Voices of IIN is our content series where we talk with IIN students, graduates, and staff members who make up our diverse, vibrant, and passionate community ‒ from all over the world! IIN’s commitment to improving health and happiness is what brings us all together, and we aim to celebrate this commitment by sharing the unique stories and backgrounds of IIN change makers. Through this series, we hope to continue working toward creating a more inclusive wellness community, where all feel welcome to create a healthier life.
Maria Paulina Chica Ortega is an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach living in Colombia. Learn more about Maria by checking out her Instagram page.
Growing up, wellness was confined to what the body looked like. However, after years, that changed: Wellness means feeling good in your body. Health is to feel good in all aspects, mind, body, and soul.
I worked for 12 years in a corporate environment as a production engineer, dealing with production planning, manufacturing, logistics. However, six years ago, after my mom died, I felt there were things I needed to change. I wanted to go back to school but didn’t know if I should pursue something related to my current career or a new one. This is how my wellness life started.
I started taking cooking classes, going to wellness retreats, enrolling in entrepreneurship courses. And in some of these programs, I met women who’d studied health coaching. After a retreat in India, I made the decision that becoming a Health Coach was the path for me.
First, I’m using it for me. I coached myself to health first.
After I finished the program, I started offering individual coaching sessions and services around wellness, such as providing supermarket tours and cooking classes. I created my own brand of home-goods products, like soft tortillas and waffles made of real ingredients: green and ripe plantains, yuca (tapioca) and pumpkin. I also work very closely with functional medicine doctors, supporting many people’s wellness journeys.
I was inspired to be open-minded, to be open to new opportunities, to be open to life challenges and see them as personal challenges for new ideas, new projects, and big learnings.
Being a Health Coach has been my path to my own wellness and health. It’s been the path of trying, exploring, choosing, and making decisions for my own health and life. And on this path, I‘ve had the opportunity to share my experience with others, to inspire them in how they can create their own path.
Bio-individuality: This unique IIN concept means that we’re all different and must embrace our uniqueness to best take care of our health, from the food we eat to the environments we thrive in and everything in between.
Making sure my clients know that they’re the only ones who can make the best choices and decisions for their own well-being. I provide them with the space to ask questions and take time to find their own path.
Colombia has grown in terms of wellness. In all cities, no matter the size and population, there are many options for people to choose from, such as Pilates, yoga or movement classes, and outdoor activities such as nature expeditions.
In terms of food, we’re in the equatorial zone, meaning that we have an abundance of local fruits and vegetables year-round. There are also many restaurant options and markets to enjoy healthy food.
Good question! I think it’s been accessible. However, I think there’s still room to shift the mindset that wellness must be expensive, and we can change that through education. Showing that whole foods are less expensive than processed foods and health truly starts with healthy and whole foods.
Alternative therapies and treatments may not be accessible for all; however, they’re not something I recommend as the first step to take to achieve wellness; they’re just an option.
We can start doing good things for our own health: walking, moving our bodies, taking deep breaths, connecting with nature, choosing healthy foods, cooking our meals, and enjoying time with family. Sometimes, these simple things are all that we need to heal ‒ no fancy or expensive treatments or supplements necessary.
“Why” – This refers to one’s purpose and the reason(s) behind their chosen work.
Using the tools that made my life happier and healthier to help others.
It’s the journey that matters, not the destination. Wellness isn’t a specific result or place in life. It’s a path, with all the ups and downs in life that we’re going to face. How we act, how we think, and how we make choices are what allows for continuous growth and improvement.