In order to achieve health goals, clients just need more willpower, right?

Not according to registered holistic nutritionist and sought-after public speaker Lisa Kilgour.

“Some people come to me with tons of willpower and they can follow whatever diet or cleanse I put on for months. What I've noticed is willpower can get in the way of healthy eating,” she says, “When you have the willpower to get on something and just follow it, there is going to be a moment that you fall off it. It's human nature that life gets in the way and those feelings of deprivation start adding up.”

That’s the problem with willpower… the longer you feel deprived, the longer you binge.

“I see the same pattern over and over… the stronger your willpower, the longer the binge.”

If not dieting, what’s the answer?

“Tune into our bodies,” says Lisa.

It’s the exact opposite of willpower.

“Open the door to listen to the things we generally use willpower to push away. Mostly cravings.”

Instead of telling clients to stick to the demanding keto diet, or the rigidity of vegan eating, she believes in trusting our bodies to be our guide.

“Our body is our best friend, not our enemy,” Says Lisa, “Diets tell us it’s your enemy, you need power over it.”

What if your nutrition clients just want to eat cake all the time?

When Lisa tells her clients to simply “eat what they enjoy”, she gets confused looks.

“The first thing my clients think … when I first say ‘eat the foods you enjoy’ is ‘But Lisa, I’m only going to eat chocolate cake.’ But the truth is, once it’s allowed, it no longer becomes something you even want every single day. When I have it, I don’t have a lot of it, because i know I could have it tomorrow if I wanted to.”

The secret to not overdoing it and bingeing on sugary, salty foods? Honoring what the body wants.

“I know I can have it anytime I want it,” Says Lisa, reinforcing her client’s thought processes around food, “I just don't like how I feel when I have it ... so I only choose it when I really want it.”

That piece of chocolate cake is no longer a powerful, evil gaping hole in a client’s diet. It’s just cake -- cake that maybe makes them feel crummy after they eat it.

But that’s exactly why, Lisa says, clients then reach for the healthy foods.

“All of my clients --  they'll be eating better, and then they'll go away for a weekend and eat junk food, they'll come back, like just dripping in guilt.”

Then, Lisa asks her clients what they feel like eating.

“It’s always vegetables or salad, or ‘I’m making a stir fry tonight, and I can’t wait.”

Navigating Meal Planning and Clients Independence with food through Meal Garden

“My clients, for 10 years, have been asking me for recipes. And I struggle with them because I don't use them very often. So I don't have a stack of great recipes. That’s where Meal Garden came in and saved me.”

Meal Garden allowed Lisa to easily check in with her clients as to what they were looking for, and get ideas off of Meal Garden.

“When I discovered meal garden, it made it so much easier when a client said, Hey, you know, I'd love some more dinner ideas or lunch ideas, I can put something together for them in 10 minutes.”

(Psst — using nutrition practice software can save time and help you connect closely with each nutrition client, offering them the personalized nutrition attention they need to get real results. Meal Garden makes it possible to create, curate, and share dietitian-approved recipes, and modify meals and collections based on each client’s unique needs. Why wait? It’s free to join.)

inspiration, Client Engagement

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