Lisa's Blog

How would you like to wake up without your alarm clock, feeling rested.  You jump out of bed as the sun comes up, you feel like getting some exercise straight away and then instead of going for a walk around the block you skip around the block?  Nothing is too much of a challenge, you breeze through the day, with a clear head, you’re organized, alert, energized, effective and feeling powerful.  You are excited about the day ahead, you get results, you excel.  You come home after work, you are able to switch off and relax without needing a glass of wine or a stiffer drink, you enjoy helping to prepare the evening meal and you settle in to enjoy a nice dinner with your family, good conversation and an easy enjoyable evening, the cleaning up is done effortlessly, you are at peace with the world, in control and in love with life.  You get into bed and fall straight to sleep and wake up completely refreshed for the new day! 

Any of that sound appealing?  Is that you now? Or…

Do you wake up in a haze with the alarm clock or the sound of your kids? You hit the snooze button or pull the covers over your head.  Eventually you drag yourself out of bed, you still feel tired.  You head for the kitchen and your caffeine hit.  Time starts to register, and you rush around like a maniac trying to get ready and going.  You arrive at your destination, already exhausted, stressed and irritable.  More coffee.  The hunger begins to hit, but you are busy, busy, busy, too busy to eat.  You push through.    You chase your tail, your day is unstructured and stressful.  You grab some food, something quick and easy and high energy and high fat.  You get home late, tired and cranky.  You don’t feel like cooking, you need a stiff drink, you don’t want to talk to anyone or have to be nice.  You make it through the evening, you hit the sack, but you don’t sleep well.  Your mind is racing, you are trying to figure out how you are going to do today’s unfinished tasks on top of the ever increasing work load.  The alarm clock sounds…

What does your nutrition status affect?

Mood, motivation, energy levels, weight, power, strength, mental and physical ability, disease risk

Do you suffer with any of the following?

Cramps, indigestion, diarrhoea, constipation, sinusitis, acne, arthirtis, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, low blood pressure, gout, weight gain, weight loss, diabetes, headaches, irregular menstruation, low libido, food addiction, allergies, food intolerances, eczema, psoriasis, frequent colds and flu, more immune system, Poor memory, fatigue, aches and pains…

Many people seem unclear about what it is a nutritionist or nutritional therapist does, or why they might want to see one. 

Basically nutritionists help you to get more out of your life.  They do this by identifying underlying causes of disease or health concerns.  While nutritionists are prevention focused, this often translates into restoring health, PROMOTING LIFE and preventing pre-mature death.  If you have a health concern, it is good to start with the basics, the root or core of the problem.  Every cell in your body requires nutrients to function, that means every process, everything you do, requires nutrition.  If your nutrition status is sub-optimal, this is going to spill over into every other area of your life.  Your performance will be sub-optimal, you will feel and be below your game, your mind cannot operate clearly… and life becomes a drag… something you get through day to day… rather than something you LOVE, ENJOY and CELEBRATE!

“Nutritionists work with each client to produce a tailor-made programme to address specific issues and help you reach your health goalsThis could be clearer skin, more energy, improved digestion or weight loss. Nutritional therapy can also help more complex issues such as overcoming infertility, alleviating migraines or supporting a particular medical condition.” 

The results are you feel more in control of your life, you have more energy, you are more productive, you feel more alive, you have better relationships with your self and others,  and experience an overall better quality of life. 

Why isn’t this enough of an incentive?

You can know what to eat, and hear all the healthy messages out there in the world and still not implement it or change or even WANT to change.  We all have a relationship with food.  Food services much more for us than just nutrients.  We use it to reward or punish, to celebrate, to commiserate… Much more important than the type of food you eat, is the way you are thinking about the food you eat.  The internal processing, what are you telling yourself about the food you eat, the guilt, the shame, the peace, the praise, the associations… all the sub conscious stuff. 

Nutritional Therapists are aware of the multvariate factors that prevent individuals from implementing appropriate dietary and lifestyle changes, and will work with them at their own pace to adapt to new circumstances. 

I like to take it one step further, working with you to understand the triggers, the motives, the underlying stuff and then look at practical ways of moving forward, empowering you, supporting you to implement lifechanging, sustainable strategies, to heal yourself and take back control of your life!

For more information of nutrition or nutritional therapy, these are two of my favourite sites!

http://www.saant.org.za/nt/defining.html