Are you the kind of person who feels like they are doing everything "right" when it comes to health, but still don't function at your best? Do you follow all your doctor's advice, and still struggle with lingering health issues?
As a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition practitioner, I now have a whole slew of new tools up my sleeve to uncover what is really going on with someone. And while running tests to look at your gut, hormone, thyroid, or even neurotransmitter health can be very helpful, I ALWAYS start with the basics:
Diet
Rest
Exercise
Stress Management
Supplementation
If I don't get people to address all of these areas and build a good foundation, we'll never be able to reach optimal health. Once we've gone through each of these categories and really dialed things in all the way, then (and only then) can we dig deeper to see what HIDDEN triggers are lurking. More on those in the next blog, but to satisfy curiosity, HIDDEN stressors include (Hormone, Immune, Digestion, Detoxification, Environmental, and Neurotransmitters).
Should you be interested in working with me as a health coaching client, here's what you can expect we'll start with:
DIET: This doesn't just mean filling out a food diary. Here we talk about not only what you eat, but HOW you eat. Where do you source your food. Are you eating on the run? Are you digesting well? Do you have cravings? Do you over or under eat? Are you getting sufficient micro and macro nutrients? If you aren't supplying your body with the nutrition it needs AND assimilating those nutrients, you won't ever reach optimal health.
REST: Not just are you sleeping, but how well, how long, how consistently are you sleeping? Do you have a good bedtime routine? Do you wake much through the night? Do you take a long time to get to sleep? Do you wake rested? Do you overdo caffeine? Are you hydrated? Think you don't have time to sleep? You also don't have time to be sick!
EXERCISE: Do you exercise at all? If so, are you getting the best type of workout for you? Is it challenging enough or too hard? Are you recovering from your workouts? Are you in a workout rut? Are you causing yourself more stress with exercising in excess? Figuring out how to exercise depending on your current needs and goals is not easy, and always a moving target!
STRESS management: Stress is a natural and necessary part of life, but how you handle life's stressors is critical. How to do you shut down and regenerate yourself? Do you efficiently manage stressors and then allow yourself to step away? Do you internalize stressors?
SUPPLEMENTATION: This one is a little more oblique. It's more about filling in the gaps and getting you a little relief in the short-term. The reality is that it's not that easy to get all the nutrients we need from diet alone, so I can help you selectively find a few things to help you maximize your nutrition as well increase assimilation of those nutrients.
If you are curious and would like to learn more about working to together, please contact me! I'd love to chat with you!!
