Nutrition Coaching From a Client’s Perspective
Six or so months ago, after more than a year of improving my consistency working out and resuming restricting my calories to 1400-1500/day, I found myself at what I have always thought of as my goal weight. I m
anaged to lose 15lbs – for the millionth time, but every workout seemed harder than the last and I no longer felt
like I was progressing. In fact, my weight seemed to be creeping up slowly despite my efforts to continue to track my calories and stay consistent. Desperately not wanting to slide backwards and repeat the cycle of gaining and losing, I knew that I had to try something new. When the opportunity to try nutrition coaching arose, I decided to give it a go hoping that it would help me understand what I was doing wrong. I wanted to master maintenance.
I never really thought I needed nutrition coaching since I am basically an expert at calorie counti
ng and love to cook, but it turns out that nutrition coaching means something different to everyone. As an overview – thank you Kate for giving me permission to eat! I didn’t realize that I had self-restricted to the point of forgetting what
it’s like not to stress over every calorie and macro – thank you carbs! I also owe Kate a big thank you for calling me out on all the strange and dysfunctional food and image norms I have absorbed and lived by over the years – including the need to diet before every vacation.
For me, vacations have always been a bit of a double-edged sword – something to look forward to but also a reason to panic at the looming deadline to lose weight and look better. You name the extreme diet and I have tried it – master cleanse, intermittent fasting, keto and a good many more. The diets always worked, sort of, though the weight never came off fast enough and it never stayed off. I would go on vacation, try to stay “good”, fail and then mentally throw in the towel. I’d come home, feel terrible about myself and let the gas off, usually working out less and definitely eating more until the weight I’d lost was back, sometimes more, and the pattern would repeat.
I recently returned from a vacation (the first in a couple of years) and I wanted to share my latest success from nutrition coaching. About six weeks before this vacation, Kate and I discussed whether I should temporarily reduce my maintenance calories and do a mini cut. Kate asked me why – my answer: because I am going on vacation, of course. She asked again (she does that when she doesn’t like the answer 
). We talked about it some more and instead of reducing my calories, Kate convinced me to try slowly moving away from tracking my food. Truthfully, trusting myself and not having the reassurance and security of tracking was terrifying. Pre-vacation, I gained a pound or two, but for the first time in a very very long time (possibly ever) I went on vacation without dieting beforehand and it felt amazing. I have worked hard for the last 18 months and I trusted myself.
On vacation, I ate more or less normally and drank more than I should and didn’t use the gym. You know what happened? Nothing. I had a great vacation. And, when I got home and weighed myself (which Kate told me not to do right away but I didn’t listen) I wasn’t scared of the scale. The number was not much different than before I left. I didn’t feel guilty or sorry for myself as I would have in the past. I booked my gym sessions for the week, went grocery shopping, and got back into my routine. I have never felt less burdened by my own weight issues. I am proud of myself.
If my experience with nutrition coaching helps even one other person, it’s worth sharing. Thank you Kate and Groundworks!!!
– Wendy Petersmeyer