Jan. 26. 2022
Articles
McKel Hill Kooienga, MS, RDN, LDN

McKel Hill Kooienga, MS, RDN, LDN

Founder of Nutrition Stripped® and the Mindful Nutrition Method™

Nutrition coaching with a Registered Dietitian gives you the individualized guidance, support, and expertise you need to reach your health and wellness goals.

Are you struggling to maintain a balanced weight? Do you find yourself constantly battling yourself over your food choices? Do you have a health condition that requires a modified diet?

If you said yes to any of the above-listed questions, you may want to consider hiring a Registered Dietitian.

Nutrition is an integral part of each and every one of our lives. From the way we think about food to the food choices we make and how they impact our bodies, nutrition has a hand in it all.

Here I’ll walk you through what nutrition coaching entails, in addition to how you can significantly benefit from it. If after reading this you realize that nutrition coaching is something you’d like to explore, you can book a free Discovery Call. During this call, you’ll learn all about what nutrition coaching with a Nutrition Stripped Mindful Nutrition Method Registered Dietitian would look like for you!

What Makes Nutrition Coaching Special

So what exactly happens when you decide to work with a Registered Dietitian?

Think about that one nutrition-related goal you have, the one you’ve tried to achieve time and time again on your own. Got it?

Now, think about all of those countless Google searches you’ve done and plans you’ve downloaded to help you achieve it. Did they work? Chances are you may have made a little headway, but you were ultimately unsuccessful.

First of all, it isn’t your fault. This is simply the result of a lack of customization and individualization.

What Nutrition Coaching Looks Like

Nutrition coaching with a Registered Dietitian is all about customization and individualization.

Before even meeting with your dietitian, you will have provided them with a plethora of information about yourself. You’ll provide your likes, dislikes, strengths, weaknesses, goals, habits, and tendencies.

From your medical history to your favorite foods as well as your past experience with supplements, diets, and even some background on your mental health – your dietitian will have information on it all.

During that first meeting, you’re able to further explain this information in detail and walk through your pain points so they fully understand. Once the information gathering is done, it’s time to get to the fun stuff! Your dietitian will be able to give you individualized education, recommendations, goals, and action steps that you’ll be able to apply to your life as soon as your meeting is over.

Unlike the one-size-fits-all plans you can find on the internet, it doesn’t end there. After testing out these initial action steps and goals, depending on how things went, your dietitian will be able to further provide guidance and support to ensure things continue to work well for you.

Each and every person’s journey with food and nutrition is different. Therefore, the way we address people’s journeys needs to be different as well.

Why Nutrition Coaching with a Registered Dietitian Works so Well

So what happens when you work with a Registered Dietitian? What are the real benefits?

Individualized Nutrition Recommendations

Your body’s nutritional requirements are different from your friends’, coworkers’, and even your family members’ nutritional requirements. What works well for them will not necessarily work well for you.

A dietitian is able to take a look at the big picture through nutrition coaching and subsequently give you personalized nutrition recommendations. Your goals, lifestyle habits, physical makeup, and medical history all need to be considered here.

Traditional plans, programs, and diets aren’t able to give you this individualized approach. They leave you feeling stressed out and confused after trying to adapt your lifestyle to fit their requirements. When in reality, it should be the opposite.

External & Internal Accountability

Accountability is one of the most important pieces of the lifestyle change puzzle.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve met with a client that has tried time and time again to make a change on their own, but simply felt as though their actions were never in line with their intentions. This is where accountability comes in.

When you participate in nutrition coaching with a Registered Dietitian, you’re automatically receiving external accountability. You have a partner to work with and report to that will help support you with expertise the whole way through.

You’re also able to determine exactly how to develop and strengthen your internal accountability. That way, long after your nutrition coaching has ended, you’re able to maintain your new habits and sustain your healthy lifestyle.

A Balanced Approach 

Anyone can do a quick internet search to learn about nutrition information, but your nutrition coach and Registered Dietitian understand how that information not only applies to your chemical makeup but also your relationship with food.

Your relationship with food dictates your actions around food. If you’ve ever said, “I feel like I have all the facts but I just can’t make the right changes.”, you’re a perfect example of this.

Knowing the facts is a great start, but it won’t get you far when you’re looking to make a significant change. You also need to learn about yourself, your internal dialogue, preexisting habits, and beliefs surrounding food and nutrition. You then need to learn which ones are supporting you, and which ones may be hindering you. Finally, you need to learn how to reframe and change the habits and beliefs that are hindering you. 

This is what a Registered Dietitian and nutrition coach will do for you. 

They’re able to present and educate you on what to do, how to do it, and how to reframe past thoughts and opinions to allow for long-term behavior change and success. 

Human Connection

Making a lifestyle change of any kind is difficult. There’s no way around it. It’s particularly difficult when we feel like we’re doing it on our own.

Talking to friends and family members can certainly be helpful, but they aren’t able to fully understand your situation and empathize with your struggles during those quick venting sessions.

Your Registered Dietitian is your educated outlet, your go-to person that will understand where you’re coming from, interpret your struggles and respond with empathy and support.

As a nutrition coach, your Registered Dietitian is trained to discuss these topics and concerns with you one-on-one. That’s why it’s so important to seek out a Registered Dietitian that specializes in nutrition coaching. 

Customized Learning Style

Think about it, everyone learns differently. So why do we all use the exact same plans and diets to learn about how we should adjust our eating and lifestyle habits?

Some of us are visual learners, others are auditory, and some are kinesthetic. There are even some additional variations within those three categories as well! Depending on which learning style works best for you, the way in which you approach a lifestyle change will need to mirror that in some way.

Your dietitian will be able to determine which approach will work best for you after discussing your past success, failures, and tendencies. Nutrition coaching gives you the opportunity to learn in a way that is suitable to you and your needs.

Nutrition Expertise

When you’re working with a Registered Dietitian, you’re working with a nutrition expert.

You’re not getting advice from an avid nutrition follower, physical trainer, or “healthy” friend. You’re getting advice from someone who is educated and trained to disseminate clinical nutrition information.

This means you can confidently follow the recommendations given to you. You know that they’re both science and evidence-based rather than simply from personal experience.

Would you ever ask your friend how to treat kidney disease? Or what physical therapy you should do for your shoulder injury? Of course not. So why would you ask them for nutrition advice?

Start Nutrition Coaching with a Mindful Nutrition Method Coach and Registered Dietitian

If you’re thinking about starting nutrition coaching, you can sign up for a free 10 minute Discovery Call with one of our Registered Dietitians and Mindful Nutrition Method coaches.

They’re trained in Nutrition Stripped’s Mindful Nutrition Method to help you make lasting changes. That way, you can stop dieting and reclaim balance with the way you nourish yourself. 

From building a balanced plate to individualized nutrition support, the development of a balanced weight, and relationship with food, they’ll help you achieve it all. 

Jade is one of our former Wellness Coaching clients. She’s a wonderful success story of just how impactful nutrition coaching can be:

“I have truly realized the importance of approaching my body with more love and compassion and I have learned the importance of shifting the focus from losing weight to having a healthy relationship with food in order to see long term results. One small trick that has helped me since my first session with Erica is making sure every meal is a Foundational Five meal. Although it might seem so simple, I have learned that this shifts the focus from restriction to abundance with food, and is also the best way to nourish my body to eliminate cravings! I will definitely keep applying all of the knowledge I have learned from Erica for years to come – from building Foundational Five meals to viewing and talking to my body differently, and so much more!” 

During your free Discovery Call, we’ll walk through your goals together as well as your past experiences with food and nutrition to answer all of your questions and determine whether or not we’re the right fit for you.

Book your free Discovery Call now