For a long time, I have had this fire burning inside me to help people live a nurturing, more balanced life.
How i got to where i am now
I have a deep love for food. Real food. I crave how alive, clear-minded, and good I feel when I eat whole foods that are nutrient-dense, properly prepared, and locally sourced. I love how strong, encouraged, and energized I feel when I move and challenge myself to stay active. I am finally comfortable in my own skin, and that, friends, has been a journey.
This deep desire to help people learn how to eat well and more mindfully, to stay active, and reduces stress burned more brightly with each passing day and I was ready to let it burst. So, after much research and contemplation, I dove head first into the Nutritional Therapy Practitioner Program to learn about nutrition and the body at a scientific level and I am so grateful I did. A few things I want to share with you right off the bat-
There is not a diet that fits all. NONE.
Eating well and staying active is a lifestyle.
Balance is essential. Eat mostly nurturing foods but don’t make it restrictive to where you can’t enjoy treats. Life is too short to live that way.
You've got to give yourself grace. We're human so we are going to slip-up from time to time. Bask in the grace bestowed upon you.
I am sharing this with you because I wished someone would have shared this with me years ago.
I learned early on the importance of eating a balanced meal (thanks mom), and that veggies were better for me than a cookie. The problem was, I always craved the cookie. So, I'd eat more than my fair share of them and then I'd later find myself wondering why in this world I felt so awful. Yes, part of it was over-indulging, but I later learned it was the excess amounts of refined sugar that made me feel lethargic and gross. All I could think was "how can something so tasty make you feel so awful?!", but that didn't prompt me to look further into it. I just kept going on my merry way.
It wasn't until my junior year of college that I noticed my energy was constantly low, I was losing motivation to stay social, and my digestive system was out of whack. Big time. If I knew the kind of food I was putting in my body, let alone how much I was really consuming, I would have altered the way I was eating. It took me until after graduating from college and spending one season in Alaska as a tour director to realize my eating and drinking habits were getting out of control. I wasn't a boozer by any means, but in Alaska, the only way to really socialize was to go to a bar or restaurant and have a beverage and then eat a hearty meal. I was somewhat mindful of what I was eating, but it wasn't as balanced as I thought it was, and I wasn't nearly as active as I thought I would be. I played sports as a child through college, so I was used to being really active. I left my first season up there vowing that I needed to gain a better grasp of my health before I returned, instead of gaining more weight. I had gained almost 10 pounds after that first season, I was chronically tired, had foggy-brain, and overall just felt like crap. No more, said I!
Enough was enough. I honed in on my nutrition first. I sought out my friend and fitness trainer, and she helped create a plan for me to start eating more whole, nutritious foods and increased my protein, healthy fats, vegetables, and fruits. I cut out preservatives, drank more water, and got my body moving more. I eventually shed the unwanted pounds, which was awesome, but more importantly, I started to feel well and had more energy. Real food was healing my body. Mission accomplished, or so I thought. I realized my energy was still pretty low, my digestive system was happier but I still had bloating and cramps after most meals, and I could never get enough rest. I would crash mid-day. I felt 80 at 25. My mom had food allergies and had depleted her adrenals at a young age due to stress from being a single mom and work, and I suspected I may have done the same with my strenuous, lack of work/ life balance careers. I later realized I wasn’t eating enough, either. I was so concerned with gaining weight that I completely flipped and was depriving my body of the nutrients it so desperately needed. Again, I had no guidance. It wasn't until almost 4 years later when I moved to Nashville that I sought out a woman that specialized in homeopathy, and then later combined homeopathy with a functional medicine PA. In a nutshell, it was discovered I had depleted adrenals, an exhausted thyroid, hormone imbalances, and digestive problems.
I'm still on this journey of healing my body through nutrient-dense foods, rest, and natural supplements. I have had to back off my intense exercises and change how and what I ate to give my body what it needed- more rest, less stress, and food rotation. I still have a way to go, but I am much better than where I started. I have prayed and prayed for God to reveal my purpose and I know he led me to become a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and the creation of Harvesting Grace.
I am here to teach you how to harvest grace, mentally and physically. The mind-body connection is a real thing, and it's important to nurture your ENTIRE body. Please join me on this imperfect, faith-leaping, challenging, joyful journey. You are worth investing into.