Identifying Patterns... What Does a Dietitian Really Eat?

I've seen articles where dietitians share photos of all the food they ate in a day (here is one, and here is another), and I'm probably not the only one who wonders if that's how they truly eat. Every. Day. Really?

Maybe they do, maybe they don't. One thing's for sure - a 24-hour diet record is the least reliable way to measure eating patterns. It's far better to look at eating habits over time. You get lots of data, but you also get a better idea of your true habits.

I've been tracking my food for long enough that I've learned a few things about myself:

1. I often don't eat enough vegetables. I'm a champ when it's come to fruit (I LOVE IT), but veggies? Not so much.
2. I like sweets. I almost always exceed my sugar recommendation.
3. I like fat, particularly from cheese. Mmmm.. cheeeeeese.

What do I do well?

1. I almost always choose whole grain versions - pasta, bread, cereal, you name it. This comes naturally to me because I actually like the taste better. Plus, I find whole grains to be way more satisfying than their refined (white) counterparts.
2. I eat plenty of fruit.
3. I mostly drink water. 

In terms of overall eating habits, I tend to eat a relatively lighter breakfast and lunch, then snack during the afternoon and have a more substantial dinner. As you'll read below, I end up eating every 2-3 hours.

• Breakfast: I start the day with a mocha to wake myself up. Steamed low-fat milk, 2 shots of espresso, and a Dove Promise (hey, at least it's dark chocolate). Around 8:00 I have breakfast - usually oatmeal made with water, topped with some nuts and dried fruit, and sweetened with a little bit of cinnamon syrup.

• Snack: I'm usually hungry again by 10:00 and then have a snack of 150-200 calories (e.g., celery with peanut butter, cheese and a piece of fruit or baby carrots).

• Lunch:  Almost always a Greek yogurt parfait around noon. I actually really like plain Greek yogurt! I find the taste of nonfat versions to be a little too... acidic? So, I go for full-fat. Yes, it's higher in calories, but there is a lot of good nutrition that comes along with it -- protein, calcium, etc. It's also delicious! The taste reminds me of sour cream or cream cheese. Anyway, I always have my yogurt with about 1 cup of sliced/cut-up fruit: thawed frozen mango or berries are my usuals. For crunch, I add 1/4-1/2 cup of cereal. Lately, I've been mixing some good old-fashioned granola with high-fiber cereal.

• Snack: I'm usually ready for a little something around 2:30 pm and then again around 4 or 4:30. Same deal as before - some kind of protein combined with carbohydrate (could be grains, fruit, or vegetable). 

• Dinner: I'm usually hungry by 6:00, and will most often have leftovers from the weekend or something I made ahead and froze. I love to cook, just not during the week. I really like to make soups, stews, and casseroles, and these usually incorporate some kind of whole grain (like rice or pasta), protein (like chicken, sausage, beef, beans, or seafood), and veggies. I struggle with portion control at dinner, and this is where I've gone awry in the past 6 months. I've also had a hard time controlling my eating before bed. Maybe it's the stress of the day finally coming out, who knows? But when I'm on my game, I have a sensible portion of casserole (1.5 - 2 cups).

• Snack: Around 8:00 I will have something sweet. In the past, it's just been another Dove Promise, but with my pregnancy I have replaced that with a mug of hot chocolate. I mix a couple of tablespoons of powder with Fairlife 2% milk, which is higher in protein and lactose free (I can't drink a lot of milk without it giving me gas). It's definitely a premium product, but it makes delicious cocoa. I also add a bit of whipped cream... I could probably stand to cut that out, but it's so good! Don't judge the pregnant lady! :)

Case in point... here is what I tracked on MyFitnessPal for yesterday:

How did I do overall?

Yesterday was actually a near perfect day for me:

• I met most of my nutrient needs within my calorie goal (note that for yesterday, I shot for about 2000 calories because I did not exercise). 
• Most importantly, I paid attention to my physical hunger. I ate when I was hungry and didn't when I wasn't. When I was, in fact, hungry, I mostly chose nutrient-dense foods. That's a huge win in my book!

Yet... there are some things to be improved:

• Looking more closely at my diet record, I could probably spread my protein throughout the day more. This will help me better utilize the protein I take in and also help with hunger and satisfaction. This will be especially helpful when I'm working to lose weight postpartum. 
• As expected, too much sugar and a little too much fat. 
• Also, not enough vegetables, but wowza, look at all that fiber!

So there you have it. Total transparency from me and an honest look at what I do well and not so well. Keeping track of what you eat is absolutely essential for identifying areas to improve.

What are some things you know you do well? What are some things you could do better?

What Goes Up Comes Back Down... and Up Again

When I decided to pursue a career in nutrition, I think I truly believed that becoming a dietitian after losing weight would make me immune to gaining it back. I thought I was invincible. I would practice what I preached and keep it off for good!

Well, it hasn't been quite so easy.

I've always been open about my personal weight struggles and how much I love to eat -- including pizza, cake, cookies, and the like. This is somewhat unusual for a dietitian (that I am open about my weight issues, and to a lesser degree, that I have trouble staying away from "unhealthy" foods). Do you agree?

In any case, this has been my experience as I've built a network of dietitian friends and colleagues. I've often felt like a misfit among the "food police" and those who seem to effortlessly eat their vegetables and enjoy fruit for dessert.

It has always taken quite a bit of effort for me to plan out healthy meals, avoid temptation, and most of all, resist social pressure to indulge.

After nearly a decade of doing all of those things, it seems that earlier this year I just got sick of it. Although numbers on the scale aren't the best indication of health, they can serve as a benchmark against which to measure backward or forward movement. To give you an idea of my trajectory, I'll present some numbers here for reference.

• At my largest in January 2006, I weighed 190 pounds. At just under 5'4", that put me in the category of obese with a body mass index (BMI) of 32.6 (calculate yours here).

December 2005: Around 180-185 and hadn't quite reached my high weight of 190.

• By August 2006, I had gotten down to around 150. A loss of 40 pounds over 8 months, averaging 5 pounds per month and just over 1 pound per week. To be sure, a slow and steady rate of weight loss that is recommended by health professionals, including dietitians.  

June 2006: Around 155 pounds

• By February 2007, I was down to 140. Another 10 pounds, but it took much longer. I should mention that all of this was through a combination of diet and exercise -- no pills or magic bullets. I continued whittling away until I had gotten down to around 120 in the summer of 2009. 

March 2007: Around 140 pounds

October 2007: Around 135 pounds

October 2010: Somewhere between 120-125 pounds

I admit, it was downright HARD for me to maintain 120 pounds. The pounds slowly crept back on -- by the time I graduated with my Master's degree in Nutritional Sciences in December 2010, I was at 125. After my dietetic internship ended in July 2011, I was up to 130, and I've fluctuated between 130-140 since then. At the same time, I've probably been way healthier at 135 than at 120, as I trained for and ran the Illinois Half Marathon with Gavin (Mr. Moderation Maven, if you will) in 2014 and 2015.

 

November 2011: Around 130 pounds

June 2013: 130-135 pounds

It seems that the straw broke the camel's back at some point, but I can't pinpoint exactly when, why, or how. Maybe after the half marathon in April? Anyway, I had gotten up to 145 this past July. Come August, I found out that I was pregnant.

October 2015: 13 weeks pregnant and 155-160 pounds

I was lucky that I didn't have terrible morning sickness in my first trimester, but eating was the only thing that kept my nausea manageable. Of course, veggies and lean protein weren't my foods of choice, as the very thought of my usual dietary staples turned my stomach. Pizza and potatoes went from "enjoy in moderation" to mainstays.

Exhaustion made it virtually impossible to exercise. Seriously! During that first trimester, I would come home from work and fall asleep by 7:30 pm. Sometimes earlier.

Thanks to the combination of poor eating habits (for which I take full responsibility) and lack of exercise, I am now up to 170-175, of which I can probably only attribute 10-ish pounds to baby.

I know full well that excess weight gain during pregnancy is inadvisable, as it can have an effect on baby and of course, there will be more to lose after giving birth. Now that the morning sickness has passed and my energy levels are back, I have no more excuses.

Journaling is one of the most effective tools for weight loss and maintenance and it has worked for me in the past. So in the coming months, I will be keeping myself accountable by tracking my dietary choices and physical activity as a way to prevent further excess weight gain. Then after she arrives (yes, it's a she!), I will share my journey of bouncing back after baby.

Make no mistake, I am NOT trying to lose weight right now. I am shooting for moderate physical activity on 4-5 days per week, with a daily goal of around 2200 calories to support a healthy pregnancy.

Again, I have always been open about my personal weight struggles, and I will continue to be. This is me being authentic and straightforward with those who may see me as a role model. I have always described weight loss and maintenance as a winding road with twists and turns. I have taken a "detour" this year, but at least I'm aware that I've gone astray from my own beaten path and am now taking the necessary steps to find my way back.


Feel free to follow along and/or cheer me on!