My Background
Hello, I’m Dr. Matthew Kulka, and I’m a board-certified family medicine physician with 20 years of clinical experience. Let’s talk about health and wellness! As medical director of a large patient practice in the greater Philadelphia region, I have treated thousands of patients, but I realized that I wanted a better, more effective way to help my patients on their wellness journey.
How it all Started
I have never been obese or seriously overweight though I had periods where I struggled with my weight.
My first experience with being overweight occurred when I entered middle school. At that time, I had suddenly gained a significant amount of weight after being slim just a year before. The sudden weight gain was apparent to my friends and classmates, who reminded me of it regularly as kids do. At my physical that year, I asked my pediatrician for help. He handed me a single-page “1200-calorie diet,” which I frustratingly tried to follow. I instead figured out how to increase my exercise and decrease my snacking.
For many years afterward, I could control periodic episodes of weight gain until I started practicing medicine and had kids. Though I thought I was eating healthy and exercising, the extra chicken fingers and fries from my kid’s unfinished meals began to add up, which became noticeable. By this time, I had been working as a practicing physician for several years and began to pay close attention to the habits of those who were successful in weight loss and those that were not.
I made notes of those who lost weight and regained it versus those that kept weight off for the long term. I dived into the science behind nutrition, wellness, and longevity and combined this knowledge with the habits I observed and studied from those who maintained long-term weight loss. After I looked at my diet and habits, I made the necessary changes. I applied the knowledge, took the correct steps, and achieved many years of long-term personal weight loss, improving my health and overall wellness. I continue to use and follow the exact same Seriously Simple Steps series available here.
A percentage of every Seriously Simple Step Program purchase is dedicated to a charity supporting the fight against childhood obesity.
The Green Band
Everyone who signs up for the Seriously Simple Steps program gets a green band. The green band is a daily reminder on our wrists to make better choices, eat healthily, and exercise.
It’s green to remind us to eat more natural foods that grow “green.” An inscription on the band reads, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” a quote by Lao, an ancient Chinese philosopher.
I have witnessed the tremendous power of making simple health changes over time! That’s why I approach our weight loss and health journey as a series of steps and choices.
The green band reminds us to reach for an apple or a handful of nuts over cookies, pretzels, and chips. It reminds us to exercise on a day we may have skipped. It also reminds us to order healthier options on a menu, stop eating a little earlier, and avoid snacking when we are not hungry.
We can see positive changes over time that compound if we make better decisions, even a little more than we did previously. So, wear the green band and start making better decisions today!
