Three Habits You Need to Let go of in Order to Eat Healthy

 As we get back into fall routines, I’ve noticed three habits that hold people back from making positive changes to their nutrition and lifestyle.  This week, I will debunk these three concepts that could hold you back from making those positive changes. Scales When looking to change how we eat,

Being healthy is all about you. 

 When considering making a lifestyle change, especially with nutrition, it's crucial to understand what healthy means to you. Food is often seen as bad or good. My clients echo this sentiment, and these feelings can lead to emotions of guilt and shame when it comes to everyday nutrition.  A healthy diet is

Preparation and eating can both bring comfort

 With cooler temperatures and shorter days, clients turn to food to comfort them after a busy day, lack of sleep, or stressful day. However, instead of these foods bringing comfort and security, I hear stories of guilt and shame about having eaten them. It is sad that people feel this way about

Don’t download that apps–eating well is not as hard as it might seem!

 Online, you can find a lot of information about nutrition and wellness, including apps that track calories and others that promote weight loss—it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed. However wonderful and interesting these apps might be, they create a disconnect between us and food. They often treat eating as something that

Fire up the BBQ — protein is an important part of a healthy life!

 As we head into summer with barbecues ready to cook up amazing steaks and burgers, I thought it would be interesting to delve into the world of protein, what it is, how it works, how much you really need, and how to balance it out. Protein is a macronutrient, meaning

Four things to consider when making nutrition changes — it’s not just about the food you eat

 When considering changing your nutrition, you will likely think of specific diets like ketogenic, paleo, or vegetarian. So, this week I am outlining the four key factors that I discuss with clients when they are looking to make changes to their nutrition and lifestyle. 1. Be aware of how much

Spring clean your kitchen and your shopping list

 It might not yet feel like spring is here, but looking at the buds pushing through the ground, we can rest assured that warmth will be upon us. At this time of year, as we prepare our gardens and back yards for a summer barbecue with friends and families, I

Turn your leftover carbohydrates into a satisfying winter salad

 When it comes to preparing simple, easy, and tasty meals, warm winter salads are a great option. We tend to think that salads as a meal are reserved for hot summer days but I want to introduce the idea of warm winter salads. They are just as flavourful as their summer counterpart and provide

Swap out your resolutions for sustained lifestyle changes

 As we near the end of January, it is time to reevaluate your New Year’s resolutions to see if they are working or not. I find the idea of making resolutions restrictive as it generally comes with the decision not to do a specific activity or habit that we may

Loving your leftovers

 With a busy family, I just love leftovers. Often overlooked, they are a very precious commodity in your fridge: they save time, reduce waste, and are a source of ready-made meals. This week, I am looking at the various ways you can use leftovers along with different transport and storage options.

Dust off that slow cooker and fall into warm weather cooking

 One certain thing is that the weather in Ottawa always lets you know when the seasons are changing. Not only do you dress differently with the change of temperature but it also affects how and what you eat. This week I will look at how you can adapt the food

Healthy benefits of our favourite fall ingredients and Thanksgiving ideas

 Autumn is the traditional harvest period in Canada, so lets look at the various foods that we can eat and enjoy throughout this season. This week we are looking at foods such as apples, Brussel sprouts and pumpkins and how to incorporate them into your diet. These foods are warm and sooth our soul as

Sweet September

 As the days grow shorter our desire for sweet, comforting foods increases. There is often guilt around eating these foods that contain what is referred to as ‘hidden sugars’, which is synonymous with added sugars. You may or may not have heard of the term ‘hidden sugars’ before however, I want to demystify

Savoury muffins are great for lunch

 I have always associated muffins as being something sweet and slightly decadent but food in general and how we use and perceive it is changing all the time. This week, I want to share with you the idea that muffins can also be savoury and how this can help you in

Nutrition and the bigger picture

 Summer is the season for lazy lunches and slowing down to enjoy the warm weather—it's a time to enjoy barbecues with friends and family. As we make our way through summer, make the most of all the fresh produce available at the grocery stores and local markets. This week I

The art of the salad—6 things that will turn your simple salad into a feast

 When the days are hot, the last thing you want to do in the evening is turn the oven on—that is why salads are such a great meal. Not only do they keep your kitchen cool, they cool you down as well! Putting together a salad is quick and easy but

Good nutrition is more than just the food you eat

 When talking about good nutrition, people tend to immediately think of the food they eat, specific diets such as the keto or paleo, best super greens powder, quantities and the time of meals and snacks. These are core aspects of good nutrition but there is more to it than that. Other factors

The health benefits of extra virgin olive oil

 For many years we were told in the media and through food marketing that fat is bad for us and should be avoided at all costs, with stores offering a multitude of low-fat products from cheese to meats. However, we now know that when an element such as fat, is

Eating well is a journey not a destination

 What I have learned so far in my journey with food and nutrition is that we all have a different relationship with food. With all the information circulating on social media today, good healthy nutrition is often seen as an objective, that once achieved will bring long-lasting health benefits. There

Simple ways to help reduce blood pressure

 The 17th of May marked World Hypertension Day, which most of us know as high blood pressure. So, this week I will be looking at what is hypertension and the various lifestyle and nutritional changes that can be easily made to help reduce the numbers. High blood pressure refers to

Simple nutritional tips to help manage your allergies

 The weather is not as warm as we might like but the pollen is in the air and this causes a lot of discomfort for those who suffer from seasonal allergies. So, this week, I will be looking at what is an allergic response and the lifestyle and nutritional changes

Sweet things that taste great can be good for you!

 There is the perception that anything sweet is not good for us. However, sweetness in itself is not bad. Giulia Enders, author of “Gut: The Inside Story of Our Body's Most Underrated Organ”, sums it up nicely: “It just depends where it comes from”. Using this as a basis, any natural

Why including sprouted grains can be good for your digestive health

 ABOVE: Sprouted grain bread, like Ezekiel bread, is an option for people who are gluten sensitive. Like many other foods sprouted grains appear to be making their presence more noticed in the grocery stores. So, this week I will be looking at what exactly are sprouted grains and the digestive benefits you might gain

The health benefits of keeping your body well hydrated

 With spring well and truly here, we are spending more time outdoors and for most people the warming temperatures encourage us to be more active. We are largely made up of water (about 70 per cent) therefore it stands to reason that for our bodies require good hydration to function properly. However, it

Sleep, sugar, and general good health

 Sleep is a precious commodity and far too often relegated to the bottom of the heap when looking at lifestyle. I often hear “I manage or get by on 6 hours” as if this were a badge of honour, when in fact we know that good sleep plays an important