She loves avocado, vodka and using the F word. DO YOU LOVE HER ALREADY? I sure do! Megan, founder of The Nutrition Addiction and registered dietitian, is such a cool chick and SO informative. I read her blog on the regular and was uber excited to interview her. Check out her badass and informative interview below.
The NUTRITION ADDICTION is the ULTIMATE BLOG. I am obsessed with your vodka loving tagline. How did you become the nutrition expert?
Megan: I’m a registered dietitian, which means I have a super scientific background when it comes to nutrition. I got my BS in dietetics, then did 1-year internship (which is required) and passed boards. I went into the field because I became OBSESSED with how food affected my body in high school. I was a swimmer and soccer player and I started to get really into healthy eating (I think I bought a fitness magazine at one point and that’s how it started, HA) and I noticed how much it affected my performance in a positive way.
What I found, though, was so much that I learned in school was so backwards. I still remember sitting in class and being told that for my height and weight, I should weigh 120 lbs (I’m 5’4” and at the time I was 130 lbs) and that I should go on a 1200 calorie diet if I wanted to be at my “healthiest weight”. This never worked – SHOCKING.
WE HAVE ALL BEEN THERE. I did the craziest diets back in high school and college. What happened when you tried a 1200 calorie diet?
Megan: I would restrict, do a sh*t load of cardio, and lose weight, but then I’d be STARVING and I’d eat everything in sight. (we’ve all heard this story or experienced it, right?!) And I never, ever felt satisfied because I was also eating low fat (per recommended by my professors!). It just didn’t work. And I ended up being at my heaviest and having a ton of food stress. So, I just decided to do my own thing. Do my own research, trial and error, and test my theories on my friends and family (thanks, guys!). And ultimately, that’s why I started The Nutrition Addiction. Because I figured out there is no reason to have so much food drama in your life – you really can lose fat and have a ton of energy and feel great by doing some really simple things to keep your metabolism working at an optimal level. It’s actually pretty simple and it doesn’t involve kale and a bunch of superfoods at every meal.
You are on to something girlfriend. What are some beginner tips for those looking to kick start a healthier lifestyle?
Megan: “Do one thing.” Seriously – just one. Make one change, and move to the next one. So, to be practical, that might be: drinking enough water for your body weight and activity level (tip: 1/2 your body weight in lbs is the number of ounces you should be drinking, minimum!). Or it might be really working on either breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks. Or getting more sleep (7-8 hours!). When I work with people, I pick the one that seems the most doable to the client so they can have an easy win that first week, and then we move to the next one.
I love those tips. Realistic goals! You note in one of your posts that everyone should be taking magnesium as the majority of Americans are deficient in it. Why magnesium? Any other vitamins we should all be taking?
Megan: Part of the reason so many of us are deficient in magnesium is that we just don’t eat a lot of magnesium-rich foods (like seaweed and green leafy veggies), but even if you do, conventional soil sucks and a lot of the magnesium that used to be found in soil has been farmed out. So, we really do need to supplement with it. The most common “mild” symptoms of a magnesium deficiency are headaches, migraines, and anxiety, but chronic deficiency can lead to a whole list of diseases that are much more severe. I like Natural Calm magnesium supplement because it’s in a form that’s easy for our bodies to absorb.
Also – Vitamin A, D, and K2 are a few that we can all benefit from, and that can be difficult to get even with a healthy diet. You can get A & D from taking a cod liver oil supplement so that’s a nice 2 for 1.
I also recommend a good probiotic to anyone who is looking to kick-start a healthy lifestyle. If you’re drinking your kombucha regularily (like your readers could be doing! ha!) then it’s not necessary to be on one long term.
DRINK MORE KOMBUCHA? You got it! Haha! You have the BEST recipes. Can you share some of your favorites with us?
Megan: My goal is to keep it super simple, but give my readers recipes that even their kids or boyfriend will eat.
Here are my personal favorites:
And I have to give Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken and Protein Coffee honorable mentions because these two are my readers’ favorites!
HERE IS MY FAVORITE QUESTION YET! Your description says you a “vodka loving” dietitian. What are you go to drinks for girls night out – that are “healthier” or low calorie.
Megan: This is my specialty! Vodka or tequila with club soda and tons of lemons or limes is easy and available everywhere. But what I really like to do is check the cocktail menu and see what they have to doctor it up. So if I see cucumber ice cubes on the menu, you know I’ll be asking them to throw one of those in! Fresh blackberries? Yep, I’ll take a few.
Another tip is to find a drink that sounds good, and just ask your bartender to remove the simple syrup or agave. I’ll also order a margarita and ask for club soda instead of sour mix, and I’ll ask the bartender to give me a splash of OJ or freshly squeezed orange.
I love love love that tip. I hate feeling guilty after a night out! Tell BYOK readers where they can find and how they can work with you…..”
Megan: You can find me on Insta @thenutritionaddiction and my blog is thenutritionaddiction.com. You can also find me on Facebook which I post on quite a bit – just search The Nutrition Addiction. Most of my programs are just 1-month programs because I’m able to really kick people into a gear pretty quickly. My nutrition approach is ridiculously doable and gets results. I also do 90-minute ‘quickly nutrition overhauls’ which are really fun and effective, and I create totally customized meal plans for those who just need a little direction and don’t want to think about what to eat. And if anyone wants to chat more about working with me, you can shoot me an email at megan@thenutritionaddiction.
That’s all BYOK readers! And as Megan recommends, have a kombucha today!
Love the drinking tips! i never really know how to handle that, so Im glad to hear the advice from a professional.
Same! It is so hard to “be healthy” when you want to enjoy a night out. Thanks for checking out the blog post 🙂
i love the sImplicity behind her mission that are tried and tested as well as her day to day tips !! I agree, this intErview was very informative.
I agree! She is so so informative. Thanks for reading!!
Love this! I’m in high school right now and seriously some of the stuff being taught in health class is just crazy! Gonna keep learning as much as I can and drinking my kombucha 😉