Eggs, raw cheese, grapefruit, honey, half & half, coffee. Simple and effective.
Feeling crappy is more affordable.
Swinging through the fast-food joint is way more convenient than preparing real food at home.
Turning a blind eye to symptoms of dysfunction is easier than dealing with the root cause of why you feel tired, bloated, suffer from reactions to certain foods, experience digestive issues, have a low libido, etc.
However, the conversion rate of those inquiries into clients is pretty low.
Why? Because people aren’t willing to invest in themselves. It’s too expensive.
Private, one-to-one nutrition support and guidance is not worth feeling good, losing excess body fat, achieving performance goals, or reaching a better state of health and wellness.
Buying high-quality, organic, whole foods that require actual cooking, and top-of-the-line supplements fall into the same category. Feeling crappy is simply more affordable.
And if you are suffering from any sort of ill health or chronic condition, not to fear! There’s a ton of prescription medications that’ll fix you right up. They’re definitely more “affordable” than real food.
But here’s the thing, if you desire to change how you feel, it requires that you change what’s on your plate.
Personally, I choose to buy the highest quality foods I can get my hands on because they make me feel good. And the foods you consume should make you feel good!
If your cells aren’t singing after you eat (because remember, the foods we consume are the raw materials that build every cell, tissue, and organ and activate their supporting functions in our bodies), you’re not eating real food.
Do you want your body to be constructed from Doritos? Or nutrient-dense, whole foods that supply ample nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that your body needs to thrive?
Foods that are produced with regenerative farming practices, pasture-raised, grass-fed, non-GMO, organic, and otherwise thoughtfully produced matter. They are more nutrient-dense than their counterparts and provide more bio-available vitamins and minerals. More bang for your buck, so to speak.
I’m worth the investment. And so are you. Our health and well-being are worthy of the greatest care regardless of the price tag.
If you’re on the fence about investing in your health, consider the cost of not…
Allergies, autoimmune diseases, irritable bowel, leaky gut, mood disorders, cognitive decline, diabetes and metabolic dysfunction, heart disease, cancer…. what will those cost you?
After taking a few months off from posting on social media about nutrition-related topics, I’ve recently begun to feel the pull to re-emerge in the nutrition sphere.
I am just too damn passionate about high-quality whole foods that are thoughtfully produced and sourced. I care too much about helping people understand the damage that is being done inside their bodies, robbing them of vibrancy and destroying their chances at living life to the absolute fullest, by consuming ultra-processed pseudo-food-like products. I so badly want to help people improve their quality of life and provide them with the tools and strategies they need to do so.
But that isn’t the intention of this post. You can read a recent Instagram post I wrote on the topic HERE if you’re curious.
Anyway, I’ve started to dabble with sharing some of my current meals, and on a few occasions, I shared images of my egg waffle sandwiches. I damn near broke the internet! And, it provided a sobering epiphany.
The posts generated a lot of interest and curiosity. And questions about ingredients, ratios, instructions, etc.
Utilizing what I had on hand.
I don’t really offer recipes. Unless it’s for a baked good, I don’t follow recipes when I create meals. I create meals based on my personal preference for high-quality, whole-food ingredients. I structure meals around things I have on hand and readily available rather than “cravings” and needing to make a quick trip to the store. My meals are based on what my nutrient needs are, and depending on if I’m working toward fitness or esthetic pursuits, my macronutrient targets. I do my best to allow my intuition to guide me.
So back to my egg waffle sandwich. It’s pretty simple. I currently need a high amount of protein. I also need ample essential fatty acids and some carbohydrates to fuel my activity level. My hens and ducks are laying like crazy and since eggs are one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, I consume them frequently. I don’t eat grains and only occasionally indulge in store-bought grain-free bread, but sometimes I want a vessel to make a sandwich out of.
Egg, cheese, and seasonings (salt, pepper, garlic powder).
Enter the egg waffle. For which I have no recipe. Sometimes I make it with one whole chicken egg and a couple of servings of egg whites with a small portion of shredded mozzarella cheese. Lately, a duck egg, which is roughly the equivalent of two small chicken eggs, and some egg whites and no cheese. Or maybe a couple teaspoons of parmesan. Other times I might do two whole large chicken eggs and some egg whites. Or not. With cheese, if I have some/want some. Or not.
Are you beginning to see where I’m going? There is no recipe. There’s no IT HAS TO BE THESE EXACT INGREDIENTS IN THIS SPECIFIC RATIO. There aren’t any directions other than combining whatever you prefer and have so there’s enough liquid to cover the surface of whatever style of waffle maker you’re using, plug the appliance in, and let it cook until your maker indicates it’s done. Put whatever you want on top.
In one of the posts I wrote, within my HY PERFORMANCE Facebook group, I specifically said the intention of sharing a few of my recent meals was to inspire ideas. Not to provide recipes.
What struck me after receiving a number of messages asking for more details, I realized that collectively, we’ve not learned how to create simple meals from whole-food ingredients. We’ve been taught to open a package, boil the contents, and then add the accompanying seasoning packet. Remove the product from the box, puncture the plastic wrap, and put it in the microwave for three minutes. Open a can, put the substance inside in a pot, and warm it up over medium-low heat. Take the innard product out of the shroud it came in, split the contents into twelve pieces, put them on a baking sheet, and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Enough liquid mixture to coat the waffle maker.
What happened to free thinking? Ingenuity? Creativity?
We’ve become dependent on packaged processed foods because we don’t know what to eat or how to prepare foods that don’t come from a box or a can or other sealed mold to promote a long shelf life.
(Don’t even get me started on “I don’t know what to eat” statements. My brain implodes when I hear someone say that. I literally lose brain cells.)
The waffle maker does its magic.
Even having had this epiphany, I still believe it would be a disservice to provide recipes. Part of my role as a coach is to teach people self-sufficiency. Independence. And even innovation.
If I provided meals plans, told clients exactly what to eat and when, or shared an endless stream of recipes with detailed instructions with ratios of ingredients and/or nutrients that might not even be ideal for the individual following it, they wouldn’t learn how to tap into their wellspring of creativity. A healthy dose of curiosity leads to experimentation and exploration of new ways to prepare whole foods using a variety of techniques.
I’ll happily continue to offer ideas based on combinations that I’m currently enjoying. Just remember that my needs are vastly different from your needs so don’t misconstrue these ideas as being a recommendation that you should eat like I eat. My dietary protocol is unique to my bio-individuality, my goals, personal preferences, food budget, and home/family dynamic.
If you would like more guidance on dialing in a nutrition plan while learning how to navigate some of these challenges, explore my Functional Nutrition services page and see if there’s an option that fits your needs.
Please reach out if you have any questions or want to book a call to chat and see if my style of coaching would be a good fit for you.
It would be a disservice to you to offer a special deal on my coaching services just because it’s Black Friday, Shop Small Saturday, or Cyber Monday.
(And for Pete’s sake, can we throw in a No Spend Sunday to give our wallets a break?)
Here’s why:
When something is “on sale,” it drives us to purchase because it’s a good deal even if it’s not something we need or truly even want.
My desire is that people purchase my services because they are ready to change the trajectory of their health and well-being. Not because they are on special, discounted, or otherwise reduced.
And while the price points of my coaching offers are modest, the investment is a part of the activation. The investment is intended to be a declaration. (Read that again.) The declaration is that you are serious about what you say you want whether it’s to lose weight/reduce body fat, add some muscle, fine-tune your selection of food choices to optimize your vitality or assist you in achieving a performance-based goal.
I have, and will probably again in the future, offer bundle pricing, early-bird offers, and reduced pricing on packages but not because I’m trying to attract clients for the sake of attracting clients.
Yes, my coaching is my livelihood and I earn my living from this work that I offer. However, I uphold a high level of integrity around how I earn and operate as a business owner. I’m not here to sell. I’m here to serve.
I want my clients to have an extraordinary experience working with me and achieve whatever it is they seek through our work together. Therefore, I’m only interested in working with clients who are ready to work, not show up half-ass because they bought a package at some percentage off or discounted rate simply because it was a bargain.
On a side note, I do make special accommodations for clients that need to split payments. I am also open to having a conversation about alternate levels of support that might better suit a client’s current needs and financial situation. If you feel called to that, please reach out and ask me. There is ALWAYS an option if you feel called to take responsibility.
All of my current packages for one-to-one nutrition coaching can be found under the Services tab on my homepage labeled Functional Nutrition.
If you know, deep in the core of your being, that you are ready to make some radical changes and you believe that I’m the right person to support and guide you, the links to payment are provided. If you need more information or want to talk through what you need, let’s schedule a phone call to chat. All of the options to connect with me are on the Contact page.
My Aligned Activation workshops, which address topics and themes to help support people in achieving their goals, are priced to be accessible to anyone looking for a deeper conversation around troubleshooting challenges. In fact, my December workshop on December 7, 2021, Service to Self, is FREE! All you need to do to attend is provide your email address so I can send you the link to participate. There will be the ability to watch the replay if you can’t make the live transmission. (Email submission form below.)
I’ll love you into your power if you’ll allow me the honor.
On a client call this morning, I noticed some contraction during our conversation when macros came up.
Ironic since a larger portion of my coaching is somewhat centered around guidance on macronutrient intake.
I am a nutrition professional. But I am finding, at an increasingly sharp rate, that I feel a pull to disassociate myself from the field. I don’t want to further the collective confusion around what to eat, how much to eat, when to eat, which “diet” to follow, or any other variation of dietary BS.
Every day my Instagram feed is overflowing with contradictory information and nutrition professionals talking shit about this dietary approach or than consumption preference. For context, I do follow a very large number of nutrition professionals and while a lot of them share my passion for nutrient-dense, whole foods, I also get a lot of mixed signals too. Everyone means well, don’t get me wrong. But like any topic, there’s a wide range of differing opinions.
(Don’t forget: just because I consider myself a leader in the field of nutrition, it doesn’t mean I’m not susceptible to second-guessing whether or not I should reduce my intake of high oxalate foods, for example.)
To piggyback my above comment about not wanting to create more collective confusion, if you do follow me online, you’ll notice that I’m no longer sharing food-related photos, stories, or posts.
The reason is simple. I’ve come to realize that I, unintentionally, might be portraying an unrealistic standard in terms of how I choose to feed myself. I am extremely privileged that I get to eat how I choose to and more than ever, I know that is not possible or even desirable for others.
I’ll be the first to admit that I have extraordinarily high standards when it comes to food sourcing and quality. (I’ve heard the correlation made that most people care more about the quality of gas they put in their car than they do about the foods they consume for THEIR fuel which is sad but true.) But I don’t expect everyone to have the same standards I do. Not everyone wants to invest in premium gasoline and that’s cool.
I guess where I’m going with this is… I know in my immediate circle, I’ve made people feel bad about their choices. And I don’t want anyone to feel bad. I tend to be overly assertive in my delivery about how much I care about others’ health and well-being and I’m trying to reel that in.
As a byproduct, I’m electing to restrain from offering unsolicited advice, commentary, and content online that could contribute to the potential for more misunderstanding.
Anyway, all of this has created a lot of uncertainty for me in terms of how I wish to coach moving forward. I started with reconfiguring my coaching packages. And while I’m satisfied with the offerings at the moment, I’m still feeling a bit of an edge in terms of how to proceed.
I will say that two of the things I am really proud of in my one-to-one work with my clients are encouraging food sovereignty and asserting that macro tracking is used as a guide but not a stringent regime that lends to obsessive behavior.
My clients take regular breaks from tracking macronutrients and I encourage them to work to develop their intuition when it comes to dialing in ratios related to how they feel based on energy expenditure, activity level, menstrual cycles, sleep, etc.
It’s not all black and white; and the best person to determine what an individual needs is the INDIVIDUAL. However, it’s not common that someone has been taught to attune to their nutritional needs.
My intention in sharing this is to help me process what I’m feeling so I can find resolution and remind you that the people you seek for healing are doing deep healing work of their own. What I know above all else is that I do feel called to do this work so it’s been a challenge to navigate this swell of emotions that have surfaced the past month.
If my nutrition philosophy feels like a safe place for you in reaching your own health and wellness goals, I’d be happy to discuss ways we can work together to help you achieve them. (You can review my services and the activation (investment) for each offering on my Functional Nutrition page.)
If you’re looking for general health and nutrition recommendations, I have a private Facebook group, HY PERFORMANCE, you can join.
If you follow me on social media, please enjoy photographs of my garden, ducks and chickens, my granddaughter, and other random tidbits of my life that do not revolve around food and eating.
hylaridenour.com 