Sneakz: We're so excited to be interviewing you! The reason we’re connecting is for a series that we’re doing with some incredible nutritionists, athletes, folks in the health and wellness space. So, you’re on our list! I saw on Instagram that not that long ago you just got officially certified to be a nutritionist, is that right?

Emily: A registered dietician, yes.

Sneakz: Congratulations! What is that path like, by the way?

Emily: It’s actually funny because when I was first going into school to be an RD as an undergrad, I went in as my major in nutrition and people were like, "That’s so easy! Why are you doing nutrition, what are you going to do with that?" But actually, going into nutrition you’re literally the same as pre-med. You take all the science classes. I took anatomy, biology, biochemistry, microbiology, metabolism, nutrition, clinical nutrition – all that kind of stuff. So, we took all the same classes that pre-med students have to take.

Sneakz: You’ve been busy, girl! Well, congratulations. That’s so amazing. I’m curious what inspired that career path?

Emily: When I was younger I played competitive sports. Competitive soccer, I was on the dance team at my high school, and I loved food and cooking growing up. Then, my coach talked to us about food and how it affects playing and whatnot. Then I went through an eating disorder, and understood the psychological aspect of food and what it could do to your body – good and bad – and then I also knew a lot of friends who had disordered eating. I had family who had a lot of stomach issues and eating problems and I just thought it was so fascinating how impactful nutrition is on everyone’s life, no matter what, because food is something that you have to eat every day. So when I went to school, I had the desire to work with eating disorders and mental health. That’s kind of blossomed more into intuitive eating, mindful eating, and body positivity versus full-blown eating disorders.

Sneakz: That’s amazing. I saw that on your profile – “intuitive eating”– and I understand the concept and I agree a lot of people have lost their way about eating intuitively. What do you think is the cause for people losing that intuitive sense of how to eat their nourish their bodies?

Emily: I think nowadays it’s a bunch of things and it depends on your life experiences. But I think media has played a role, positive and negatively. There’s Atkins and Slim Fast and all this stuff, but you’re trying to drink these shakes instead of real food, you’re trying to mask your hunger, you’re trying to do anything to not be hungry or you’re just trying to do anything to lose weight. Over the last few years, that's evolved into "clean eating" and "eating so healthy" or labeling it somehow. Like, vegan, paleo, keto, all of these things – we’ve lost the culture of just food.

Emily: This bold statement of ‘good food, bad food’ or calories in versus calories out, or just clean eating and the perfect diet and the perfect food – I don’t believe in that. I think it’s a detrimental mindset to have in your life. In social well-being, in mental well-being, in physical well-being. I feel like it holds you back. Just because an ice cream may not be the most perfect thing in the world and it has chemicals or, you know, this chocolate bar is made chemically, maybe most of the time I wouldn’t want to eat that. But if you're with friends and they’re having that and in your mind, you want to eat that too, your body knows what to do with it. 

Sneakz: I think a lot of times we talk about “healthy” and what it means to be healthy. For you, when you envision someone, maybe somebody you admire, maybe you feel this way about yourself – and obviously, there’s no such thing as perfect – but what do you envision in your own mind as your own definition of perfect health?

Emily: It’s funny because if you asked me that just a year ago it’d be different but I think now, for me, just growing up and changing and finally getting a job and whatnot, perfect health does not even have to do with food. It’s more mental. You’re mentally happy, energetic, excited about life, just excited to wake up in the morning, sociable, confident in yourself. I think happy and confidence, those are the two words I use most to describe people I really admire. I don’t look at their body or their diet. I look at their happiness and their confidence in themselves and that’s what I’m drawn to. And I want to be like that, you know?