Eat For You Dietitian

Day 2 of Lockdown 2.0

November 6, 2020

It’s Friday and this week was not a great week. I was overwhelmed, unsure and then sad as all my birthday plans for this month had to be postponed. Lockdown birthday it is then.

Today feels like a good day. Yesterday I messed up my day, after a late night I still got up at 6.30am feeling exhausted but I pushed through my 40 minute interval run and as I didn’t want to end up in a scene from The Mist I didn’t go to the park and just ran around the same streets which was boring. Afterward though I didn’t feel refreshed, I was bloody exhausted the whole day and despite working from home (although I did have to travel to a home visit using appropriate PPE) I was a zombie. Fell asleep at 8.30pm on the sofa then by 9.30pm I was in bed till 7am this morning. Most restful sleep I’ve had in months and months.
Anyone else feeling that every day they MUST:

Meditate
Stretch
Exercise
Cook from scratch 3 meals a day Read
Reflect
Create

Social media is a wide and wonderful place, however the live workouts, live talks and cook-alongs, IGTV schedules, influencers talking about new hobbies, books are coming up everywhere and I was thinking should I be scheduling my time like this. I have a book on my nightstand I’ve started reading but only picked it up twice in 3 weeks. I have something I’m knitting half-finished and my acrylic paints and canvases waiting to be used again but a lack of wanting to just yet. That’s ok. Everyone’s pace is different.

Exercise, movement, physical activity, working out …

whatever you want to call it.
I did my first headstand on the weekend! Fine, I had help holding my legs up straight but I held them up. Never in a million years did I think I would be able to do that. Now that’s lit a fire in me to continue getting stronger and power yoga is no joke. If anyone says yoga is only stretching, I challenge you!

I was talking to my running coach the other day about how I felt that I needed to do yoga in the morning before a working day instead of a strength session recently to set myself up first thing in the mornings. That the overwhelming feelings had to be centred and she reminded me that it’s okay to listen to your body. Move when your body wants to move. Be grateful that I am able to move in different ways and continue to learn and develop. I have personally found yoga amazing in that sense, holding poses, transitioning and breathing sounds easybut I have so much more to learn. Bonus – I can do it overlooking the sunrise in my pyjamas. In this cold weather, that beats a morning run in the mist.

I also bought a new set of dumbbells. Luckily a week before they declared a Lockdown 2.0. So alongside my 5kg dumbbells and 12kg kettlebells, I have 10kg dumbbells. Wow, heavy! My last strength session I altered between the 5kg and 10kg dumbbells as it was harder but I put no pressure on myself. Remember when 5kg used to feel heavy, hell remember when the same exercises using bodyweight was hard. Progress is a beautiful thing.

Cooking from scratch

When people hear I’m a Dietitian they expect me to eat overnight oats with plenty of berries, cook fresh every day and salad or veggies at every meal with no carbohydrates in sight. Not for me! First I hate overnight oats and I love pasta and bread. I enjoy cooking from scratch and following recipes and sometimes I like putting a pizza or fish and chips in the oven as an easy dinner. Let’s not put pressure on ourselves. We know fruit and veggies are beneficial for our bodies and I enjoy eating these in different forms. Fresh, frozen and tinned.

I do not diet. I do not restrict. I eat. What I eat in a day? I absolutely hate these posts/vlogs. What you eat in a day should be individual to you, based on a variety of factors (clinical, environmental, likes/dislikes). Why should I tell you what I eat in a day? It should make no difference to the choices you make.

When I speak to a patient/client I aim to educate and empower them to make their own choices. I don’t like referring to days as ‘good’ or ‘naughty’. I don’t have to burn calories so I can eat XYZ and nor do you. Our relationship with food has been shaped by many environmental factors and now throw social media into the mix and I am competing against ‘nutrition advice’ people are reading through unqualified platforms.

If you do want to make positive changes to your eating habits, start with adding in, not taking away. Always sound better and increase likelihood you’ll maintain.

My little ramble for the day.
Keep moving throughout the colder months

October 26, 2020
As an NHS Community Dietitian we have accommodated our clinics to solely telephone consultations until further notice. As many healthcare professionals have done according to recent Covid-19 measures. Although my scope of practice is in a nutshell providing nutrition and dietetic advice treating various clinical conditions. I have found myself referring to other key factors that we commonly forget about.

Sleep

Stress

Movement

I do not declare that these areas are my specialties, however there is growing evidence supporting that sleep deprivation, high stress levels and physical inactivity can impact the food choices we make on a daily basis for a variety of reasons.

Today I wanted to talk a little bit about movement. I personally have progressed through a journey when I can finally say exercise is not a form of ‘punishment’ or a way ‘I need to earn my food’. I exercise to celebrate what my body can do. As a runner I have achieved 5k’s, 10k’s, half marathons, marathons, and my one and only ultramarathon (51km distance) over several years. In the beginning I did start running as a way to control my body shape and weight. To be honest not much has changed in my eyes except how I feel in my body. Appreciation, respect and compassion. Instead of shame, guilt and disgust.

When I talk to my patients about movement I want to emphasise the benefits outside of aesthetics. I am learning how best to translate this effectively.

24 hours = 1440 minutes a day. All I ask for is 2% of that to dedicate to movement. This can be anything you enjoy. I specify enjoy as then this is likely to also reduce your stress levels. Win win.

Excuse number 1 now ‘It’s too cold and dark’
1. Plan ahead
  Think a day ahead, what are you going to do tomorrow and how are you going to make it happen. For example if I’m going for a morning run I have my clothes in a pile ready to grab and go. If it’s a dark morning I have my small light I strap to my front and my dog also has a light-up collar to be seen. Sometimes being prepared doesn’t always work, other times I’ll wake up, see the pile of clothes ready but I decide on a yoga flow in my pyjamas. Pyjamas are the best workout gear for a good old stretch.
2. Positive Reinforcement
  I love a cup of black coffee first thing in the morning. I usually wait until I get to my office to have my first cup of the day. However, if I wake up 30 minutes early to do power yoga or strength sessionI say I can enjoy my coffee and a sunset without emails getting in the way. Another example is after a run I am always a sweaty mess, no matter what the distance I usually return home like a drowned rat. Recently I’ve been running some of my commute home. More than once now I’ve been caught out in the rain so to keep going I think about running a hot bath once I get home.
3. Good music or podcasts
  I’m usually a podcast runner unless I want to disconnect and get lost to the rhythm. Usually a comedy podcast to keep me laughing as kilometres keep going. I even keep a couple favourite episodes downloaded to listen to again. I’m one of these people that can listen to or watch shows/films over and over again and again. You might prefer to listen to what is going on around you. The other morning I was walking my dog in my local park which is near a river. At the right moment there was a pause in my podcast and I noticed a flock of geese (or a skein) circling around the field, landed and then took off again. I took off my headphones and just stood admiring. It was like a scene out of The Notebook, the peacefulness and beauty of nature in the sky.
2020 has been the year I think we have had to appreciate whatever we can and take care of ourselves so we can also take care of others. Be kind to yourself.
Gained Weight? I have and you know what, I feel fabulous

October 9, 2020

It’s taken me a long time to feel comfortable to not check my weight regularly. I knew approximately what I weighed but it no longer was something I had to do. A few weeks ago I was doing my first home visit since Covid-19 pandemic and I wanted to make sure my work weighing scales were functioning so I checked my weight. As a Community Dietitian we review individuals who are unable to leave home to attend appointments and as these individuals are usually older and more vulnerable anthropometric measurements are a crucial part of the overall assessment.

I stepped on the scales and I thought ‘Hmm higher than I remember’ In a previous mindset this would have resulted in me downloading My Fitness Pal again to count calories, track my steps every day etc. you know the drill. Instead I pushed those back and thought ‘I feel good and that’s what matters.’

When I realised that some of my clothes didn’t fit me anymore. I’ve been trying to get rid of some unused clothes on Depop and also purchasing on Depop too as my part to be more sustainable with my fashion choices. I thought I better sell some going out outfits which I haven’t used in at least 2 years. They say photos of you wearing them sells better. About half of them felt tighter, a couple zips didn’t fully close and 1 dress just didn’t pull down past my bum. That’s when the negative thought kicked in. Luckily my lovely boyfriend came in at just the right moment, he saw me doubting myself and brought me right out of it. I am not who I was 2 years ago, as a person in and out I have grown.

Why did I always have to be a size 10. What does that number even mean? I want clothes that fit my body, I’m not going to try to fit in the clothes that I might some day want to wear. Stop telling yourself that, clear out the clutter. The relief of that pressure is freeing, and a little bit of extra cash is a bonus.
October 2020 already, it’s not too late

October 7, 2020

I haven’t written in 3 months, feels like a long time ago but at the same time it doesn’t. New normal, social distancing, face coverings when indoors, the rule of 6, self isolating. These are all phrases we are very used to by now and they don’t seem to be disappearing anytime soon. It’s been over 7 months since Covid-19 global pandemic changed our lives as we knew it.

Even though our year hasn’t gone the way we thought it would. I had planned landmark races, to complete a Specialist Masters course for my career and finally run the iconic London Marathon with close family and friends pub crawling. These being pushed back doesn’t mean these goals are no longer achievable.

Deferred race places are confirmed and I haven’t quite decided if I’ll run the London Marathon in October 2021 or April 2022 just yet. Courses postponed and changed to virtual format next year. Most importantly I sought a qualified S&C/Running Coach to guide me towards new goals. After everything that’s happened I am happy for Emma Kirk Odunobi to tell me how to plan my movement. I haven’t run for over an hour in months and months and to be honest I’m not missing those longer runs. What I’m enjoying now is running fast, recovering and repeating, AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible) and EMOM (Every Minute On the Minute) conditioning workouts. My 5kg dumbbells and 12kg kettlebell are actually feeling lighter.

This weekend is when I find out if the past couple months of speed training has paid off when I retest by 1km and 1mile personal bests.

My goals

Physical goals – Last year I was 49 seconds away from achieving my sub-25 minute 5km in the Richmond 5k Sundown race in Old Deer Park. 25:48 was good enough for me at the time. Now I am more determined than ever to make it to 24.59. Getting faster does hurt but the benefits of these running sessions is focusing on speed for those few minutes. All my focus and thoughts on putting one foot in front of the other faster and faster. In the midst of managing life in a global pandemic I am treasuring these moments.

Personal goals – Continuing to make our home as cosy and welcoming as possible. My own paintings, plants flourishing, herbs and tomatoes growing from cuttings, growing my own vegetables. Ever since I was little I’ve always dreamt about having my own home, decorating it and making it feel like a safe haven. We were lucky enough to have moved in after lockdown restrictions eased.

Your goals are your own goals. With social media showing us millions of people’s lives constantly it can easy to feel we are falling short. It’s not true. One photo is one small part of someone’s life. If someone’s story is making you feel negative in any way then it’s time to unfollow, take a break from social media and be thankful for what you do have.

Gratitude.
Gardening, painting to decorate. New hobbies …

July 17, 2020

Anyone else thought that they should have more hobbies than ‘going out to eat/drink’ once we were told that all our hobby locations/restaurants/bars were shut and we were only allowed out once a day.

As a runner and home workout junkie already, there’s only so many exercises classes to do before causing yourself an injury. Also during lockdown I remained in a studio flat with my partner, he wasn’t too keen on my HIIT workouts in the only space available. My body doesn’t appreciate regular jumping movements anyways as alongside running this is too much pressure on my knees. Mostly recently I’ve started using weights, but I will expand on another post.

My new hobbies … Gardening and Painting.
Once we got the green light to go ahead with the exchange and completion of our first home at the end of May, we did it! Finally we had the space to embrace more opportunities.

Most importantly the pleasure in decorating our home with furniture and then with houseplants and artwork.

Before I was known as the plant-killer. I’ve killed many orchids and herb plants have never survived more than a couple of weeks. In our studio flat I only kept one tiny plant (can’t even remember where I bought it) and watered it when I remembered which was about once a month maybe. Surprisingly it was in pretty good shape so brought it along with us to the new house. I left my dead orchid for my mum to try to bring back to life. Since my houseplants collection has grown thanks to Patch Plants I’ve kept to watering on the weekends and misting the plants every few days. I was shocked to see my tiny plant had grown amazingly and I’ve even repotted it, so now a small plant with bright orange flowers.

Houseplants, to name a few I can remember the names of : Umbrella Tree

Golden Dragon Tree

Rubber plant

Gerbera daisies

So far I’ve had my new houseplants for about a month and none of them seem to be showing signs of dieing. I’ve also gone to the garden centre about 3 times in a month, coming away with one more indoor plant. Even my boyfriend chose some plants for his home office. They brighten up any space in my opinion.

I’ve also started an experiment to grow sustainable Basil from a 50p basil plant from Lidl. After watching a couple YouTube videos on how to ensure that you can continue to grow more basil from a shop-bought basil plant I carefully separated my basil plant into several smaller pots. Supposedly this is to make the basic plants stronger, I pinched them off (I think that’s the correct term) so they continue to grow and after 20 days they should look better and I can transfer them to bigger pots. Currently I am on Day 6 so fingers crossed it is a success as I love basil.

My little raised herb garden outside isn’t going so smoothly but I’ve tried sowing coriander again (again not sure if that’s the correct terminology). The oregano and thyme plants I potted in my larger planter seem to be doing well but I need to remember to prune more often.

Artwork I’ve realised is quite expensive. Prints are cheaper and CK Prints have been my personal favourites. I had another idea of decorating the walls of our house. Using acrylic paints and canvases. Very new to me and I thank Chessie King for posting about Brush and Bubbles instagram painting tutorials. I absolutely love it! By no means could I create these paintings without guidance but there are many tutorials by Brush and Bubbles and they continue to add more so no worry I will complete them all.
No surprise that my first painting was of a houseplant! Since I have expanded to fields of grass with ladybirds, yellow flowers, the northern lights, celebration of Pride, abstract, lemons, mountains and an african sunset. Personally I don’t think they’re amazing but my boyfriend says they’re pretty good, otherwise he wouldn’t be happy with them going around the whole house. Subtle compliments all around.

What new hobbies have you started?

Next one I am keen to try is learning how to use a sewing machine. I’m worried that could turn out to be quite an expensive hobby though. Sewing machine, materials, thread etc. Currently my sewing box is the size of a small coffee tin.
Dietitian’s top 5 IBS Tips

July 14, 2020
I think I have a small section about what I do for a living, however it is not something I refer to here regularly.

I have been working as an NHS Community Dietitian since qualifying about 2 years ago. I have a BSc(Honours) in Nutrition and a Postgraduate Diploma in Dietetics. Why is Community in my title? Well I am not based in hospitals, so to put into context during the Covid-19 pandemic I was not on the frontline. Many of my colleagues based in the acute hospital were on the frontline and hats off to them. I was prepared to be redeployed, however that did not occur and as the focus was getting people well in hospital, after that it was keeping them well once they got home and avoiding readmissions. That’s where I come in alongside many other Allied Healthcare Professionals.

Usually I am carrying out general dietetic outpatient clinics, visiting vulnerable individuals at home, undertaking group education sessions on a variety of nutrition topics amongst other duties. In the past 4 months this has all changed. I am primarily contacting my patients over the telephone. This comes with its pros and cons and can depend on the individual I am communicating with. As they say, you say a lot with your eyes. During a face-to-face consultation, not only is a healthcare professional listening, but they are also taking into account your body language. How engaged are they? Is there something else occupying their mind? Do they understand what I’ve just told them? All of these questions are unanswered during a telephone consultation.

Unfortunately my department hasn’t been lucky enough to gain access to video consultation networks just yet.

What I have definitely noticed, is more referrals for dietary advice for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). This is not surprising considering IBS affects 10-15% of the population.

IBS is defined as ‘a functional bowel disorder in which recurrent abdominal pain is associated with defecation or a change in bowel habits’ according to NICE guidelines.
No one individual is the same and as part of a full dietetic assessment I gather not only information about what a person is eating daily, also how they are eating, who with and several other environmental factors, which some people look at me strangely when I ask. However it is all key information when tailoring dietary advice for the person sitting in front of me.

My top key recommendations:
1. Hydrate first thing in the morning. If it’s not your thing, make it your thing. Are you waiting for the kettle to boil, drink a glass of water whilst you wait. Have a bottle of water ready for when you wake up. Chances are you’re scrolling for at least 5 minutes after your alarm so make it the scroll and hydrate time. Hydrate, hydrate please!
2. Portion control with your fruit. Yep, not the food you thought I was going to say. Don’t finish a whole punnet of berries, or a whole bowl of mixed fruits in one go. Fistful sized portion in one sitting, 3 times a day maximum.
3. Notice your stress triggers. Is it your full inbox, buzzing phone, endless to-do list, family members nagging you. Try and get away from these whilst you eat. Obviously during isolation this is not so easily done. Maybe it’s sitting in a different spot, reading a book, listening to a podcast or just listening to the birds/cars/people outside.
4. Movement. You don’t have to be a fitness fanatic but moving our bodies is good for us. Period. Walking, dancing, running, strength training, stretching, whatever it is. Find your preference and do it. If you’re a complete beginner then some guidance would be useful. For walking there is the Active 10 app, for running the Couch to 5k app, yoga or stretching movements you can access Yoga with Adrienne on Youtube for free or download the Free version of Fiit app.
5. Too much of anything is likely going to upset your gut. The most common sentence I hear is ‘I think I’m intolerant to gluten/wheat and lactose because after I eat a whole pizza my symptoms are worse.’ That’s a big meal= big party for your digestive tract to digest. If you don’t feel anything in your gut after a whole pizza then hats off to you. Think of the amount you are having, is it a whole bowl of pasta, don’t go switching to gluten free automatically. It’s more expensive and well pasta is just yum! Trial a smaller portion next time.
The overall aim with my IBS patients is to educate and empower them to be able to enjoy food. Education and awareness in knowing what are there trigger foods and in what quantities. The best feedback I have received is when one of my patients says they can finally go to a BBQ or a party without fear. Amazing!

If you are struggling on your own then yes go to your GP to seek advice, you can request a referral to a dietitian. Ensure they do the required investigations to eliminate any other causes for your symptoms. If you are going to the internet for advice, please ensure they are reputable sources, and not solely saying exclude whole food groups. IBS is a multifactorial condition, what we eat is only one factor and that is the main thing to remember.