I still remember sitting in the lunchroom as a kid, pulling out my homemade sandwich and thermos of soup while the other kids lined up for pizza, fries, and pudding cups. My mom, a nutritionist, packed my lunch every single day with care—fresh fruits, raw veggies, and whole foods that fueled my body long before I ever understood why. But at the time? I just felt left out. Everyone else had the fun food—the “good” stuff—and I thought I was missing out.

Fast forward to college and I was finally “free” to eat what I wanted. And I did. I hit the cafeteria hard, trading carrots and hummus for fries and burgers. I lived off dining hall food, not thinking much about how it made me feel. But over time, and especially in recent years as I’ve trained to become an elite ultra-endurance athlete with asthma, I’ve come full circle—back to preparing nearly all of my meals at home. Not to save money, but because I finally realized that the way I feel is deeply connected to the way I eat.

Usually, I only eat out once or twice a week. But last week? I ate out five times. And I felt the impact almost immediately. In this blog post and in the YouTube video linked here and embedded above (podcast linked here) I share exactly what happened.

I Don’t Eat at Home to Save Money—It’s Being Healthy and Cultivating Energy

Let me be clear—eating homemade meals isn’t a budget strategy for me. Sure, I save money by avoiding restaurants, but that’s not the reason I do it. I do it because when I eat high-quality, whole foods—organic vegetables, wild-caught fish, free-range chicken—I feel better. My breath control is better. My endurance is better. My recovery is better. And with asthma, every single one of those details matters.

When I eat out, I lose control of what’s going into my body. The oils, the sugars, the sodium, the additives—all of it adds up. And when I pack my schedule too tightly, like I did last week, I don’t leave space to prep meals or plan ahead. That’s when takeout creeps in. A client lunch here. A dinner with my dad there. A rushed stop at a fast food joint. It doesn’t seem like much in the moment—but it’s the ripple effect that crushes me.

Consequence #1 of Eating Out: My Sleep Quality Tanked

The first thing to go was my sleep. Usually, I sleep seven to eight hours a night, no problem. When I’m eating clean, especially if I eat early in the evening, my sleep is restorative and deep. But after just a couple of restaurant meals, I noticed the difference. And when it became five meals out in one week? I was barely sleeping. Tossing and turning. Waking up multiple times. One or two hours of sleep some nights. It was brutal.

Most people don’t realize this, but restaurant food is often loaded with sugar and sodium—even when it doesn’t taste sweet or salty. And those two things alone are enough to throw your nervous system out of balance. They spike your blood sugar and mess with your cortisol rhythms. I didn’t need a lab test to tell me what was happening. My body was screaming it.

Consequence #2 of Eating Out: Dehydration, Dry Mouth, and Waking Up All Night

As if bad sleep wasn’t enough, I also started waking up with dry mouth—bad. I’d chug water to try and fix it, only to end up waking up again and again to use the bathroom. That’s not hydration. That’s my body trying to flush out the toxins. My system was overloaded. The excess sugar, sodium, and preservatives were wreaking havoc, and my body was doing its best to get rid of them.

Normally, I wake up once at night, if at all. Last week, I was waking up three or four times—every night. The quality of my rest plummeted, and I could feel it the next day in my runs, my focus, and my mood. And that brings me to the next domino.

Consequence #3 of Eating Out: Irritability and Anxiety Skyrocketed

This one hit hard. And it always surprises me when it happens, even though I’ve lived it before. When I eat out more, especially at places where I don’t control the ingredients, my mental health suffers. I get more irritable. My anxiety spikes. I start to feel like I’m on edge—for no good reason.

But there is a reason: food. It’s the sugar. It’s the additives. It’s the fried oils and the chemicals in processed restaurant food. When I eat clean at home, my mind feels clear. I feel grounded. Tatiana and I cook meals that fuel my training and stabilize my mood. But last week, I felt emotionally volatile. Everything seemed a little more stressful. The root cause? The fuel I was putting into my body.

Consequence #4 of Eating Out: Heartburn Nearly Every Day

I don’t talk about this much, but I’ve struggled with heartburn in the past. Not because of some medical diagnosis—just from what I eat. When I’m eating clean, home-cooked food, I don’t get it. Zero heartburn. But last week? I had heartburn almost every single day. And this is a big one for a lot of people. You get diagnosed with GERD or IBS or something similar, and you’re handed a prescription. But what if it’s just what you’re eating?

Let me be clear: I’m not a doctor. I’m speaking purely from my own experience. But when I clean up my food, my gut feels better. No burning. No bloating. No acid reflux. Just peace in my digestive system. That didn’t exist last week.

Consequence #5 of Eating Out: I Started to Crave Eating Out

Here’s the wildest part of this whole thing: the more I ate out, the more I wanted to eat out. It became a craving. It’s not like I planned to go to fast food three times in a week. But once I did it once, I started craving it again. That’s not weakness—it’s biology.

Your gut biome is a powerful thing. It literally craves what you feed it. If you feed it sugar, fried food, or processed ingredients, it will ask for more of the same. But if you shift to whole foods, fresh produce, lean protein, and healthy fats? You’ll start craving those. It’s not instant, but it’s real. And last week was a crash course in what happens when I shift in the wrong direction—even just a little.

Taking Back Control (Without Giving Up Joy)

Now, I’m not saying you have to quit eating out forever. I won’t. I love going out for meals with my dad when I’m in Chicago. I love trying new restaurants. But I do it intentionally. I avoid fried food. I skip the red meat. I go for lean proteins and plant-based meals when possible. And when I do that, none of these symptoms show up.

The beauty of cooking at home is that I can recreate the same delicious meals—just without the junk. I can skip the added sugars, reduce the sodium, use high-quality oils, and load my meals with micronutrients. I can eat like an athlete, even if it’s comfort food. It’s not about deprivation. It’s about elevation.

The 3 Pillars That Changed Everything

That’s why I created my Healthy Living Guide—to show you exactly how I lost 40 pounds and kept it off, while managing asthma and training for ultra marathons. The foundation? The 3 Pillars of Healthy Living:

1. Movement – Daily, intentional activity that keeps your body strong.

2. Tracking – Awareness of what you eat, how you sleep, and how you feel.

3. Accountability – Support systems to help you stay consistent.

You can grab the guide for free at www.athletewithasthma.com/healthy-living-guide. It’s short. It’s practical. And it just might be the thing that helps you turn the corner in your own journey.

Eating out is fun. But too much of it—especially the wrong kind—can quietly undermine everything you’re working toward. I learned that the hard way last week. But now I’m back in the kitchen, cooking with intention, and feeling like myself again.

And if you’re struggling with energy, sleep, mood, or inflammation? Don’t just look at your schedule or your supplements. Start with your food. Your gut. Your fuel. The answers might be sitting on your plate.

Let’s take our health back—one meal at a time.