What We Do:
Experience and education has taught me that there isn’t a shortcut to optimal weight. It’s not a lack of willpower or inability to maintain self-control. Rather, weight imbalance is almost always the result of decades of accumulated poor lifestyle habits. People are miseducated about sleep, stress, exercise and the role of food and its effects on the body. As a result, I work with my clients to focus on the bigger picture of increased overall health. Weight optimization follows as a positive side effect.
Weight optimization philosophies center around three key ideas:
- Dietary fat is a good thing.
- Animal-based protein is essential. (This could be just eggs and dairy.)
- Heavy-weight training, not cardio, is the best exercise for weight optimization.
As a human, you’re designed to lift heavy things and to walk. So for every weight optimization client, I recommend heavy weight training and an hour of walking each day, which may be supplemented with yoga, tai chi, rock climbing, hiking or other activities depending on your lifestyle.
I work with clients to refine their daily calorie and macronutrient goals based on their daily food diary and more importantly through the feedback clients get from their own bodies. I can then adjust the eating plan to meet both the client’s daily needs and long-term weight goals.
Like everything about my practice, weight optimization results are individualized. Once the pieces are put into place and my recommendations are implemented, we can achieve optimal weight and health. Health did not get out of balance overnight; neither can it get back in balance overnight. It’s going to take some time and hard work.
It’s important to realize that because my clients will be increasing their muscle mass (and muscle weighs more than fat), they may not end up at their target “number.” But when they land on a healthy weight, they are pleased with how they feel and look.