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My Journey to Food and Nutrition

I became interested in food and nutrition a few years ago—but it took a personal health shift to truly get me here.

As an Italian, born and raised, I always assumed that I knew how to eat a healthy, balanced and nutritious meal. I never struggled with my weight. In fact, I grew up with my mother and grandmother constantly serving me large portions because they thought I was too skinny.

Fast forward to my adult years. At 45+, a routine check-up revealed that I was on the path to insulin resistance and pre-diabetes.

But I thought I knew how to manage it on my own. I figured it would be enough to just stop adding sugar in my coffee.

Predictably, the next year, my bloodwork results were off again: pre-diabetes and high cholesterol. I had to ask myself: What was I doing wrong?

I started bimonthly consultations with a nutritionist, with whom I learned a few critical aspects of food that I hadn't been aware of, like the importance of protein intake at breakfast.

But at the time, I didn't want to modify my breakfast. Why would I want to replace my traditional bread, butter, and marmalade with scrambled eggs? I resisted the change and thought I would just add beans to my lunch salad instead to resolve the problem.

Again, the year after that, my blood sugar levels were off again.

That was the moment I realized I needed to deepen my knowledge.

I enrolled in a nutrition coaching certification with Precision Nutrition to study their methodology and put their approach into practice.

To be honest, I wasn't expecting too much because I was partly convinced my insulin resistance was genetic, since my father had diabetes. But I gave it a try anyway, especially since my physician told me I needed to either change my diet or begin taking medication—which I wasn't keen on doing.

After 6 months of consistently practicing new healthy habits, I went back and sat in my physician’s office to review my bloodwork. The results were clear:

-       Fasting blood sugar level was below the acceptable limit,

-       HbA1c (Pre-diabetes marker) was one point lower than the previous year, and

-       Cholesterol levels were down too.

Thanks to the PN methodology, I learned how to manage my nutrition and energy intake without sacrificing the food I love. It taught me how to adjust portions for my own body type, keeping the entire process simple, enjoyable, and sustainable for the long haul.