I'm seeing a nutritionist, what should I expect?

MostlyWater

I hit a super high with my weight. I gained 10 lbs when I turned 50, and I told myself that I would not allow myself to gain more than 5 more lbs. Long story short, that Menopause 10 turned into the Menopause 20!!!

I went online to figure out what nutrition a post menopausal lady needs, mostly as far as calcium and protein, and got confused with all the information available. So I made an appointment with a nutritionist. I found someone right across the street from my office and she has 8 AM appointments! I just hope the insurance pays for it – she’s not cheap.

No one told me to keep a food diary or anything .. what do you think I should expect when I go?

Thanks !!!

RelCanonical

I would ask about insurance coverage before you have the appointment, haha. If you are in the US, a registered dietitian is generally the term you want to use when searching for professional nutrition help - nutritionists are generally not licensed.

Edit: Also to add, a registered dietitian is more likely to accept insurance.

MostlyWater

Yes, thank you - I'm all set with that insurance/payment. Thanks.

lorrpb

In terms of what to expect, probably something like this https://www.choosemyplate.gov/

lynn_glenmont

If the insurance doesn't require the appointment to address some specific diagnosed medical issue, I think the question is not what should you expect but what do you expect? Decide before you go in what you want or need, and ask for that upfront. If it's unrealistic or inappropriate (e.g., give me a diet plan to lose 10 pounds of fat and gain five lbs of muscle in a month), the nutritionist can tell you. (I'm assuming since the insurance is paying for it, this isn't someone without any qualifications just calling herself a nutritionist.)

If you were going to seem some other professional -- lawyer, accountant, even a doctor -- you would expect to tell them what it is you're looking for (draw up a will, do my taxes, address this set of symptoms).

earlnabby

MostlyWater wrote: »

I hit a super high with my weight. I gained 10 lbs when I turned 50, and I told myself that I would not allow myself to gain more than 5 more lbs. Long story short, that Menopause 10 turned into the Menopause 20!!!

I went online to figure out what nutrition a post menopausal lady needs, mostly as far as calcium and protein, and got confused with all the information available. So I made an appointment with a nutritionist. I found someone right across the street from my office and she has 8 AM appointments! I just hope the insurance pays for it – she’s not cheap.

No one told me to keep a food diary or anything .. what do you think I should expect when I go?

Thanks !!!

Have you been logging regularly on MFP? When I had my appointment with a Registered Dietician I took my tablet so I could show her my diary and some of the reports. It was the most helpful thing I could have done.

I hope you are seeing a Registered Dietician and not a nutritionist. 6 weeks of online training is not enough to actually know what they are doing.

apullum

Honestly, my one experience with a registered dietitian was very negative. I was in college and saw the RD at the campus health center because I was obese and having obesity-related health problems. I was eating reasonably nutritious foods at the time, but far too many calories.

The RD didn't highlight the things I was doing well, nor did she talk to me about calories or portion sizes. Instead, she zeroed in on the one day that week that I had a chocolate croissant for breakfast because there was a party at my work, and she berated me about how I shouldn't have eaten that. I came away feeling more convinced that I could never lose weight, since I had no desire to permanently give up chocolate croissants. It took many, many years before I finally tried (successfully!) to lose weight. I still eat chocolate every day.

I hope your experience is much more positive and constructive than mine was. If I were to try again, I would probably go in with a list of very specific questions that I wanted answered and could not find with a Google search (or by asking the knowledgable people here).

kshama2001

lorrpb wrote: »

In terms of what to expect, probably something like this https://www.choosemyplate.gov/

That will be $200, please.

But kidding aside, in the past I have found it useful to have some external accountability, like when I was in WW or the VA TeleMOVE program - knowing people were seeing my weight regularly helped keep me on track.

MostlyWater

OK, thank you all.

Lift_Run_Eat

I did not have a positive experience with the Registered Dietitian I saw. I went to address some blood sugar issues I was having and she only wanted to teach me how to read labels.. So basically for 45 minutes, she pulled empty items off the shelf behind her and went over each nutrient label and also what a better substitute would be...then showing me that item. Nothing I did not already know. So I took classes and became a nutrition coach myself. Learned more than what the Registered Dietitian wanted to tell me.

RelCanonical

Lift_Run_Eat wrote: »

I did not have a positive experience with the Registered Dietitian I saw. I went to address some blood sugar issues I was having and she only wanted to teach me how to read labels.. So basically for 45 minutes, she pulled empty items off the shelf behind her and went over each nutrient label and also what a better substitute would be...then showing me that item. Nothing I did not already know. So I took classes and became a nutrition coach myself. Learned more than what the Registered Dietitian wanted to tell me.

A nutrition science class worked best for me too. I think it depends on the person. I feel like a registered dietitian is going to be application heavy to help a person get their "money and time's worth" whereas a class is focused on fundamentals. I really need the fundamentals, it helps me make better decisions for myself rather than following rules.

annw6

No experience of what to expect but I would say that if you are worried about calcium and protein, aim to get them from your diet. Research is showing that calcium in tablet form when taken without K2 (this is different from K1 and any clotting related issues) can settle in arteries/soft tissues, in fact anywhere, instead of where it’s needed. The K2 does the directing. If you are dairy intolerant there are lots of other foods that have plenty of calcium. Your nutritionist should be aware of all of this. In the UK the guidelines for postmenopausal women are between 700 and 1300mg daily, no more than 2000 daily. (No more than 500mg in one go the body only processes so much, the rest being wasted)