Nutrition Coaching is not just for the chronic junk-food eater, or the brand-new to healthy eating. Sometimes we all could use a little help in the nutrition department, no matter what our current menu looks like. Grace Chua, originally hailing from Singapore and welcomed to the MIT Recreation community with her husband, is a great example. Her daily diet already looked pretty great – home cooked healthy meals, lots of veggies, and intuitive eating. But life and our nutrition needs don’t always stay the same.

Grace and her son, ready for a run.

For Grace, that change came two-fold. While still breastfeeding her young son, she decided to take her running to the next level and train for a half marathon. “I found that I was suddenly losing too much weigh,” she says, “Plus I wanted to find out what and when to eat for better running performance.” Training takes a heavier toll on the body, and combined with feeding her son, Grace knew she needed to seek out some expert assistance. So, she set up a nutrition coaching appointment with MIT Recreation’s Registered Dietitian, Kelsea Forrester.

It wasn’t long before Kelsea and Grace had worked out the right food plans for her needs. “Kelsea gave me ballpark figures for how much protein I ought to be eating and roughly when to eat it,” Grace explains. “We talked a lot about the when of things – when to eat for recovery after a run, or how soon into a long run or race to start taking in energy,” said Grace. What to eat is only half the battle when it comes to athletic training. The right timing can be just as important! Armed with this new knowledge, Grace was able to implement a new eating plan for her runs. Soon she saw her troubles with weight loss disappear.

Perhaps the best part about a good eating plan, is that it can lead you down a great path to even higher levels of fitness. With her new knowledge on nutrition and athletic training, Grace has set her sights on a new goal. “I’m training for another half marathon, with higher mileage than the last round,” she shares. “And later this year I hope to do a [full] marathon – it’ll be the first one I’ve run in three years.” With confidence gained through eating right, Grace is on her way towards longer, tougher runs. And we at MIT Recreation think she is going to be great!

Are you ready to take your nutrition or fitness to the next level? Make your first Nutrition Coaching appointment today, and get on the right food-track to better health and performance!