools.
My interest in health education comes from the struggles I witness people having daily with exercise and nutrition. Most days I find myself having conversations with parents and students about health concerns such as food affordability, nutritious lunches, picky eaters, and becoming acquainted with new foods. With colleagues and friends I find myself constantly engaged in conversation about confusion over food and what good health looks like. Questions of dubious health claims, finding time and outlets for exercise, and making sustainable change are continuous topics of conversation. It is ever apparent that people are not finding answers. I know what it is like to struggle with healthy living and have lived first hand the effort it takes to change your habits and ultimately your life. I’m very excited to begin graduates studies in this field and attempt to shift my thinking and possibly make greater changes in this world for those children and families who are finding health and balance unattainable in their lives.
In my personal life, those who know me would say that I can be found in one of two places, the kitchen or the gym. My blog is titled FuelYourLife because I believe that good nutrition and exercise are the cornerstones of good health. Food is the fuel that our body runs on, and eating is one of my greatest priorities. I Eat Clean, which is essentially a way of eating, here are the basic rules:
- Eat a wide-variety of whole, unrefined and unprocessed foods in a form that’s as close as possible to how the foods appear in nature
- Avoid processed sugars, especially sugary beverages like soda
- Avoid saturated fat and trans fats, and instead substitute healthy, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats
- Always combine complex carbohydrates with lean protein and some healthy fats at every meal
- Spread your food out over 5-6 smaller meals, consumed every 2-3 hours
- Eat for maximum nutrient density. In other words, avoid “empty” calories found in fast food, soda, snacks, cakes and cookies, and substitute in nutrient-dense snacks.
- Pay attention to proper portions and practice portion control
- Drink lots of water (at least 8 cups a day.)
I’m also a pescetarian (no meat, just fish and seafood) who avoids dairy and restricts grains so eating for me takes some organization and planning. Cooking delicious and healthy meals one of my most pleasurable hobbies and I spend hours in my kitchen researching, creating, eating, and feeding others. I never leave home without my lunch and snacks packed so I feel full and energized at all times.
The other essential way to fuel your body is by keeping it active and able. Exercise is how I relax and I am at my best when I’m at the gym giving everything I have to my workout, training 5-6 days a week. I love the methodology of creating my routines, figuring out my split, and keeping my body guessing through a mix of high intensity intervals, plyometrics, and heavy lifting. Keeping my body lean and strong is always my focus and it propels me through my workouts. My favourite cardio is skipping and I will sometimes skip for an hour when I’m in my groove. I ensure I evenly train my entire body, but I secretly admit I love training my lower body the most.
FuelYourLife will hopefully be a cathartic experession of my journey through my studies in Health Education and Active Living. I hope to share my quest for optimal health and find ways to excite others about my greatest passion, health and active living.
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