Hi guys,
My name is Ilana, and I am honored to be the blog’s sports nutritionist. I thought it would be appropriate to introduce myself, so that you understand my background and my philosophy as you read my posts. I would love your feedback and am open to question & answer as we get to know one another.
Well first, a little about my personal history and how I got to where I am today. You may be wondering what my credentials all mean, so I’ll start off with that….
- MS means I have a masters degree, so start visualizing someone smart (jk).
- RD means I am a registered dietitian, so hopefully you can develop a confidence in my knowledge of metabolism and dietetis.
- And finally, the one I am most proud of, which is probably the one that lead me to such a great club as the ATC, my CSSD, which stands for Certified Specialized Sports Dietitian.
I am originally from Johannesburg, South Africa, so I hope you can read in accents. I came to Atlanta 17 years ago, having been recruited as a computer consultant. After many years in the corporate world, a legal journey to become a green card holder, and 12 years from the day my plane landed on US soil, I finally became a full fledged American, in more ways than one – yes a legal citizen AND I love a good bargain.
One fine day, slap bang in the middle of my IT career, I decided that I may feel more gratified working with human beings instead of cold, uncommunicative machines. I thus went back to school for nutrition (this was in the late 90’s) at which time I completed an entire new undergraduate degree (the schooling system here did not quite understand that my South African degrees matched some of the credits offered in schools here – yes, a pioneer even then I was – one of the first South African students to got through the University system here in Georgia). I also completed my degree in metabolism and dietetics, and followed that with a masters and an internship with my specialty, sports nutrition.
I began work right after my internship by opening up my own fitness and wellness practice. With that said, I certainly do practice what I preach as far as fitness and health are concerned. I work out consistently, plays tennis, scuba dive and of course participate in endurance sports. This way I can relate to my inspirational clientele… ordinary and extraordinary athletes like you… many that are recreational and need to be commended for the fantastic lifestyle they have chosen, and many elite who inspire me more everyday.
I have struggled through 6 marathons, many sprint and Olympic distance triathlons, and a few endurance triathlons too. I am doing number 5 next month in Amelia Island on Oct 17, so keep me in your cheers.
My philosophy has evolved over my last 7 years in private practice: Health and fitness are the buzzwords of this era. We therefore have a wider range of tools to embrace our lives and thus our fitness includes more than just working out. It needs to be a package approach. Fitness incorporates sweat time, food preparation, individual nutrition solutions, health care and personal time.
Eating right and staying healthy is not always easy. As a sports dietitian, I strive help make sense of the wealth of nutrition product availability and make sense of what works. And more importantly, I realize that everyone is an individual, with individual wants and needs, I thus tailor my services to the individual.
Read my bio to check out my achievements and experiences so far in my career.
With all this laid out for you in person, I would love feedback on my blogs, let me know what you are interested in reading about, suggestions are welcome. I also create a newsletter every month for my own clients, which I will willingly share with you guys, in hopes that you will love my self, created recipes, tips and fun nutrition facts I gather with experience. Don’t forget that I offer individualized meal planning solutions for anyone willing to go the extra mile (yes, pun intended).
Till next month then,
Ilana
