About
Thanks for checking me out! I just love when that “About” button is clicked.
I’m an Eating Psychology & Health Coach.
I’m not a no-dairy-no-carbs- stay on the treadmill until you drop- kind of health coach.
I believe feeling your best doesn’t include diets, crazy workouts, and extreme willpower. It’s freedom from the scale. It’s being able to look in the mirror and not spew hate. It’s being able to stop after eating a few bites of loaded fries because you’re satisfied and they weren’t that great anyways. Health is more than your weight.
I’m a real person. I’ve gone through most of my life looking for that diet or pill or program that would make me a thinner, better person than I was. I spent my teens and early twenties hating what I saw in the mirror and skipping out on some really great moments because I was self-conscious about my body. And let me tell you, if I could go back and slap myself – I would. And not in a “if I was only as fat now as I thought I was then” kind of way, but in a “stop wasting your time worrying about this because life is so much more than your pants size,” way. Things started to change when I started realizing that dieting doesn’t work. They fail us, but we blame ourselves again and again. Yet, we sign ourselves up when there’s a “new, this is going to be the one” diet comes along.
(What’s that definition of insanity again… )
I eat cookies and sip on green smoothies. There’s salads and beer cheese dip (not together) in this girl’s life. I have days when I emotionally eat because I’m human and there are just days. The difference is, I don’t beat myself up for it. I don’t hate myself for “failing” and then punish myself by not eating the next day or spend hours at the gym – I’ve played that game. It left me tired, exhausted, and miserable. What kind of life is that? I decided that when I looked back on my life I didn’t want to immediately think about what weight I was at the time, but rather how much laughter, fun, and love was there.
I want that for you too.
By living a life not determined by a diet label, I’m free.
Free to:
- Eat and enjoy all foods and never feeling deprived.
- Drink beers and chomp nachos with friends during the game.
- Workout because it feels good, not as a punishment.
- Live day-to-day without worrying about food allowances and journaling each bite.
You only get one life – why spend it all dieting?
Being healthy can mean lots of different things to different people. To me, it’s doing what works for you. It’s removing labels like good and bad on food. It’s finding connection with your body – or true embodiment; to find the weight that naturally fits you – be it losing 30 pounds or gaining 5); to identify and nurture aspects of your life that need tending such as relationships and spirituality; and mostly to be attuned to your emotional, physical, and spiritual hunger.
What you eat is only a tiny piece in the grand picture that is you.
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What I’m not:
- No strict diets or one-size-fits-all meal plans
- No crazy workout routines or guides
- No deprivation or starving
- No mean talk or self-hatred (we work on that)
What I do:
- Support, support, support. Listen, I’m your biggest fan. I’m here for you like your best girl sharing a bathroom stall with you.
- Teach you about food. Seem broad? Because it is and should be! There’s a lot of good stuff out there and cutting out foods you love is not what I’m about.
- Help you reconnect with your body. What the heck is that supposed to mean? Well, so much of how we connect with our body impacts our emotions, eating, and exercise habits. Too often we separate from our bodies, especially when we feel betrayed by it. When really, our body is our biggest ally and tool. Together, we find and practice ways of reconnecting with the body so that incorporating health habits come naturally.
- We break through the diet-nation mentality. If you’re here for a get-thin-quick diet plan, you’re in the wrong place, sweetie. This is a place for women to go beyond the 21-Day Don’t-Eat-This diet. It’s a place to let go of the years of chronic dieting that most of us have been practicing since were in the single-digit age. You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it again – diets don’t work. And frankly, they’re life suckers.
- Guidance toward the life you’ve been putting off until your body is a certain weight…or perhaps until you get that big promotion…or you meet that special someone…or whatever. It’s time to stop “weighting” on your life. We start working on making then, now. Enough of the “one day” living, because that’s not living. That’s not being your healthiest you and deep down, you know that.
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Couple Things:
- I’m not the best recipe developer. I’m what you call a “winger.” I “wing it” most of the time. I like to play and I hardly follow recipes step-by-step. I prefer to use them as a guideline and adjust to my own preferences or what in my cupboard availability. (One thing – garlic. Added, increased, whatever. Garlic when appropriate.) I’m just trying, sharing, and playing. Please play and make my recipes your own.
- I’m a total spazz and goof. I laugh (loudly) and enjoy stupid jokes. I often find myself pretty funny. I can also be impatient, snarky, and short-tempered at times. So…I’m a peach. I’m human and I have my issues too. I don’t have it all figured out and anyone who says they do is full of c-r-a-p.
- And finally, I’m an Eating Psychology and Health Coach. I’m not a fairy godmother or doctor. What you’d expect from either, you probably won’t get from me.
Note: I’m not a weekend-earned certification kinda coach either. I’ve earned a Bachelor’s in Psychology, a Masters in Nutrition and Food Science, and then certifications from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, the Institute for the Psychology of Eating, the Institute of Transformational Nutrition, and more. (See below). I deeply care about learning and providing the best to my clients.
Also I don’t personally sell supplements, protein shakes, etc. That’s just not my jam. This doesn’t mean that I won’t have partnerships, but it will always come from a place of integrity. If I wouldn’t truly use it myself – I’m not going to share it.
Education & Certifications
- Bachelors in Psychology,
Monmouth University - Masters of Nutrition and Food Science,
Montclair State University - Integrative Nutrition Health Coach (INHC),
Institute of Integrative Nutrition - Culinary Nutrition Expert (CNE),
Academy of Culinary Nutrition
- International Association of Health Coaches Member
- Transformational Nutrition Coach (CTNC),
Institute for Transformational Nutrition - Neurolinguistics Master Practitioner (NLP-M),
INLP Center - Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor (IT)
