Scrambled Thoughts and Boiled Goals

By Noel Galon de Leon

This weekend, Saturday and Sunday, I’m finally taking a break. Pahinga, at last. But before I slip into full-on relaxation mode, I plan to hit the grocery store for some essentials for the coming week: chicken breast, eggs (lots of them), rolled oats, coffee, kamote, laswa, and green tea. These are the sacred items listed in the meal plan that Coach Dawn prepared for me.

Before we parted ways at the gym yesterday, Coach Dawn gave me that all-too-familiar coach stare and said, “Just follow everything I tell you and we’ll get your body transformation faster.”In my head, I thought, “Do I even have a choice?” I like what I’m doing right now, and part of liking it means trusting the expert, even when I secretly crave chicharon while lying under the electric fan.

But in all seriousness, I’ve been doing a lot of soul-searching lately. Can I really do this consistently? Can I commit to going to the gym on my scheduled days and eating only what I’m supposed to? No cheating, no shortcuts. I’m not just trying to meet my obligations to Coach Dawn. I’m also trying to take care of my body, my health, and yes, my sanity. I literally pray I can keep this up. Because honestly, it’s not easy to show up every day, lift weights, and do every rep while running on pure determination (and black coffee).

Coach Dawn once told me that physical readiness is only part of the equation. Mental readiness is just as important. And most of all, you should actually enjoy what you’re doing. You have to look forward to the changes coming your way. So here I am today, sipping black coffee with one packet of stevia, reminding myself that I can do this. This is for me. This is for my health.

Funny thing is, even though my official start date was supposed to be Monday, I already kicked off the diet today. I woke up, boiled three eggs, drank some water, and that was my breakfast. I ate them while computing grades for my students, and to my surprise, I felt satisfied. I think I can live like this, especially because I genuinely love eggs in all their glorious forms.

My go-to egg dish is the humble hard-boiled egg. It tastes pure, solid, and comforting. Sometimes I dip it in ketchup, sometimes in salt, but lately I just eat it plain. I’ve loved it that way since forever. So today was easy. Those three eggs powered me through until lunch.

Of course, eggs are the ultimate shapeshifter in the kitchen. You can make them sunny-side up, scrambled, soft-boiled, poached, or omeletted. You can whip them into deviled eggs, tamago, tortang talong, egg fried rice, sandwiches, or go fancier with salted eggs, century eggs, chawanmushi, egg drop soup, scotch eggs, shakshuka, frittata, quiche, and baked eggs. I mean, let’s be honest eggs have more range than most actors.

So maybe on Monday, when I go back to the gym, I’ll bring some hard-boiled eggs with me. Itlog is life, no question about it.

Aside from following Coach Dawn’s advice, I’ve also been doing my own research. Websites like Healthline are great. Their articles are medically reviewed, written by professionals, and very easy to understand. Perfect for people like me who are just starting out but want to do things right.

Another helpful site is Mayo Clinic, where the content is backed by doctors. WebMD is another favorite of mine, though let’s be honest, one search about a sore throat and suddenly you think you’re dying. Still, it’s good to have trusted sources.

For those of us in the Philippines, I recommend checking out the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD) under DOST. They offer local health research, tech innovations, and news that’s both informative and relevant.

It’s only been two days since I got back to the gym, but I already feel a difference. My sleep has improved. I still wake up early, but I sleep more soundly now. Maybe it’s the workouts. Maybe it’s the cleaner eating. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s the magical power of itlog.

Anyway, that’s all for now. I’ve got chores to tackle, laundry, mopping, dusting, sweeping the yard. And to be honest, if you do enough of those in one day, you’ve basically done cardio and strength training. Who needs a treadmill when you’ve got a walis tambo and a full laundry basket?

And if I get hungry afterward? Don’t worry. May itlog akong nakahanda.

***

Noel Galon de Leon is a writer and educator at University of the Philippines Visayas, where he teaches in both the Division of Professional Education and U.P. High School in Iloilo. He serves as an Executive Council Member of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts-National Committee on Literary Arts.