Nourishment that is deliciously sustainable: Functional Nutrition
Wading through the greasy rat race of fast food chains, the crunch of processed food wrappers, the whirlwind of confusing and conflicting information, the pressure of restrictive fad diets akin to the cool kid on the block, the binge-eating sessions in your pyjamas (that may or may not last a few days) to the magic bullet pills that promise the holy grail of results; it seems we have lost sight of the purpose of our finest nutrient treasures.
It seems from a generalised perspective that amongst all this chaos, we have forgotten that since our bodies are made up with specific functioning systems, it would then make sense the food we eat does too.
If something is functional it means that it is designed to have special activity or purpose that is both practical and useful. Therefore, if we are going to find a rhythm of foods and ways of eating that work with us then it would be both logical and wise if that rhythm had a greater purpose to our needs for the greatest health outcomes, would you not agree?
You might say that calorie counting, or macro counting, or having a high fat diet also has a purpose, which is not wrong, however the question for your personal situation is does it have a higher beneficial purpose for a greater health outcome?
For example, you may be someone who struggles to lose weight, but you are working out 5 times a week and it is recommended to you by a friend to try counting your macro’s (fat’s proteins and carb intake) at figures below your maintenance amounts because it worked for them. So, you try it, and yet you still do not lose weight. This approach I would not call functional.
In this scenario, the Functional Nutrition perspective would be to discover with you through a series of questions how the different systems within your body are functioning. In this scenario, say I find the digestive system, including the liver, are not working at their optimal level. Here, the functional way would be to work with you, the client, focusing on practices to improve gut health and the detoxification processes of the liver. Upon knowing this information, we then would work only with the foods that helped to balance out the digestion and liver issues; as well as focusing on any lifestyle habits that may create more stress to the already impaired digestive and liver issues, such as motivational guidance and exercise recommendations for stress reduction. With this wider scope to wellbeing approach, we are working on the body systems that are out of balance and are declining the functioning of important organs (as well as inhibiting you from maintaining a healthy weight) which can improve important health functions and your ability to obtain a healthy presence where you can be confident, vital, and motivated, daily.
The Functional Nutrition approach requires a few things from you:
- A willingness to work with your body
- A desire to learn what your being needs to keep you in balance
- A desire and willingness to learn to trust yourself
- A willingness to turn down all the noise you hear and all that you see on the internet and social media and centre yourself to be grounded in what is needed by your being and body at the time that has a greater purpose for your own health.
- A willingness to let go of any restrictions that have come about from previous diets, that are no longer beneficial for you, so that you can explore nourishment for your body.
If you have tried many diets and are confused as to what would be best for your body, but desire some help with the direction you wish to take with your nourishment, then feel free to contact me here with what you are struggling with most at this time regarding your nutrition and health and I will get back to you with a few tips to get you started in the right direction.
