I was pleased as punch to learn that my specific insurance package deems meetings with a nutritionist as ‘preventative’ so they are fully covered.
SIGN ME UP.
I had my first meeting a few weeks back. I went in with a list of the following topics in mind
- New healthy foods to try
- How to enter and come off an autophagy fast
- Fructose Alternatives
- How much does skim milk matter vs higher fat content milks
- Other good non-meat sources of protein
The meeting was a resounding success. I was impressed with the knowledge of the nutritionist and the immediate set of recommendations provided.
It started as you’d expect: Lots of questions:
What are my current eating and exercise habits? Do I have any dietary restrictions? Recent blood work? Water consumption? Fitness goals? Fasting goals? What’s a typical day of eating look like? What’s my weight history look like? Have I had any medical issues recently? – All standard stuff.
The big goals I wanted to discuss were the 72 hour water only fasts I wanted to try, nutrition for weight training, and reducing my animal protein intake. For these, the nutritionist seemed to be very well educated. Though when I first brought up the 72 hour fast she had a look of concern that matched those of my Mom. That “Ugh, what sort of crazy thing are you doing now” sort of look. I described that I wanted to start doing 72 hour fasts once a month – Suddenly relief from the nutritionist.
“Oh, good. Once a month. I thought you wanted to do this weekly. Yes, a once a month 72 hour water only fast is doable. Trying to do it weekly would be very hard to sustain from a caloric intake standpoint for the other four days of the week.”
The nutritionists recommended a method for entering and coming off the fast which I’ll talk about a bit in my upcoming fast post. She also gave me some great snack recommendations specifically to help me increase fiber, protein, and non-meat sources:
Bada Bean Bada Boom – Fava beans. High in fiber and protein. AND DELICIOUS. Their sweet saracha is amazing.
Hippeas – Fun cheese puff-esque chickpea snacks perfect for some mid-afternoon crunch
Edamame pasta – EXPENSIVE. But so good, and a great alternative to pasta.
As a sugar substitute in baking, she recommended Truvia. We tried some in a banana bread and I enjoyed it.
I set up a follow up visit in August. I strongly encourage those of you with health insurance check to see if a nutritionist is covered for you!