Mi Jornada To Health

By Betania Vazquez – Guzman, Mi Soul Latino

Mi “jornada” to health has been a long and varied one that continues to grow and evolve on a regular basis. I grew up with a mother who was incredibly health conscious and who showed us that every plate of arroz con habichuelas should come with a gorgeous and raw salad. We also didn’t just eat the standard Puerto Rican fare of tostones, bistec encebollado and rice and beans. We had lots of different things like soy meat, all sorts of quiche, tons of tropical fruits and raw veggies. My mother also baked and still bakes amazing goodies. One of my favorites is called “tarta de guayaba” and it’s a delish combo of short-bread-y dough with guava paste in the middle. Yumm. So as you can tell in all of that healthy eating, there was really no room for trying any junk food. Unlike our friends, we never had Captain Crunch or Cocoa Puffs for breakfast or Oreos as snacks. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing but my sister and I rarely had the chance to indulge in too many of our cravings. Fortunately for us, we were sent to Puerto Rico every summer to stay with my mother’s sisters where we were allowed to chow down on some Oreos or go to McDonalds. Even though we didn’t overindulge, my sister and I wouldn’t let a crumb go to waste.

Though, I definitely had a fantastic foundation for what was healthy and kept it up after graduating from high school, I found myself lost in my mid-twenties. I was working a very stressful job in the music industry in Los Angeles and the stress plus the distance away from my family equaled more junk food in my diet. After some time, I moved to San Francisco and went back to what I knew best – using organic produce and eating healthy. My roommate introduced me to a Health Coach who had graduated from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and it helped me get further back on track. She helped me realize that I didn’t need to go on a crazy diet to feel healthy and being gentle with your body was better than beating it up.

Unfortunately, I reverted back to eating junk food after I got laid off and moved to New York City. Thankfully, I experienced a turning point when I gave birth to a gorgeous son and to a whole NEW body that still needs a lot of healing and attention. I realized I was responsible not just for my health, but for his as well. This realization made me wonder how I could be of service and share my expertise with all those mothers who want to get healthy for themselves and more importantly for their family.

I am currently enrolled in the Health Coach program in The Institute for Integrative Nutrition and I am VERY excited to figure out where this program will take me personally and professionally. One of the focal points of the training is grasping the idea that “we are all spiritual beings in a material world and we are born with universal knowledge and universal intelligence.” It is a program that emphasizes Holistic Education; the body healing itself and the concept of Bio-Individuality – the fact that no one diet will work for everyone.

This new chapter in my jornada saludable will allow me to learn about myself but also help people learn about their own bodies. Obesity, diabetes, cancer and heart disease are killing people because they haven’t learned to nourish and care for their bodies and it is my goal to help at least one person get on their own healthy journey.

This article was first published in Mi Soul Latino.

Betania Vazquez-Guzman was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico to a mother from Puerto Rico and a Nuyorican father. She immigrated with her parents and younger sister at the tender age of 9 to Philadelphia, Pa. She attended Germantown Friends School where she had to learn to read and write English and pass fourth grade all at the same time. She is in the long process of finishing her BA in Anthropology and is currently a student at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition learning how to be an amazing Health Coach. She lives in Brooklyn with her 18 month old son and her partner.