Wellness

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Inflammation: What You Need to Know and How to Reduce It

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Inflammation: What You Need to Know and How to Reduce It

Inflammation is a word that gets thrown around a lot in the nutrition world. Maybe you’ve heard of inflammatory diseases or an anti-inflammatory diet? I was pretty unaware of inflammation until it affected me. I first found out about my inflammation about a year ago after tests run by a functional medicine clinic. I started going there because of some problems I was having that I couldn’t figure out. My inflammatory marker, hsCRP, was high and I was also having some insulin resistance, which goes hand-in-hand with inflammation. I was completely shocked that I was dealing with insulin resistance but it was starting to make much more sense. There were things happening in my body causing problems that I didn’t know about. That’s just my story but it also may sound a lot like your story.

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My Gluten-Free Journey

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My Gluten-Free Journey

Hey everyone! I’m back to writing after taking the summer off to be with my kiddo and travel and figure some things out. Honestly, I’ve also been struggling with what to write and how to write it. I’ve been pulled in lots of directions personally and professionally with health and nutrition and it is probably time for me to start to niche down more, even with my writing. My experiences have fueled my passion to help others. Others that are like me when I was dealing with health issues I didn’t know as much about, lost and not sure where to turn.

Previously, I was writing more about intuitive eating, which I’ve really loved on a personal level. I may still write more about it here and there but my heart is pulling me in a different direction with the types of clients I want to see and the work I want to do. If you want more on IE, let me know and I can point you in the direction of some great IE dietitians!

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Food Sensitivities and LEAP Therapy

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Food Sensitivities and LEAP Therapy

Hey everyone, I am going to switch things up a bit with this post. I love talking about intuitive eating and similar topics and will continue to discuss those as they are super important so stay tuned for more. But, I'd like to shift gears for a bit and talk about food sensitivities and a program I will be using in my practice called LEAP Therapy. It uses MRT, or mediator release test to test for specific sensitivities to foods and/or chemicals. I'm super excited because I recently finished my training and am now a CLT, or Certified LEAP Therapist.

I posted the quote above because my personal health issues and experiences have pushed me to learn more about the integrative and functional side of nutrition. This means really digging down to the root cause of health conditions and diseases. Food sensitivities can be one of the reasons for some health problems and symptoms, which are often overlooked. So, I will tell you a little more about food sensitivities, who might be affected, and why MRT and LEAP therapy are recommended. I will also link to their website for more great information. It's about to get a little sciency up in here.

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A Letter to Fitness Instructors

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Hey all! I hope you are having a great week! This post is a way for me to get out something that has been weighing on my mind lately and to hopefully make a difference.

I have been taking some awesome group fitness classes at the same studio(s) for the past 3 years. I can't even believe I have been going that long since I was so scared to go in the first place but here I am, still taking my place at the barre most days of the week. They offer a wide variety of classes, none of which are easy. They are fast-paced, high energy, kind of addictive and I like them. Maybe I like them too much. I started because I wasn't happy with my body but I've continued because it makes me stronger and better in many other ways. I've mixed up my schedule over the past 3 years with different classes, different times and different instructors trying to find which ones suit me best. I have a few instructors that I prefer and I few that I tend to avoid, but I think that is the same for most everyone. I need someone that plays great music, can keep my attention for the full hour and puts me in a great mindset. I don't think that is too much to ask for (eye wink, tongue out emoji).

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Weight Isn't Everything

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Weight Isn't Everything

Happy holiday season everyone. I felt like the timing for this post would be perfect amongst a lot of talk about weight gain, weight loss, food restrictions, accountability around the holidays, etc. Is anyone already thinking about weight loss as a New Year’s Resolution? Well I’m here to tell you that weight loss isn’t the best goal to set and it is certainly not the only measure of success when it comes to health and wellness.

I will admit that I’m guilty when it comes to weight loss being at the top of my list of reasons why I’m making changes. But the disappointment when the scale doesn’t budge is real! The disappointment leads to emotional eating, bad moods and wanting to quit. Anyone else?

I know my body very well after living in it for 36 years. I know that I retain fluid and my weight can fluctuate a few pounds pretty regularly. I know that it will go back to normal but it still pisses me off every single time! Back when I was training for half marathons I would easily be up 3-4 pounds the day after my long run. I knew this was going to happen but it still messed with my head and my positivity. I burned 1000 calories running 10 miles, why did I put weight on?