I recently went to the doctor’s office and they asked me if I had any questions …
The truth was, I was eager for information but I didn’t know what to ask!
I found myself saying “I don’t know what I don’t know … I don’t even know what to ask!”
I was lost and looking for guidance but I had no clue where to start. Have you ever felt this way?
Unfortunately I left the doctor's office without any information or answers since I did not ask any questions! Which got me thinking about how all of YOU must feel when you first talk to a dietitian... You might know that you want help but you simply don't know what you should be asking!
So to help you out, below is a list of 10 question to ask when considering nutrition help and talking to a dietitian.
And in case you were interested in MY answers to these questions on behalf of Rise Up Nutrition, I’ve included those too!
10 QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN LOOKING FOR NUTRITION HELP:
Are you a credentialed Registered Dietitian (RD)? Do you have any specialty certifications?
Yes! At Rise Up Nutrition we are a team of 3 Registered Dietitians! Two of whom are Certified Specialists in Sports Dietetics with the CSSD, and one is a certified Clinical Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC). Our entire staff has worked with many high level athletes and teams including all of our current clients, Olympians, NHL, Special Operations, and Collegiate Sports!
What is your nutrition philosophy?
At Rise Up Nutrition we believe that food is fuel to perform better in your sport! But we also believe that food should be easy, simple, and taste good! We have a non-diet approach to fueling and everything we recommend to our clients is individualized to your needs. What is your approach to meal plans and calorie recommendations?
What is your approach to meal plans and calorie or macro recommendations?
We are fully capable of providing both individualized meal plans as well as generalized sample meal plans. As dietitians we are trained to evaluate, assess, calculate, and recommend calorie & macronutrient guidance for every client we work with. However, with that said, we don’t always feel its appropriate for the care of our clients. Whether or not you receive a specific meal plan from us is dependent on what guidance will get you the best results for your goals. We find meal plans can sometimes do more harm than good by limiting people’s food choices. Instead, we want to teach and empower you to make your own food choices. We will teach you “what right looks like” and empower you with the knowledge tools and resources to thrive without a meal plan for a lifetime.
How long have you been practicing / offering this program and service?
Our team of 3 dietitians has over 30 years of combined experience. I myself, Lindsey Cortes, have been an RD for 10 years, and a CSSD for 8 years. I established Rise Up Nutrition in January 2019 so our current programming and systems have been working with clients for over 3 years and many more to come! We are constantly evaluating, updating, and adding to our services and programs to keep up with nutrition research and client needs.
How long is this service and what happens after the services end?
We have a few different ways we can help clients; however our most popular and successful programs are 12-weeks in duration. We’ve found that this amount of time ensures clients are confident and have found solutions to their nutrition concerns without needing much further assistance past this point. In fact, this is our goal! We don’t want you to have nutrition concerns forever and want to you to be healthy & confident on your own! For those that feel they need or want continued support, we do have continuation and monthly membership & coaching options.
Do you have client testimonials and have you worked with other clients with similar situations to mine?
We have so many! Please check some out on our website, as well as tons on Instagram! Among our team we have worked with people with nutrition needs across a large spectrum and could help a variety of people and nutrition needs. However, our specialties are in the following areas: Female Athletes Sports Nutrition Disordered Eating & Eating Disorders Recovery from low energy availability, RED-S, Female Athlete Triad, and Hypothalamic Amenorrhea Intuitive Eating approaches
Are these services in person or virtual and how does that affect care?
All of our programming is virtual so that we can reach female athletes all across the country with the specific needs mentioned above. Benefits of virtual care: Specialized programming, ability to book and cancel appointments freely without hassle, save time traveling, reach out at any time between sessions, access to an online group and community for support, and instant access to an online database of resources. Difficulties with virtual care: We cannot perform in person physical evaluations including assessment of physical findings, body weight, or monitoring of health values like blood pressure.
Do you take insurance?
We do not take insurance for the limitations of virtual consulting mentioned above. Insurance requires medical diagnoses but since we are unable to provide in personal evaluations, we do not feel comfortable providing medical diagnoses. Furthermore, various states have varying laws defining nutrition telehealth and our ability to provide medical nutrition therapy would vary state-to-state for each client. For these reasons, we do not accept insurance at this time. If you have a flexible health spending account, you may be able to receive reimbursement.
Do you involve any other medical or health care professionals in your services?
We do have a mindset coach on our team who is available for certain clients/programming. And some of our services may allow for you to have bloodwork completed for review. However for all other health care professionals such as licensed therapists, physicians, or specialists, you will need to seek care on your own. We are happy to help you search for someone or provide recommendations as we have a large network! We are also happy to coordinate care with any health care professionals you currently work with, provided you sign a release of information.
What outcomes can I expect?
Every client is unique and we value individualized nutrition, therefore outcomes vary greatly. We strive to deliver what we promise during our phone calls prior to signing up which is why it’s so important to schedule that call! Clients have outcomes including improved blood biomarkers, improved performance, improved hormones, improved knowledge about nutrition and confidence in nutrition and more. Although each individual client may have different results, based on client feedback forms, when asked if we met client expectations on a , 94% say that our programs met or SURPASSED their expectations.
You may be surprised that "what is the cost" was not part of these questions! That's because I believe making a decision solely on finances may limit you from the real help that you need. You can spend $1 on 100 sessions with the wrong person and all you've done is waste $100. Although of course I understand finances come into play, the cost question should be one of your final questions!
So if you've asked the top 10 questions for a dietitian and feel confident this is a good fit, you may be wondering, what's next?
Hence, the final question to ask after the last 10 are complete:
11. What do you need from me to get started?
At Rise Up Nutrition we always start with a free phone call to determine if working together is appropriate. If yes, then the next step is to collect a deposit & set a date for your kick off consultation. Our turn around time is a quick as 1 day to get somebody in our (virtual) doors!
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