ALLISON VOGEL, MS, RD, CDN
I love food, as most of us do. My "go to" for something indulgent is definitely sweets - soft chocolate chip cookies or ice cream to be exact. But this wasn't always the case. During college, I began to fear food as a result of wanting to lose weight. As a lacrosse player I knew I had to eat but I began significantly restricting what I would allow myself. I became obsessed with calorie counting. If I couldn't count it, I couldn't eat it.The constant food noise in my head took over and I began to isolate myself from friends and family, becoming unhappy and not the fun, outgoing person I used to be.
I never had an "ah ha" moment. I just remember sitting on the edge of my bed one night with the 15 different outfits I had tried on sprawled out around me feeling completely exhausted. I was tired of counting calories, tired of missing out on celebrations and dinners, tired of hating me. It took time but I slowly broke down the food noise in my head and repaired my relationship with myself and food.
I went on to graduate school at Columbia University and graduated with a masters degree in nutrition and exercise physiology, learning and experiencing how to use food as physical nourishment and not emotional torture.
I have been counseling now for over 7 years and my aim is not only to help think about what to eat but help empower those who struggle with their relationship with food to find peace and mindfulness. I want to help overcome your obstacles and become the best, healthiest version of yourself.
HEALTH IS SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST WHAT WE EAT...
We are born natural intuitive eaters. Kids innately balance their food intake, eating when they’re hungry and stopping once they feel full. As we grow older we create rules around food and lose our inner intuitive eater. We learn that food is for celebrating, for self-soothing, and just for "something to do."
Intuitive eating is not a diet. It’s a way to learn to eat outside of the diet mentality, with a focus on using your own internal hunger, fullness, and satisfaction cues to guide eating choices. It's about thinking what foods you really like and how to appropriately have them. No rules, restrictions, and definitely no "should" and "shouldn't."