The Add Nutrition Podcast

Episode Summary:In this honest and personal episode, April opens up about what it’s been like navigating pregnancy at 38 weeks - from body image challenges to letting go of control and perfectionism. She shares how doing the inner work before pregnancy helped her build confidence that’s no longer rooted in validation or aesthetics.If you’ve ever felt like your body is changing and you're not sure how to handle it or you’ve been stuck in a cycle of extremes—you’ll walk away from this episode feeling seen, supported, and reminded that it’s possible to take care of your body without obsessing over it. What You'll Hear in This Episode:How body image work before pregnancy made a huge differenceThe pressure to "prove" you're pregnant—and why April didn’t careThe reality of competing, bingeing, and chasing complimentsHow she stopped body-checking, dieting, and chasing validationPreparing for postpartum without freezer mealsWhat she’d tell her pre-pregnancy self and anyone TTCWhy discomfort doesn’t mean you’re failingFree Resources + Links Mentioned:Postpartum Pantry Staples Guide (Free Download)A simple list of shelf-stable meal ideas—perfect for postpartum, busy seasons, or just when you don’t feel like cooking.Join the 1:1 Coaching WaitlistSpots reopen in October! Be the first to know and get access to exclusive bonuses.Connect with April:Instagram → @the_addition_dietitianQuestions or thoughts? DM April—she’d love to hear from you!

In this episode, April shares her journey from tracking macros to intuitive eating. She talks about the drawbacks of solely relying on tracking, like developing disordered eating habits and losing touch with internal hunger cues. April also highlights the benefits of tracking, providing insights into calorie intake and macro distribution. She shares her personal experiences with transitioning away from tracking and offers practical tips for adopting a more intuitive and sustainable approach to eating. Throughout the episode, April emphasizes the importance of patience and grace in the transition process. Her personal experiences and professional expertise make this episode a valuable resource for anyone seeking to improve their relationship with food and develop sustainable eating habits. In this episode:Embrace Food Freedom: Learn how to transition from tracking macros to intuitive eating for a more balanced and sustainable approach to nutrition.Liberation from Tracking: Discover the benefits of breaking free from constantly tracking macros and how it can positively impact your relationship with food.Master Meal Structuring: Explore techniques for creating balanced and satisfying meals without the need to meticulously track every calorie.Cultivate Mindful Eating: Uncover mindful eating techniques to help you tune into your body's signals of fullness and satisfaction.Guilt-Free Dining: Find out how to enjoy eating out without guilt and still honor your body's needs and cravings.Resources Mentioned:Nutrition Coaching WaitlistInstagram:⁠@add_nutrition⁠⁠@the_addition_dietitian⁠⁠

In this episode of The Add Nutrition Podcast, you'll meet Catie Brown, a special guest who shares her inspiring health and fitness journey. Catie's story is relatable and powerful, as she went from being an athlete to losing her focus on fitness and health after college. However, a turning point came when her sister got engaged and she realized she wasn't happy with her body or self-image. With the help of Add Nutrition, Catie embarked on a journey of self-improvement and made significant progress. She learned the importance of paying attention to what she put in her body and being accountable to someone other than herself. Catie's experience highlights the power of small changes, patience, and persistence in achieving sustainable progress. Her story serves as motivation for anyone looking to make positive changes in their own health and fitness journey. In this episode: Discover how to make positive changes in your health and fitness journey to achieve sustainable results. Learn effective strategies for weight loss and tracking your progress, so you can achieve your goals. Uncover the power of tracking your food intake and macros, and how it can help you make smarter choices. Build healthy habits and increase your self-awareness to foster lasting change in your health and fitness journey. Explore the importance of mindset and self-acceptance, and how it can positively impact your overall well-being. Resources Mentioned: ⁠Listen to The Add Nutrition Podcast on Anchor⁠ ⁠Our Website⁠ Instagram: @catie_brown Tiktok: catie_brown97⁠ @add_nutrition⁠ ⁠@the_addition_dietitian⁠

We're joined with Dr. Gary Mendoza to discuss the importance of focusing on overall health and well-being rather than just the number on the scale. Dr. Mendoza emphasizes that while weight loss is often the primary goal for many individuals, there are numerous other benefits to living a healthy lifestyle that should not be overlooked. Instead of solely relying on weight as an outcome measure, Dr. Mendoza suggests setting other goals such as improved fitness and increasing energy levels. He advises individuals to challenge their negative self-talk by asking for evidence to support their discouragement. By questioning their beliefs and highlighting their achievements, individuals can start to recognize the progress they are making and feel more confident in their journey. Overall, the conversation with Dr. Mendoza highlights the importance of focusing on overall health and well-being, rather than solely fixating on weight loss. By setting non-scale goals, celebrating achievements, and challenging negative self-talk, individuals can maintain a positive mindset and trust in the long-term benefits of a healthy lifestyle. In this episode: Gain meaningful insights regarding the substantial role of individualized nutrition guidance. Learn how to boost your performance levels by optimizing your meal timings. Explore the significance of hormones in the fat loss process and the importance of diet balance. Understand the underlying lifestyle factors contributing to health issues. Realize the necessity of focusing on overall health rather than just weight loss. Resources Mentioned: The Nutrition Society ⁠⁠Listen to The Add Nutrition Podcast on Anchor⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Our Website⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠@drgarymendoza @add_nutrition⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@the_addition_dietitian⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@redfitforever⁠

Fiber is essential to your diet, but most people don’t get enough of it. It also plays a significant role in satiety and is helpful for weight loss. One of the best ways to determine if you’re getting enough fiber in your diet is by tracking your food. You might be surprised to see the results, and it will give you a guideline to figure out what you can add to your diet to meet your goals. In this episode, Shalena Casanova, Dietitian and guest Astrid, RD discuss fiber and its importance. They talk about why focusing on the benefits of adding nutrition-dense foods to your diet is so helpful. They also discuss why having a lifelong healthy diet, including fiber, will help you have a healthy microbiome. In This Episode: Everything you need to know about fiber and why it’s important Having a healthy microbiome in your gut How to add more nutrient-dense foods into your diet to increase nutrition How to tell if you’re getting enough fiber in your diet How much fiber you should eat in a day And other relevant topics… Resources Mentioned: Astrid’s Instagram: @Anitdiet_dietitian, @astridnar.apd Astrid’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOdRl9pMjB4KkoW-0kPQpQA Our Website: https://addnutritionllc.com/ Instagram: @add_nutrition @the_addition_dietitian @redfitforever

The competitive fitness world is one of tight schedules, strict macros, and transformation photos. Our guest, Desb, shares some of her best tips from inside the competitive fitness world and what it’s like on the other side of that journey. She shares what steps she took during her body image transformation when she stopped competing and how she relearned her relationship with food and her body. She also details the three biggest mindset shifts that occurred during her transition period: being present, seeing and honoring your body for what it truly is, and that you don’t have to take progress photos. Des Pfeifer, better known as Desb, is an online fitness coach, host of the Brunch with Desb podcast, mom of two, and lover of all things life. She has a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science, an ACSM Certified Personal Trainer, and pre- and post-natal certified trainer. She has attained her IFBB Pro Card as a bikini competitor but now enjoys fitness and life. Desb’s passion is helping others discover self-care, love of life, and even embracing the suck. In this episode, hosts April Dirteater and Shalena Casanova are joined by Desb talk about how Desb got into competitive fitness and what that journey looked like for her. Desb shares how time passed, and life just changed for her when she got pregnant, but she wondered what was next. Desb opens up about her experience as an Instagram fitness influencer and how transitioning away from competitive fitness was scary, but her audience has embraced all of who she is and honored her journey. Finally, Desb shares what she would do differently if she started competing again today, with maturity, experience, and the knowledge she has from her first time around. In This Episode: How Desb got into competing and what that journey looked like Why you have to relearn your relationship with your body and with food The three biggest mindset shifts that occur during transition periods The idea that you don’t always have to take the progress photos How Desb would approach competing differently knowing what she knows now Some tips to reach a healthy set point Resources Mentioned: Desb Instagram Desb YouTube Desb TikTok Brunch with Desb Podcast on Spotify Listen to The Add Nutrition Podcast on Anchor Our Website Instagram: ⁠@add_nutrition⁠ ⁠@the_addition_dietitian⁠ ⁠@redfitforever⁠

Nutrition is simple. It’s all the misinformation out there that makes it seem complicated. We wanted to break down our top tips on how to simplify your nutrition plan and make achieving optimal health easier and more achievable for you. From how to start making changes to your nutrition and what a balanced plate looks like to what the benefits of eating more fruit and vegetables actually are and when to use convenience foods, this episode will break down some of those massive food myths and misconceptions. Firstly, it’s important to find out what works for you. You need to tailor your nutrition plan to who you are and what works for you as an individual. This means you can’t compare what you need with what your friend eats – bodies aren’t the same, and we don’t respond to food the same way. When you start making changes, remember that you don’t need to make all your nutrition changes at once. Focus on what you can add, not what you restrict or take away. In this episode, hosts April Dirteater and Shalena Casanova share their tips for simplifying your nutrition plan. Don’t overcomplicate nutrition. Start by looking at your daily intake with a nutrition audit. Don’t compare your diet to someone else’s. Start incorporating new foods slowly; you don’t need to rush your nutrition change. Remember that patience is the key to sustainable, long-term change. In This Episode: Why your nutrition plan needs to be individualized What causes the spread of misinformation How to use a diet audit How to start incorporating healthier foods What happens when you start increasing healthier food What a balanced plate looks like What the benefits of eating more fruits and vegetables are When to use convenience foods How to increase your fruit and vegetable intake Resources Mentioned: Listen to The Add Nutrition Podcast on Anchor Our Website Instagram: @add_nutrition @the_addition_dietitian @redfitforever

Focus on your actions, what you can do, and building healthy habits, regardless of what the scale says. You can either be stuck in a cycle for the rest of your life or be pulled out of that cycle. We prefer this sustainable approach to nutrition that puts our clients in the driver’s seat and is less focused on counting macros or calories. That’s not to say that there is never a time when tracking macros isn’t of benefit, but that is not the approach we take here. We are not macro coaches. We work with lifestyle clients who want to make sustainable changes to their weight through healthy habits and long-term changes. It’s important to us to meet our clients where they are and build on the sustainable changes they know they can make. In this episode, hosts April Dirteater and Shalena Casanova discuss the differences between macro coaches and lifestyle coaches, what their roles as coaches are, and how they prioritize creating individual nutrition plans for their clients. They also touch on the pros and cons of tracking macros, including when it is a great tool and how it can lead to disordered eating. In This Episode: What it’s like to work with a macro coaches What can happen when you give lifestyle clients too strict nutrition parameters What your role as a coach is Why you need to meet your clients where they are Why we want your ever-after pictures Why you don’t want your clients completely reliant on you How we help create an individual plan that works for you The power of making smaller habit changes that your client chooses to make When macro coaching is a great tool How macro tracking can cause disordered eating habits Resources Mentioned: Listen to The Add Nutrition Podcast on Anchor Our Website Instagram: @add_nutrition @the_addition_dietitian @redfitforever