16 | Nursing in Practice | Spring 2023
VIEWS ‘ Never trust a skinny chef ’
An epiphany during the pandemic made public health nurse Paul Watson realise he had personal and professional reasons to improve his physical fitness
The phrase ‘ never trust a skinny chef ’ implies the chef does not enjoy their own food enough to fill up on it , and so may not be fully suited to their role in that respect . Of course , this is just a baseless trope but despite that , at the start of the first Covid lockdown in 2020 I did find myself feeling like a ‘ skinny chef ’. Although in my case , I was ( in my own words ) a ‘ fat nurse ’!
This happened . Sitting on my couch one day I bent over to tie up my shoes . There was a sudden epiphany , as I realised I was so heavy and out of shape that even the act of doing my laces had me out of breath . I began to wonder how this was impacting on my role as a nurse and I sat and reflected on how my patients and colleagues must view me . I am saddened to say I felt ashamed of how I was representing myself and the nursing profession .
I am a public health nurse , and have spent many years delivering health education to many different groups of service users , educating them and encouraging positive health changes .
I realised I had now become one of those professionals who preach to others , giving a positive message while subliminally saying ‘ do as I say , not as I do ’. I thought , ‘ Oh my goodness , how can I sort this out ?’
Following a period of self-reflection , I reached decisions that I hoped would start to change my life in positive ways . Becoming fit and healthy before I turned 50 ( three years from then ) seemed a realistic and achievable goal , I thought .
I was working from home because of Covid , which gave me an opportunity to make positive changes . With shops closed or limited in their supplies , and as I was unable to get out of the house regularly , I signed up to a subscription service that delivered meal boxes to the door with menus and all the fresh ingredients required . This meant I only had food in the house for the meals for the week – nothing else . I couldn ’ t snack or eat anything ‘ outside the box ’.
Being on a limited ( but appropriate and tasty ) meal plan and calorie intake soon started to make a difference , and the weight began to go in the correct direction . However , at 17.5 stone and not feeling very healthy , I knew this change alone would not bring the desired results quickly enough . I needed to start exercising alongside my new diet , plus find the determination to stick to this new way of living .
Again , while working from home during a national lockdown , I could have easily justified doing nothing , blaming my outcomes on the pandemic restrictions . I was lucky that I had a good treadmill and static cycle at home and I started using these . I built myself a fitness plan to go with my new diet . I began running on the treadmill every day , before and after work , and two to three times a week I rode on the bike and did some sit-ups and push-ups . I can ’ t lie , I did really struggle , but I knew I had to persist to ensure I was fit enough to live a happy life and deliver my nursing duties to the best of my abilities .
Don ’ t worry , I ’ m not going to go into detail about my fitness regime , or try to sell you a DVD ! What I will say though , is that I ’ ve managed to make significant changes to my lifestyle and my health . I am pleased to report that I ’ m now fitter and healthier than I ’ ve ever been , and I ’ m reaping the rewards .
I have slimmed down to just under 12 stone , and now run two to four times a week . I needed a completely new wardrobe , and my uniform also needed changing . As I continued to exercise , I put on a little weight
Don ’ t we all have a duty to be the best that we can be and to support others to do the same ?
from adding muscle but also increased my fitness . I now alternate between a 1.5-mile run , a 1.5-mile run with a 3.5-stone backpack , and a 5.5-mile run . This is supplemented most days with sets of 60 sit-ups , 30 push-ups , 10 pull-ups and a three-minute plank .
It hasn ’ t been easy getting to this stage but the process is fun and I feel so much better . Not only is my physical health the best it ’ s ever been , but so is my mental health . Feeling healthy and believing I look nice makes me feel happy and content , and able to handle things that might previously have been a struggle .
Feeling positive , I wanted to offer some of my free time back to my local community . I applied to become a retained firefighter and passed all the physical assessments without any difficulty , outperforming others half my age . However , there was only so far my health and fitness could take me ; despite successful completion of the fitness and workbased assessments , my poor eyesight put paid to my chances . Instead , I have now started the process of becoming a community first responder for the ambulance trust – wearing glasses doesn ’ t stop me doing this .
As I said , this has not been an easy journey . It was tough to get started and even harder to maintain the progress . I suffered some basic injuries associated with weight and exercise , and had various joint pains as well as pulled muscles and tendons . I got through these , and my weight loss and increasing fitness gave me the motivation to keep going . I worked hard most days and managed to break the treadmill and the static cycle – they weren ’ t up to repeated use by a 17.5 stone man !
The worn-out gym equipment forced me to take to the streets . I now enjoy running around the town but do so early in the morning to avoid walkers and dogs . This has also not been without problems . On one occasion I was hit and thrown over the bonnet of a car that was driving on the pavement at 25mph as it entered a driveway . This resulted in soft tissue , joint and ligament issues . I am pleased to say that 10 months later I ’ m back to 99 % strength and still improving , day by day .
I know you ’ re wondering about the fabled ‘ skinny chef ’ and what any of my ramblings have to do with being a nurse . In summary , I feel being able to ‘ trust your chef ’ allows you to enjoy your food and your dining experience ; in the same way , believing your health adviser is following their own advice makes it more relatable .
I believe that nurses , now more than ever , are in the spotlight and should see themselves as role models and positive examples for others .
I deliver training to NHS staff , mainly around CPR and resuscitation . Daily , I see staff struggling with their general level of fitness and many for whom it ’ s an effort to get up and down off the floor . I haven ’ t written this to shame others or to impose my fitness routine onto anyone . My aim , instead , is to demonstrate that change is possible .
I strongly believe nurses are , and continue to be , respected by the general public . But this means we are under scrutiny all of the time . As a profession , we need to be living the positive , healthy lifestyle we are hoping the wider population will aspire to .
Don ’ t we all have a duty to be the best that we can be and to support others to do the same ? Let ’ s not have nurses being thought of as like that ‘ skinny chef ’.
Paul Watson RN , BSCPHN , is clinical skills trainer at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust