Although you may not realize it, proper nutrition is an essential part of performing as an athlete. And I'm not talking about making sure your student athletes cut so called "junk food" out of their diet. I'm talking about making sure they are eating ENOUGH.
I love beginnings, but endings are not my thing. When leaving a party, I'm a big fan of the Irish goodbye (aka sneaking out without telling anyone.) I don't like the awkward hugs, the cheek kisses, the feeling that a good time is over. When writing, I never have a problem with the opening sentence, … Continue reading The decade of my eating disorder, and of my recovery
Three years ago I was going through one of my worst relapses. I was injured post my second full marathon and worried that I'd never truly be able to recover from my eating disorder. I'd made it three or four months without purging (my hallmark of a relapse) many times. I'd made it eight months … Continue reading Eating disorder recovery is real, and so Werth it
Have you ever wanted to do something that everyone told you was a bad idea? I'm not talking about a bad idea because you might get hurt (physically at least), but a bad idea because you might not be able to do it. For me that bad idea was making my own wedding cake. Everyone … Continue reading Making your own wedding cake
It starts with a crazy idea. The idea that you should run 26.2 miles consecutively. Then it gets crazier as you commit to 16 weeks of consistent training, running up to 50 or more miles a week. Once you get passed that - and maybe a couple injuries or sore spots, a run or too … Continue reading The marathon: From crazy to crying to smiling again
This morning, I woke up at 2 a.m. with my stomach growling. Not the kind of growl you can roll over and ignore. The kind of growl that demands immediate attention. My tired feet padded out of the bedroom, into the kitchen and located the only clean knife left, a few pieces of bread and … Continue reading Eating enough for a marathon
“It all started when I got a fitbit…” “It all started when I learned how to count calories...” “It all started when I downloaded the Weight Watchers app…” That’s how nearly every one of my appointments begins with a new disordered eating client. They tell me their story, how they first began restricting or bingeing. … Continue reading Stop Kurbo, Weight Watchers dieting app for kids
More than a year ago, when I was still a dietetic intern, learning about HAES for the first time and just thinking about getting back into writing again I pitched an article. It was about the menu labeling law that was about to go into effect nationwide. I was concerned about it. I knew a … Continue reading The dilemma of menu labeling
"The hardest part of recovery is even knowing what normal eating looks like," I said to my therapist a few months into my first round of treatment. "I can't even remember what hunger feels like." It took me years to really understand my hunger cues - and especially normal fullness cues - were again. I … Continue reading Life with ED: when intuitive eating doesn’t work
special thanks to my dietetic intern Kara Peters for assisting in research for this blog post. "How many of you have ever had a protein shake or taken a supplement?" I ask about mid-way through every sports nutrition presentation I give. Nine times out of ten, over half the hands in a room full of … Continue reading Navigating sports nutrition supplements
"So are you new to the area?" I paused, technically it had been almost 5 months since I moved back up to Connecticut from Maryland, but the answer still felt like yes. "Yes," I said. "I moved here this past summer." "Oh, how exciting! What made you move?" The man behind the counter at the … Continue reading Because weddings don’t come with enough stress
My second dietetic intern has a story and a message worth sharing. Read her first blog post all about the female athlete triad, a topic near and dear to not only her heart, but mine. By Kara Peters, Dietetic Intern at the University of Saint Joseph I was fortunate enough to be a three-sport athlete … Continue reading Stop normalizing the loss of your period in sports
