Surviving CDMX — An ITK Story

Mexico City, or CDMX, is the capital of Mexico and the most populous city in North America. Located in the Valley of Mexico (Valle de México) at an altitude of 2,240 meters (7,350 feet), CDMX is one of the most important cultural and financial sectors in the Americas.

In college, I was enamored of the history and culture of Mexico. I loved learning about the unusual romance between Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, the Aztec civilization and culture, and the incredible art, music, and culinary traditions of this fascinating country. I had always dreamed of visiting Mexico, but never had the opportunity. As a college student, I had all the time in the world, but no money. As a working professional, I had the money, but not the time.

In late 2018, my former employer won a competitive bid to install one of our flagship technology solutions at a major government facility located in the heart of CDMX. As the Lead Engineer for the company’s small, but extremely active, Commercial Products group, I was dispatched to the customer site for 9 days to set up the system and provide training to customers. This made a great deal of sense since I lead the development effort, built a significant portion of the codebase, and was familiar with the language and culture of the people.

In my fantasy world, I would arrive in CDMX, configure the hardware and software, provide an engaging training seminar, and still have enough time to drive out the see the pyramids or spend a lazy afternoon roaming around the Frida Kahlo Museum. Unfortunately, the reality of the situation was that my 9 day tour ended up being the most physically and mentally draining 15+ days of my professional life. What was intended to be a simple installation became a nightmarish project filled with 20+ hour work days, malfunctioning hardware and software, angry customers, and overall frustration.

The work environment that was created as a result of these problems posed serious threats to my mental and physical health. A full autopsy of this project and lessons learned is beyond the scope of this article, it is simply intended to provide a backdrop for the nutritional challenges I faced and how I coped with them thanks to the ITK lifestyle.

What is this ITK Stuff Anyway?

At this point, readers are probably wondering “what the heck kind of weird cult is this guy talking about?” Rest assured that ITK is not a cult, far from it. ITK, short for Intekai, is a system of proactive weight management focused on improving one’s mental and physical wellbeing through structured diet and exercise. Originated in Long Island, NY and Kingston, Jamaica, ITK is the brainchild of Mr. Fitz-George Rattray, a well-established health and wellness professional with a decades long track record of helping hundreds of people meet their weight loss goals. The body of knowledge that makes up the ITK system is a culmination of Mr. Rattray’s extensive experience with helping clients to achieve their health and fitness goals. More information on ITK can be found here.

Know Thyself

I signed up with the ITK team in mid-2018 out of frustration. I was working ridiculously long hours, had little downtime, and ate poorly. I was increasingly frustrated with myself as I watched my weight creep back up as the weeks went by. Nothing I did seemed to help me to lose the weight and I knew that I needed help.

Back in 2011, I was at my heaviest weight of 285 lbs. At 5'8" (1.72 m) this was dangerously obese. A health scare forced me to diet and exercise my way down to 195 lbs. Once I hit that goal and the health scare was averted, I became complacent. I stopped working out, I began to eat a little bit more than I should, I re-introduced myself to foods that I knew to be unhealthy, and I rationalized the 1 or 2 lbs that I gained here and there.

Unfortunately those few pounds added up over the years and I found myself at age 40 weighing 233 lbs. Even then, it was quite easy for me to rationalize that 233 lbs was not nearly as bad as 285 lbs and that I was just fine. Nevertheless, I decided that I wanted to lose the weight again just because I knew it was the healthy thing to do and also because of the vanity aspect of not wanting to admit that my jeans were too tight.

I attempted to replicate the success of 2011 by repeating the same diet and exercise regimen that I used then. In the perfect world, I’d lose all the weight I gained, fit perfectly into my jeans, my wife would marvel at my wonderful physique, and all would be well in the world. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case and I found myself actually gaining weight. What could have gone wrong?

The one thing that we never really come to terms with as humans is that the body responds differently over time and what worked for 34-year-old me would not work for 40-something me. My lifestyle had also changed drastically as well. I had more work stress, worked longer hours, lead a more sedentary lifestyle, was less committed to the gym because I was married and wanted to spend more time with my wife. Overall, I had no idea of who I was physically at this age.

It’s Not All About Lifting Weights or Cardio

Once I joined up with ITK, my coach, Andrea, got me connected to a WhatsApp group. I got customized meal recommendations on a weekly basis, was held accountable by my coach and my team. In almost no time at all, I saw the scale moving to the left and I began to feel better about myself. I realistically didn’t have time to go to the gym, but it didn’t prevent me from losing weight. I finally understood what people meant when they say that diet is the most important aspect of weight loss.

Without even realizing it, my eating habits were beginning to shift toward being able to naturally make better food selections. In fact, even when I felt frustrated with the program and felt the need to “cheat”, my body just naturally gravitated toward making better selections. For example, if I wanted something sweet, I’d end up eating a piece of fruit instead of a donut. Mind you, it was not always perfect; however, I always held myself accountable to my coach and my team. I was never chastised or berated for the days that I wasn’t able to successfully stick to my plan, instead I was offered gentle encouragement and congratulated for the good parts.

This worked fine in a “controlled” environment where I had constant access to my coach, the ability to drive to the store to grab food, and the time to actually prepare my own meals. Generally when I travelled for work, it was for a few days, and I could easily pack a few protein bars and nuts and take them along for the trip. The situation at CDMX was a far cry from this ideal environment, but I was still able to thrive with the ITK lifestyle even when the environment became as chaotic and unpredictable as it did.

Thriving Outside of the Controlled Environment

The next few sections will outline a few key tips for surviving outside of the regular environment.

Tip 1: Listen to Your Body

Communication was my coach and team was limited because I was on the customer site with limited Internet access. Fortunately, I had already learned from the previous months on ITK that being able to listen to my body was a critical part to holding myself accountable. When I ate well, my body felt light and energetic. When I ate poorly, my body felt sluggish and lethargic. By listening to my body, I was able to intuitively balance out what I ate. Mexican cuisine is rich in carbohydrates and sometimes it’s difficult to tell what you are eating. For example, meats stewed in carbohydrate heavy sauces were in abundance and I sometimes ended up eating way more carbs than I needed. It was those times that I relied on my body to let me know how that meal went and whether or not I needed to stay away from it.

Tip 2: Set Other’s Expectations

In this particular project, we partnered with a local company and they were responsible for transporting us to and from the work site as well as providing some of our meals. By setting expectations with these folks early on by letting them know that I was a very healthy eater, they naturally were more accommodating of my dietary needs. For example, they would be sure to provide me with a grilled chicken salad instead of offering me pizza or some other fast but unhealthy meal. Setting these expectations early is essential because it creates an ad-hoc accountability network, which helps you to stay on track with your lifestyle changes. SideNote: A member of the local company recognized my healthy eating habits and also began to follow suit.

Tip 3: Weigh If You Can, But Don’t Stress It If You Can’t

Regular weigh-ins are an essential part of the ITK lifestyle; however, it is not always possible to weigh on a regular basis when away from your controlled environment. Don’t let this be a deterrent, simply use the last known weight you had and continue with your day. Your body will also tell you if you are gaining, losing, or maintaining. It feels different.

Tip 4: You Will Run Out of Pre-Packaged Food

When I travelled to CDMX, I had enough protein bars and pre-packaged nuts to last for 10 days. Since I was in country for over 15 days, I inevitably ran out of supplies. My hotel was located in a remote part of town and I didn’t have easy access to transportation to find a supermarket or similar store, particularly given that I was returning to my hotel late at night. Some of the tricks that I learned along the way included:

• Grabbing complimentary tea from the hotel to substitute for meals.
• Taking fruits from the buffet back to my room for later meals.
• Substituting meals with complimentary coffee from the hotel or worksite.
• Saving portions of my meal for a later meal or the next day since I’m inevitably given more food than I need to eat in a single sitting.
• Drink lots of water.

Tip 5: It’s OK to Say No

On several occasions, we went to dinner with employees from the local company. They tended to enjoy drinks and dessert with their meals. As tempting as they sounded, I knew that my body didn’t need the additional processed foods and I politely declined, choosing to stick to water and black coffee. You may be ridiculed or laughed at; however, it is important to stick to your guns because you recognize that it is your health and not theirs. No one should ever feel pressured to put something potentially harmful into their bodies just to please a group. Note that these issues are not as major if you’ve set other’s expectations early on in the interaction.

Tip 6: The Buffet is Your Friend, If Used Carefully

At my hotel, I was fortunate to have access to a buffet for my evening meals. This buffet had all the meats, breads, fruits, and desserts that one could imagine. Many people have a difficult time controlling themselves when faced with such an abundance of treats. As a disciplined ITKarian, I view the buffet as a tool that helps me to get the nutrition that I need without worrying about overindulging. Some of the strategies I follow are:

• Limit yourself to one or two reasonably sized plates.
• Go for the healthy stuff such as steamed vegetables.
• Look for the meats that aren’t cooked in too much sauce.
• Make sure to walk around for a bit after eating.
• Say no to desserts and other processed foods.

The Aftermath

After I returned home from my CDMX experience, I was gravely concerned about how poorly I would show on the scale. The morning I departed, my weight was 205 lbs. When I returned home, I was surprised to discover that despite the volatility of the environment, I was able to hit my goal weight of 195 lbs! Some of this may be attributed to the stressful situation that I was in. However, since then I have been traveling quite frequently for my new job and my weight still hovers between 195 lbs — 200 lbs. The major lesson learned for me is that by making a commitment to modifying my lifestyle with ITK I am able to maintain a healthy weight regardless of how ideal or unpredictable by environment becomes.

Would I ever return to CDMX? Absolutely! Despite the difficult nature of the project, I still love the culture and the people. I cannot wait for a time in the not too distant future that I will be able to visit the city again, this time as a bona fide tourist!

Thank you ITK for giving me the tools to not only survive, but to thrive in a very difficult period of my professional life!