Meet My Friends: Heather Richmond, RD

Recently I made a frantic phone call to Heather (along with a frantic Facebook and Twitter message).  We were in a diet crisis! She graciously spent almost an hour on the phone with me talking me off of the "I can't keep doing this diet cliff." We met Heather and her husband Jordan while we were living in Florida. I attribute Drew's willingness to eat all kinds of fruits and veggies to Heather helping me get him off on the right start!  The Richmonds now live in Murray, KY where Jordan is a Worship Pastor and an up and coming artist. Heather is at home with her boys, Kal, Rees, and Baby #3 on the way as well as working as a Dietician.  Heather blogs at A Transparent Dietician.

Jordan, Heather, Kal, and Rees

Ever seen this commercial?



NutriGrain Bars, my favorite *insert eye roll here*. Great concept, great marketing, wrong breakfast choice. Yes, starting your day with whole grains and fruit is a great breakfast, but I’d hardly classify NutriGrain bars as a substantial source of whole grain and “jelly” as a fruit. I digress… 

Experience has taught me, that there are certain things I HAVE to get into my morning routine to keep me making healthy decisions throughout the day. There are also triggers that make me want to throw the whole day out the window, commit sodium suicide or eat my weight in Oreos – a food I don’t even particularly enjoy, but keep in the house for my husband’s sanity (it’s not easy living with a Dietitian). My routine has had to change a little with the incorporation of babies, and every day is a little different, but the fundamentals are still the same. 

1. Scripture. Okay… don’t stop here, its not a guilt trip and I won’t begin to claim that I’ve mastered this. What I am going to say is that although proper nutrition is a great foundation, Christ is first and foremost… AND lets face it, gluttony is a sin, food is an emotional thing, we eat out of stress, anxiety, boredom, anger, depression… starting the day with ANY form or length of scripture and asking for the Holy Spirit to help you make good choices will only help you in your health battle. Sometimes between making lunches while the kids are screaming as they rummage through the cupboards because I’m apparently dragging my feet at providing breakfast, the hubby asking if his favorite jeans are clean and the dog… well, we don’t have a dog – but you get the point. Amidst the chaos, reading my chalkboard scripture verse (Do I get “Beth Moore” points for the chalkboard scripture verse?), and taking a second to BEG the Holy Spirit to get me through the day without killing anyone, is all I can muster. My husband has an app on his iPhone that reads the bible aloud – he turns it on when he’s in the shower, and getting ready. Sometimes it’s making the commitment to read my Bible app on my phone before I check my twitter, facebook, email, linkedin or any other media. Don’t wait until later to “get your devos in,” the first time my butt hits a comfy chair at night, I’m gone! Do it in the morning and move on. If you can do more later, great! 

2. Breakfast. If you’re not a breakfast eater, become one. I could ramble off all the studies that have proven that folks who eat breakfast are more fit, burn more calories, learn and retain more academically… buuut, how bout’ you just trust me and do it?! Some common Richmond breakfast items are… Kashi’s Peanut Peanut bars, LARA bars, Cliff and Cliff Kids bars, Egg McMuffin, Peanut Butter and toast, PB and English muffin, PB and whole wheat waffle, PB and juuuuuust about anything (except for a bagel, too many calories, too much sugar first thing), plain greek yogurt with fruit, a baggie with whole wheat cereal and nuts… Lots of options, all “on the go.” Low sugar, with Protein, Fiber, Good Fat, 300 calories or less, done.


3. Sweat. Kind of like scripture reading, working up a sweat takes on many forms, it has to be a priority, it can be helpful in ANY amount and it needs to be in the morning/daytime, for most of us. Now, there are some who can go to the gym after work, or attend a nightly Zumba class etc, those are great. But if you’re signed up for the Zumba class and you haven’t been in 3 weeks, its time to change. There is no magic time you should work out. But if you can get that sweat going in the morning, you tend to make better decisions throughout the day. It gets those endorphins goin’ early. A natural stimulant and (if you're like me) its something else we get to check off the to-do list first thing! (its a little scary how much I enjoy that). It has less to do with calories burned, more to do with the mindset you establish. You can lose weight without ever lifting a barbell, or running a lap. But the proper mindset, entering your day, will do wonders. I have an elliptical. Whether its 15 minutes or 50 minutes, it is a MUST 5-6 days of the week. Its typically the first part of the boys’ naptime. Sometimes Kal comes in and colors or plays with Play-do while I’m on the “Lellipkical” as he calls it. If I have more time, I do more. We also have P90x DVDs and a chin up bar in the kitchen. It may be coming home at lunch and running around the block. Find what works and do it, consistently.

Putting some effort into your morning will help in making healthier decisions throughout the day. Try it!