Healthy Nest Nutrition Case Studies
Custom Nutrition

CLIENT: Emily

FOCUS: BIG Inflammation, Brain Health + Longevity

  • Female, early 60s
  • Married, empty nester
  • Body aches + joint pain 
  • Brain fog + memory issues + energy
  • Doesn’t love to cook, but does cook a little. Has lost interest in food.
  • Fat phobic
  • Chronic joint pain in shoulders, hips and knees
  • Brain fog and word blanking

Goal: Less brain fog, less joint pain/body aches, more mental acuity and clarity. Looking for diet and lifestyle changes to boost healthful longevity.

 

Here’s What We Did

  1. Nix Soda: We eliminated the periodic diet soda habit and swapped in flavored seltzer.
  2. Meal Planning: We worked on planning, prepping and shopping for food and making meals for the week. We put planning, prepping and shopping appointments in the calendar, similar to a planned exercise schedule. This allowed for most meals to be eaten at home and less fast and processed food eaten on the run. Emily started to get four meals a week delivered using Green Chef boxed meal prep delivery service.
  3. Minimized Inflammation: We reduced sugar, gluten and dairy and maximized whole food proteins, fats, fruits and veggies through a Mediterranean-style menu.
  4. Healthy Fats: We added A LOT more healthy fat (the brain is 60% fats) into her diet, which significantly cleared the brain fog and increased memory.
  5. Sugar Cuts: We dropped daily fast sugar by adding fruit and decreasing white toast at breakfast and adding hummus + veggies as an afternoon snack, eliminating a regular cookie habit.
  6. Night Shades: We eliminated night shade veggies (eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes), which sometimes cause big joint pain and promoted green leafy vegetables and other colorful, seasonal veggies.
  7. Timed Eating: Emily ate on a regular schedule, which helped balance out her energy.

Lifestyle Changes 

She added more consistent walking throughout the day and biking when the weather permits on weekends. Emily started taking fish oil, curcumin (an anti-inflammatory), magnesium and some B vitamins.

The Outcome

Emily was initially resistant to more planning, prepping, shopping and cooking, but since her household was smaller, we came up with a very doable plan for her to eat at home more. She enjoyed the menu and specific recipe suggestions and was even a little excited about food again. With a schedule, she was able to control her ingredients, which really helped her joint pain AND her brain health. Her energy was balanced throughout the day and she felt more confident and knowledgeable about what to eat for continued health and longevity.