Nutrition Technician

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The practical application of nutrition science

Lab Testing

The modern approach to healthcare is based on the use of pharmaceutical drugs to suppress symptoms without adequately addressing the reasons why the symptoms appeared in the first place. In almost every case, medical drugs exacerbate existing nutritional imbalances and deficiencies in the body, adding insult to injury. These drugs can often cause troubling side effects, some of which can be very dangerous.

All symptoms and disease are manifestations of biochemical dysfunction. When a person is unhealthy, it means that something in their biochemistry is out of balance. Laboratory testing and questionnaires can help us to identify the underlying physiological and biochemical imbalances that may be driving or contributing to symptoms or disease. Once identified, these biochemical dysfunctions can largely be corrected in order to support and promote health. As the body moves into balance, symptoms and disease often resolve on their own. Providing the body with what it needs to function optimally is the nutritional biochemistry approach.  

Functional medicine is a holistic approach to healthcare that looks in detail at the underlying or root causes of one’s health and wellness issues. Each lab test serves as a window into how the body is currently functioning and helps us to form a clear impression of a patient’s overall condition. Once we have a clear impression, the appropriate steps can be taken to improve and restore normal function.

Using comprehensive laboratory testing allows us to connect the dots between underlying biochemical dysfunction and the seemingly disparate symptoms with which patients present. Through a combination of blood, urine, and hair testing, a great many biochemical parameters can be evaluated and corrected in order to restore balance. The goal of this comprehensive assessment is to expose any and every possible limiting factor that may be preventing you from enjoying optimal health.

I work with my clients to develop a prioritized list of solutions in order to address the limiting factors identified during their assessment. Your comprehensive plan will include diet, exercise, lifestyle, and possibly supplement recommendations selected specifically to help you achieve your health and wellness goals as quickly and efficiently as possible. My intention is to provide you with the tools and information you need in order to improve your quality of life and achieve a sustainable diet and lifestyle that supports health rather than disease.

Nutrition

Proper nutrition is the foundation of any health or wellness program. The human body relies on the nutrients it receives from a healthy diet in order to function optimally. These essential nutrients include vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, and amino acids from protein. Nutrition also provides the fuel that our bodies need in order to produce the energy that supports all cellular function.

Human metabolism is the sum total of a vast array of chemical reactions. Many of these reactions depend on the proper function of certain enzymes, the majority of which are in-turn dependent on the presence of specific nutrients such as vitamins and minerals. If the diet is deficient in these essential nutrients, then these reactions will be compromised in some way. A relatively healthy body may be able to compensate for these imbalances for some time, but eventually the absence or depletion of these nutrients will lead to the development of symptoms and eventually disease.

Modern food can either support our body and promote health or it can add to the body’s overall burden or total physiological load. Much of what we call food today is not fit for human consumption simply because its consumption inevitably leads to negative health outcomes. Most people are eating a diet that not only is deficient in nutrients, but also loaded with toxic chemicals and compounds such as artificial ingredients, industrial seed oils, and sugar. All of these substances cause harm to the body and further deplete the body’s reserves.

Our bodies depend on proper nutrition to keep your energy, mood, and cognitive function performing at its best. Whether you are recovering from chronic illness to optimizing athletic performance, I can help you find the best starting place for you based on your current lifestyle and goals. We can try and change everything at once or we can progress more slowly, whichever feels best to you. I can help you to identify what shifts need to happen and help you create a prioritized action plan in order to maximize efficiency in recovery.

Exercise

There is no doubt that exercise provides far reaching benefits for our health. Movement and exercise are as much a part of health as air, food, water, and sleep. As an exercise specialist, I focus on basic movement patterns, called primal movement patterns, with an emphasis on calisthenics, core strength, and general conditioning. Primal movement patterns include squatting, lunging, bending, pushing, pulling, and twisting.  These movements form the basis of all human movement and all would have been necessary for survival in our ancestral environment.  Prior to modern times, anyone who could not perform these patterns would have a limited chance of surviving in our ancestral environment.  

My workouts emphasize functional strength, stability, and muscle balance, and I spend a great deal of time emphasizing proper posture and form.  When properly designed, an exercise program can help to correct muscle imbalances, increase stability, flexibility, and strength, while also incorporating personal goals such as eliminating pain, losing body fat, increasing fitness levels, and improving posture. Many of my clients have some specific physical limitation or otherwise challenging condition, and are simply looking for a way to workout that is both safe and effective. All exercises are progressed based on your ability.

Not all exercise is equal, and not all exercise is appropriate for everyone. In my experience, most people have no idea how their exercise program is affecting their body. Some forms of exercise can be detrimental while others are simply a waste of time. Many exercise programs can lead to poor posture or unnecessarily tax the hormonal system. I can help you to focus on what actually works so you are able to achieve your goals in the most efficient way possible.

Holistic Lifestyle Coaching

Instead of living in our natural ancestral environment, the majority of people live in a matrix of paved earth, blue light, electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs), and polluted air. The culture is dominated by social media, advertising, and fake news. Add to all this a diet that couldn’t be any more different than what we evolved to eat as a species and municipal water supply that’s been shown to contain chlorine, fluoride, and a range of medical drug residues. Let’s not forget the drugs and alcohol many of us use just to get through the day and the range of chemicals we expose ourselves to in the form of personal care products such as deodorants, shampoo, hair-styling products, and hand sanitizers.  

Many people are not getting enough sleep or have sleep habits that prevent them from sleeping well. The vast majority of people do not exercise at all, and many people are exercising in such a way that is only adding more stress to their bodies. Many people work over 40 hours in a week or are holding down two or three different jobs at the same time. Many people feel as if they do not have a distinct purpose in life and we are considered lucky if we actually enjoy what we do for a living. A lot of us are caught in toxic relationships that cause stress, but we don’t have the energy or the confidence to move on. It is no wonder that so many people are struggling.  

It has been said that 95% of thoughts are repetitive and at least 70% are negative in nature. The emotions you feel are the reactions to these thoughts, and if not addressed, negative thoughts can lead to a consistent activation of your fight or flight nervous system. Learning how to handle the thoughts that arise in a constructive manner can make all the difference in the world for some people.

Lifestyle is often a critical component to address when it comes to achieving optimal health. Each of the aforementioned factors can have profound effects on physiology. An important concept to consider is that of total physiological load. Although each of these factors can add some form of stress to the body, addressing each of these factors can also yield more energy and help the body to come into better balance. When part of you is getting better, all of you is getting better.