Amy White
Nutritionist, Health & Lifestyle Coach
Health • Wellness • Weight Loss
From Fading Away to Feeling Fabulous in my 50s:
How I Got Here
My passion for health and wellness led me to a Masters Degree in Nutrition and Board Certification as a Holistic Nutritionist through the National Association of Nutrition Professionals. I have also achieved the certification of Functional Nutrition and Lifestyle practitioner.
My master's degree in nutrition was prompted by my very real experience with food as medicine. You can read more about that here. After getting my nutrition degree life reminded me again why what I was doing was important. You can read about that here.
So yes, nutrition and health are very important to me but so is body comfort. I like doing things, lots of things. Yes, I love to sit around and watch movies or read but I also like to be busy. I like to shop, cook, walk, bike, hit the gym, goof around with my husband, play with my grownup kids and grandkids.
Body 'comfort' is everything. It's being able to move well without a lot of aches, pains or other types of discomfort. It's being able to get in and out of my car easily so errands aren't a chore. It's being able to quickly get down on the floor and back up again so I can play with my dogs and grandkids. It's being able to go up and down the stairs without thinking about getting winded or losing my balance. It's being able to get out of bed in the morning and walk without sore feet and stiff legs. It's feeling strong and sexy in whatever I grab out of my closet.
It's being able to do what you want to do without feeling like you're too old, too tired and too fragile to embrace the fun in life.
I personally understand how the body changes as we age and how easy it is to get comfortable with discomfort. The obedient and easily managed body of my 20s and early 30s started fighting against me and my efforts to feel good and maintain my weight when I started closing in on 40.
I was tired, puffy, achy, cranky, gassy and always hungry. Getting out of bed in the morning was a chore. I wasn't able to see any joy in the day ahead. Everyday was just a lot of hours until I could go back to bed.
I thought that was it, my best years were behind me. Things were only going to get worse.
At this point in my life my kids were teenagers. I did have time to focus on myself but that wasn't something I really wanted to do. I didn't particularly like who I saw in the mirror so I really didn't want to spend extra time with only her!
Instead I decided I would focus on my 16 year old daughter. She was going to be leaving for college and I wanted to make sure SHE felt her best. My daughter had always had gut issues but it was nothing we were worried about. All and all it seemed pretty normal. Anyway, I won't go into the whole story you can read that here
The short story, she's great now!
The decision to focus on my daughter was what finally led me to ME. Changing my daughter's diet changed her life and mine.
When my daughter left for college I had no one else to micromanage but myself (well my son but he was way better at deflecting me than my daughter ; ).
It was time to look in the mirror.
My daughter's transformation woke me up to two important things:
1) Feeling lousy is not normal
2) Doing the same thing over and over had not changed anything
At this point I had entered my 40s. I really did want to feel good so I had spent the last several years following the food guidelines but that didn't help. I was still tired, cranky, puffy, achy and too big for most of my clothes.
So here's where I found myself...
- We changed my daughter's diet, away from the food guidelines and she got better
- The food guidelines weren't helping me
- I needed to learn a whole LOT more about food and the body
My daughter started college and I started my masters program in nutrition.
My Life Changed
My nutrition education gave me the knowledge and tools to figure out what my 40 year old body needed. Once my body got what it needed, it was right back to giving me what I wanted, great energy, a happy mood and a comfortable, healthy body weight.
At 54 I am feeling the best I've ever felt. Stronger, leaner, sexier and way more confident than at any other point in my life. I am a firm believer that age is just a number and each one of us has 100% control over how we think, feel and act.
When I meet people who are feeling frustrated, angry and hopeless I get inspired because I know I CAN HELP. I don't want to see anyone settle for the body discomfort (and health issues) commonly associated with aging. Things like fatigue, sugar cravings, weight gain. mood swings, high blood pressure, pre-diabetes and more. These are all signs of a body out of balance. It's not age, it's lifestyle!
Food is information. If you aren’t getting what you want from your body then it’s very possible your body isn’t getting what it needs from you. If you want results then it’s time to make the changes needed to get your body working WITH you not against you.
Once I learned how to work WITH my body everything got easier and better.
Body comfort is a real thing and it's something you deserve. Don't settle for anything less than living in a body you love!
I truly believe that when the body is given what it needs it will respond with health and strength. The primary goal of the body is to be in balance and function optimally. Your body wants you to have energy, a happy mood, great sleep and a perfect body weight. You and your body want the same thing! If you feel like your body is fighting against your weight loss and wellness goals you’re probably right. The thing is, it’s really not your body fighting you, it’s you fighting your body. Cutting calories, not getting enough sleep, bingeing on sugar and over indulging with alcohol are just some of the ways you fight against your body. When you’re ready to support your body and find balance give me a call. Together we can create a plan to put you and your body back on the same team.
You are unique. Your level of health, the medications you may be taking, specific lifestyle factors and more will impact how quickly your body shifts and changes. The scale is only one data point and in my opinion not the best measure of success. Success breeds success. It’s important to be aware of different measures of positive change. This is how you succeed. You need to listen to your body and see the change even when the scale doesn’t move. I teach my clients how to measure success. This creates the motivation which is the foundation of consistency and life long positive change.
I believe true health and a happy body weight can only be achieved and maintained when feelings of hunger, deprivation and fatigue are NOT part of the equation. My clients achieve real, lasting results because their move away from sugar cravings is bridged with transition foods and a knowledge of how to make low-sugar food substitutions. With an understanding about how to make Good-Better-Best food choices my clients can consistently eat and enjoy foods that work WITH their body even when they’re busy, tired or just not in the mood to cook.
I'm YOU!
I get that you’re busy. I get that you’re tired. I get that the last thing you want to do is spend extra mental and physical energy on figuring out food (or yourself).
I get it because that’s WAS me.
But guess what, I’m still busy. I still get tired and paralyzed by indecision when dinner time rolls around.
I don’t like to meal prep. I don’t like to wait for food when I’m hungry. I don’t even like to cook every day.
Do you know what I do like? Feeling and looking good.
The new me, takes 100% responsibility for myself.
I know that no matter what I do I HAVE THE FINAL SAY SO and so do you.
