Anyone Can Cook… But Only the Fearless Can Be Great

Wow, this year is already halfway over. It has been quite a wild ride, and for me, this may even be an understatement. 

Let me preface this by saying none of what I am about to share is for kudos or notoriety. I truly could care less about any of that at this point in my life (sorry, ego-driven, early career former self). 

Sometimes life can hit you fast and unexpectedly. And it can be A LOT. We’re all human — chatGPT has no attribution here — and sometimes those hits can knock you down pretty hard.

How you get back up and respond is the key.

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Receiving a Type-2 Diabetes Diagnosis

June 2023 - Looking more like people should call me Matt Foley, Motivational Speaker (Photo: Rachel Beals Photography)

In February I was diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes. I was devastated. All I could think was “Why me?”

Sure, there’s a family history of diabetes on both sides, but there are people way unhealthier than me, right? This sucks. 

After some difficult days and anger-driven self-reflection, there wasn’t anyone to blame but myself. Turns out that starting the day with a terribly unhealthy soda or an energy drink paired with fatty foods or even candy isn’t part of a balanced diet.

Who would’ve thought? 

Anyone who has worked with me over the past 8 years knows this was my reality for quite some time, even to the point that coworkers probably saw it as a personality trait. 

After mulling over the diagnosis, I returned to the doctor for clarification. I was told I could continue my diet as usual with the prescribed Metformin dosage, but I’d need to take the medication long-term. There wasn’t much belief that things could change for me naturally. 

That’s when my competitive side kicked in.

It was time to make a lifestyle change and give a big middle finger to doubt. 

Education About a Type-2 Diabetes Diagnosis

I read numerous books to educate myself on the subject, and how I could better myself in the long run. This book said one thing, another said something else, but I pulled anything and everything I thought could help better myself. 

One book, in particular, resonated heavily and helped change my mindset from fear and self-loathing to actionable change. That book was The Diabetes Code by Dr. Jason Fung.

Lifestyle Changes are the First Step to Curbing a Type-2 Diabetes Diagnosis

Grilling has quickly become a favorite hobby. I will note that my wife “loves this era for me”

I bought multiple cookbooks and changed my entire diet. Gone were the sugary drinks and sweets and in came protein-rich meals with hearty servings of fruits and vegetables. I reduced my carb intake to under 100g per day. Black coffee became my best friend. 

Don’t get me wrong, it was definitely challenging cutting out so many things that I would have considered favorites for basically my entire life.

I thought I’d hate it, but I found creativity in cooking. My cooking journey became my newest form of meditation and self-expression.

For healthy diabetes-friendly recipe ideas, follow me on Instagram.

I began lifting and walking 1.5-2 miles roughly 4-5 times each week. I met with a dietician and was given a diabetic-friendly plan, but through all of this change, I was still a bit skeptical that I could ever get better.

Dealing with Stress Through a Type-2 Diabetes Diagnosis 

Dad Mode: Level 1 - Leaving the hospital to take our son home

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention… all of this was occurring just a few months before my wife and I were expecting the birth of our first child. Talk about a whirlwind of emotions.

This diagnosis was bigger than just me. It was my responsibility to be around for my family for a long time. 

Our son was born in April. I can’t put into words how happy I was (and am). He’s the best thing that’s happened to my life. But even with this effervescent sense of joy, there was still a cloud of lingering self-doubt flowing through my mind.

Igniting Creativity for Mental Stability and Personal Growth

On top of all of this, I began taking on more responsibility in my day-to-day at work. Naturally, longer hours ensued.

I was hungry. I was stressed. I was tired as fuck.

My days were hard as hell. 

But then I started to see not only physical progress but mental progress as well. Through all of it, I started to feel refreshed and revitalized. The fire was burning. 

That’s when everything clicked. The creative juices began flowing more consistently than they had in years. I can whole-heartedly say I have never done better work in my life than I have over the past 3 months while balancing all of the craziness in my personal life. 

I never would have expected to say that after everything going on outside of the typical 9-5. But I found solace in design. It was a place to look and feel great. Emotion was pouring into every new project.

Digital ads, campaign ideation, website designs, presentation decks, you name it: I was kicking ass and taking names. 

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Overcoming a Type-2 Diabetes Diagnosis

Flash forward to now, three months after the original diagnosis. With the work I put in, I am down 40 lbs (and counting!) and have effectively lowered my A1c from 7.3 to 5.3, dropping the need for medicine, and kicking the diabetes diagnoses altogether. 

June 2024 - Down 40 lbs (and counting!) since the end of February.

I’m not one for conspiracies, but I do find it rather comical how doctors who are supposedly “there to help” don’t tend to share information about how to truly kick a Type-2 diabetes diagnosis. Medicine is always the solution. This shouldn’t come as a surprise because there’s no money in natural solutions.

Chef Gusteau from Ratatouille said it best: “Anyone can cook… but only the fearless can be great”

If you take anything away from this: just keep going. No matter what negativity you face, you can find a way to get through it if you put in the work. Yes, it’ll be hard, but I can say the trade-off is 1000% worth it. 

Build a support system and make sustainable choices, and you’ll be well on your way to doing whatever you put your mind to. 

Most importantly, keep grinding & keep growing.