Tis' the season! Welcome to the Holidays. I believe it's safe to say it's some (most) of my client's hardest time of the year. Each year at Kindred Nutrition we talk about recipe modifications, goals for weight maintenance or loss, and how to just enjoy the holidays without feeling pressured to eat, drink, and be merry every.single.day. The most puzzling thing to me though, is that we move through these motions pushing off our goals to get fit or start a plan until the New Year. I think about this often and have come up with possible reasons why people tend to push this goal off.
1) Change is SCARY. Adults especially are set in their ways. It's scary to potentially change the way you buy your food, cook your food, and eat it. It's especially scary when you have a million other priorities you need to focus on such as work, kids, Holiday Shopping & Entertaining. I can't imagine starting something so different during this time either.
2) It's EXPENSIVE. If you are paying out of pocket, nutrition counseling can be expensive. Did you know most insurances cover nutrition counseling? How about your flexible or healthcare spending accounts? They cover it too. Is the expense worth it? That's up to you, how many times do you eat out in a week. What is your discretionary spending? Can you flip priorities for a short period of time?
3) I might FAIL. What is failure? I don't believe anyone who comes to see me is a failure. A wise person once said failures are part of life, if you don't fail, you don't learn. If you don't learn you'll never change (unknown). Are you guilty of setting up rules that define failure and create fear?
4) It might not WORK. You are right. It might not work. That's why you should go to a specialist. You can buy all the shakes, special measurement doohickeys, scales or more. At the end of the day it may not work for you. A specialist is trained to assess your lifestyle, activity, likes/dislikes and more. If recommendations are made that can't come into fruition outside of the office, plans are tweaked. A specialist then focuses on motivation, how to hold you accountable, and when to integrate alternative therapies to solve a mystery and get to the end goal.
The time is now folks and a registered dietitian is the way to go. A trained professional who is good at their job will only recommend changes that are realistic. Realistic goals equal compliance. Compliance equals success. There are many ways you can get assistance with expenses for nutrition counseling. If the group you want to work with does not take your insurance, ask for a Superbill so you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. There is no such thing as failure, stop making that an excuse and if at first you don't succeed, try again. If you are interested in learning more check us out at www.kindrednutrition.com. We are taking on new clients daily and would love to have you join our Kindred Community! I'm looking forward to hearing from you soon. Take this as your "sign."
In Good Health,
Amy
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