Reflective Essay / Diet Analysis Paper
When I joined this course, I thought it was just going to be one of those classes that I
take, get it over with, and never think about again. Trust me when I say, I was very wrong. I have
learned so many new things during the time I’ve spent working to complete this course this
semester. For example, different cultural cuisines that are healthier than others, learning which
labels can be deceptive and which are safe, good and bad bacteria that grow in our stomach, the
purpose of pesticides and how they are used, etc. I could sit all day naming things that I’ve
learned this semester, things that I never thought I would come to know and actually appreciate
the importance of this knowledge. The biggest thing I have come to learn about though, is my
diet. Until this class, I have never really looked into the things that I am putting into my body or
whether or not I am meeting certain recommended daily values, but when I finally did it was a
very big wake up call.
Some of the first things I learned about having a healthy diet came from chapter 2 of our
online text, and in section 2.1 it told me about “The ABCs of Eating for Health.” The ABCs
consists of six dietary principles and according to the book they are, “1. Adequacy (to provide
enough of the essential nutrients, fiber, and energy—in the form of calories), 2. Balance (to
avoid overemphasis on any food type or nutrient at the expense of another), 3. Calorie control (to
supply the amount of energy you need to maintain a healthy weight—not more, not less), 4.
Nutrient density (to create a healthy eating pattern that meets nutrient needs and stays within
calorie limits), 5. Moderation (to avoid excess amounts of unwanted constituents, such as solid
fats and added sugars), 6. Variety (to incorporate a wide selection of different foods from within
and among the different food groups rather than eating the same foods day after day.” After
learning about these dietary principles and doing some self-reflection, I realized that I practiced
little to none of these principles. It really showed when I began completing the Mind-Tap Diet
Analysis Reports. I wasn’t even close to meeting even half of my dietary guidelines and
recommended daily values. It was very eye opening to see just how bad my diet really was.
Looking back on my Chapter 2 Diet and Wellness Activity, my 3-Day Average report
showed me that of all the nutrients I had consumed, the only ones that met one hundred percent
of my goal were Protein, Riboflavin, Niacin, Iron, Sodium, and Total Fat. Although these are the
ones that “met” my goal, some of them were exceeding the one hundred percent mark which is
not a healthy recommendation. The nutrients that were not meeting the one hundred percent goal
were Kilocalories, Carbohydrates, Saturated Fat, Linoleic, Linolenic, Dietary Fiber, Water,
Pyridoxine, Cobalamin, Folate, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, Vitamin A, Vitamin K, Vitamin E,
Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, Zinc, and Thiamin. Finally, the nutrients that were meeting the
goal but ultimately exceeding it were Sodium, Protein, Riboflavin, and Niacin. I am missing a lot
of the essential nutrients that are required for a healthy diet and overall, a healthy lifestyle.
According to our book, “A balanced diet is composed of approximately 10 to 35 percent protein,
45 to 65 percent carbohydrates (with no more than 10 percent of this amount from added sugars
or caloric sweeteners), and 20 to 35 percent from fat.” This shows that my diet wasn’t even close
to being considered a “balanced diet. The only part of my diet that was balanced was my fats, I
met exactly on hundred percent of my total goal. I can’t say the same for my protein and
carbohydrates. My protein intake was 129.289%, that is almost thirty percent over the
recommended daily value, and my carbohydrate intake was 58.247%, that is over forty percent
lower than what I should have been consuming. Therefore, I would say that it is safe to say my
diet wasn’t a particularly balanced diet according to my Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) Report.
Onto my MyPlate analysis, this wasn’t too promising for me either. The only goal that I met on
MyPlate was once again proteins, and just like in my DRI report, I surpassed it. In this case I
almost doubled my goal, I was 76.307% over the recommended protein intake. As for the other
groups, they were all below my goal. My grains were 72.94%, Vegetables were 14.595%, Fruits
were 0%, and finally dairy was only 19.444%. If I continue on this path, I have a future of very
unhealthy choices that could later on put me at risk of a variety of illnesses and complications.
A big part of this course that I believe I made the most out of was the appointments with
a nutrition counselor. This helped me to pinpoint the flaws in my diet and come up with ways to
fix or improve them. I found these appointments to be extremely helpful in setting goals for the
future to promote living a healthy lifestyle. I had the honor to be able to work with Mia Schulz as
my counselor. She was very helpful in helping me understand the ins and outs of a health diet. I
felt that she really listened to the concerns about my diet and that helped me to open up and feel
comfortable with coming up with goals to improve my health. During the first initial
appointment we talked about my concerns with my diet, and one of my major concerns was
whether or not I am actually healthy considering my weight and height. I was assured that I am
at a healthy BMI for my weight and height, but we talked about a few goals that I could set, and I
finally decided to set up my first goal which was to increase the number of calories that I am
consuming each day. We used the “SMART Goal-Setting Worksheet” to write down and keep
track of my goal and the things I should be doing to meet this goal. The first step on the
worksheet was, obviously, to come up with my goal. The second step was “Make your goal
detailed and SPECIFIC”, I had to come up with three ways on how I am going to meet my goal.
With the help of my advisor, we came up with 1. Make time out of the day to eat (one of the
things we discussed on why I didn’t eat as much was because I am very busy), 2. Meal Planning
(helps me stay organized on how much I eat, and it also saves me time throughout the week
being able to just grab a meal and go), 3. Eat snacks between meals (eating peanuts, apples, etc.
is an easy way to build up some more calories throughout the day.) The third step is “Make your
goal MEASURABLE”, I measure all of my progress on an app on my phone as well as
occasionally on the Diet and Wellness app on MindTap. Step four is “Make your goal
ATTAINABLE”, which means have the resources to complete this goal, and have people hold
you accountable for keeping up with this goal. Step five is “Make your goal RELEVANT”,
which means, why do I want to reach this goal? I want to reach this goal in order to live an
overall healthier lifestyle. Finally, the last step is “Make your goal TIMELY”, which means put a
deadline to when you want to finish this goal. My deadline is by the end of the semester. With
the semester coming to an end, I can definitely see an improvement, and I would say that I have
pretty much met my goal. From my first report for the D&W activity to our last report where we
had to track another 3 days, I would say that I have seen tremendous improvement in my diet. It
still may not be perfect but some of the improvements that I have seen include meeting my B12,
B6, Folate, and Zinc. Also, my fruits and vegetables intake have greatly improved on MyPlate. I
owe a lot of these improvements to the nutrition counseling appointments; they helped a lot!
With the school year coming to an end, I don’t want to stop improving my diet just
because I am done with this class, I want to keep setting and meeting goals. One short term goal
that I would like to set is by the end of the summer I will have met my daily recommended value
on over 75% of the nutrients of my DRI report. I will do this by meal planning and research. I am
going to do some research on different recipes that help me meet these daily values. For
example, in my meal plans I am going to include nutrient rich foods that will help me meet the
recommended values. I also might look into possibly taking vitamin supplements maybe once a
day for a few times a week. I think by doing these things, I will be able to reach my goal by the
start of next school year. A long-term goal that I am going to set is working out more and getting
more physical activities. I want to build more muscle and try to get my weight up. I think this
goes hand in hand with my meal planning and diet. I want to be at least 150 pounds by the
middle of 2023. I think I can attain this goal by setting up my own workout plan, going to the
gym religiously, and planning a healthy diet that will help me gain weight.
Overall, I am very thankful to have taken this class. I have learned so many things about
nutrition over the course of this semester, and as I stated in the first paragraph, the knowledge I
gained in this class is something that will help me throughout my entire life. I am most grateful
for the knowledge I gained on my diet. This course has really taught me how important a healthy
diet is, and more importantly how to build a healthy diet. I can’t wait to continue to push my diet
and life into a healthier and overall better direction.