Gillian Crooks RHN

What is Self Care and Why Do You Need It? Self-care is a combination of conscious actions that promote wellness by addressing your own needs. These needs include:... Maintaining your physical health. Exercising, stretching, eating well, getting enough sleep, wellness visits with doctors and seeking medical treatment when neededcaring for your physical body. Maintaining your mental health. Finding ways to de-stress, meditation, self assessment and reflection, seeking advice and counsel if needed. Meeting your social and emotional needs. Enjoying time with loved ones, participating in activities that bring you happiness, building relationships that bring joy and contentment. Self-care is basically your relationship with yourself - and prioritizing that relationship allows you to live a fuller, happier life while also promoting wellness in your relationships with others. Just like you are supposed to put your oxygen mask on first when a plane is going down, you have to care for yourself in order to be able to care for others. When you neglect these areas of self care - facing stress and challenges can be even harder to manage. And life can be stressful! Self-care is a strategy that helps you to deal with stress proactively. Some stress is good, it allows us to learn, grow, and get stronger. But too much stress is not good. Having a strong foundation of self-care allows you to feel and manage the temporary stress that helps you to grow while caring for your whole self - physical, mental, and emotional. What’s your favorite hobby or activity that brings happiness to your life? Mine is long walks with the dog. Comment below!

FRIDAY RECIPE DAY! Here is my healthier version of the classic Banana Split. Save the post for later!... #fridayrecipeday #healthyfood #healthylifestyle #sustainableweightlosstips #sustainableweightlosssolutions #moderationnotdeprivation #moderationisthekey #onlineweightlosscoach #womenover40 #womenover40weightloss #holisticnutritionist #weightlosstransformation #weightlosstips #rehab1nb #inspirewellness #weightlossmadesimple #weightlossmadeeasy #monctonnutritionist #monctonnb #fridayvibes

Are You Struggling To Reach Your Fitness Goals? Try This Simple Solution Sleep is just as (if not MORE) important as exercise when it comes to your health and fitness goals and overall wellness. Sleep allows your body time to rest and rejuvenate. It also provides the opportunity for your muscles to recover from exercise and grow stronger. ... Additionally, the amount of sleep that you get each night directly impacts your level of energy. More energy = more motivation and stamina for your workout. If you are struggling to get the results that you want from your diet and exercise, you may need to take a closer look at your sleep and recovery. An easy trick to boost your sleep? Start prepping for it first thing in the morning by getting some sunlight! Research shows that bright lights stimulate the part of the brain that regulates your circadian rhythms. Your circadian rhythm dictates your sleep cycle. Increasing your exposure to light during the day will help to synchronize your internal clock, which will boost your mood and alertness during the day and help you to sleep better at night. Do you wake up and go to sleep at the same time each day? #rehab1nb #inspirewellness #coach #coaching #coachingforwomen #onlinecoaching #onlineweightlosscoaching #weightlossmotivation #tuesdaythoughts #sleepforhealth #sleepforlife #sleepforweightloss #sleepforaweek #sleepforfitnesssuccess #sleepforfit #sleepforfitgoals #holisticnutritionconsultant #wellnessprenuerfulltime #wellnesslifestyle #monctonnb #sustainablenurtritiontips #sustainablenutritionprogram

Fruits + Veggies That Can Help with Weight Loss Successfully losing weight requires a change in both diet and exercise. Diet change requires you to control portion size, avoid low nutrient/high fat food choices, and choose foods that offer healthy benefits. To lose weight, the body must burn more calories than it takes in. ... So, you could technically lose weight while eating a cookie for breakfast, a cookie for lunch, and a cookie for dinner. But you would be lacking key nutrients, energy and strength by not eating a balanced diet. While there are no magical foods that will instantaneously help you lose weight - there ARE food choices that will keep your calories low and your nutrients high. Fruits and vegetables are naturally nutrient rich. Low Calorie/High Nutrient Vegetables Arugula Asparagus Brussel sprouts Kale Spinach Bok choy Low Calorie/High Volume Vegetables + Fruits Celery Cucumbers Melon Lettuce These fruits and vegetables are low calories and can be consumed in high volume which will help fill you up and prevent overeating. High Fiber Vegetables + Fruits Artichokes Green peas Apples Berries Pears High fiber choices help you to feel satisfied while decreasing hunger cravings - making it easier for you to stick to your plans when it comes to a healthy diet. (i.e. not snacking between meals, limiting portion size, etc.) I love pears and am so happy that it is on this list! Comment below with an emoji of your favorite fruit or veggie from this post! #weightlossover40 #weightlossforwomen #holisticnutritionist #sustainableliving #sustainableweightlosssolutions #inspirewellness #eatyourfruitsandveggies #monctonnb #onlinenutrtioncoaching #onlinemealplanning #weightlossmadesimple

FRIDAY RECIPE DAY I'm sharing with you all my healthier version of the Chocolate Hummus that everyone is raging about. Give it a try and let me know what you think!... PS. I'm loving all the feedback on my Friday Recipes! This helps me help you more! Have a great weekend!xo #fridayrecipeday #fridayrecipeshare #healthychocolatehummus #healthysnackideas #holisticnutritionist #onlinenutritioncoach #sustainableweightlossforlife #healthyeatingmadesimple #monctonnb #newbrunswick #inspirewellness

5 Tips To Beat The Bloat Do you ever feel a bit overextended in the belly after a meal? Perhaps gassy? Have you ever carried a food baby? Well, bloating is common. Up to 25-30% of people experience it regularly. It happens when you have trouble digesting. The symptoms come from excess gas, reactions to foods, or food not moving through you as well as it could. ... There are many reasons you might experience these symptoms. Maybe because of a serious condition (disease), or a food allergy or intolerance (what you eat). It can also result from how you eat. If you have a serious digestive issue like IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), then make sure you eat accordingly. Same goes if you know certain foods give you gas. Simply avoid them. If you’re already doing those things, and still experience bloating, make sure you swipe through the slides as I share some great tips for dealing with it naturally. There are a bunch of natural ways to deal with bloating. First, avoid it by not eating things that give you gas or aggravate a digestive issue. Try not to overeat, consume sugar alcohols, or swallow air. Also, eating more mindfully and reducing stress can help too. Finally, if you are experiencing bloating, enjoy a cup of peppermint tea. If you do all of these, and still experience bloating, then you may have a food intolerance; this could be from an allergy or intolerance. If this is you, then I'd love to chat. DM me. What are your tricks to beat the bloat? #tuesdaytips #beatthebloatnutrition #beatthebloatnaturally #holisticnutritionist #holistichealth #sustainableweightlosstips #sustainableweightlossforlife #onlinenutritioneducation #eattolive #moncton #newbrunswick #inspirewellness #tuesdaythoughts

Healthy Choices For Dining Out I love the experience of choosing a meal that I don’t often make at home, having it prepared for me, and being able to just sit back and enjoy delicious food in a nice atmosphere. The downside of those perks is that a lot of the food that we order when dining out contains rich ingredients - high in calories, cholesterol, and/or fat. Restaurants often have large portions. ... Nobody wants to diminish the joy of going out for a good meal by worrying about diets and calorie counting. Here are 3 simple tips for making healthier choices while still enjoying your meal and your night out! Order 2 appetizers instead of an entree. "Portion control isn't about measuring; it's about ordering two appetizers instead of an entrée and cutting back on bread if you have pasta," Bethenny Frankel, former Real Housewife of New York and author of Naturally Thin, told Health magazine. Avoid creamy and fried dishes. While we don’t always know every ingredient in the food that we order while we are out - we do know that rich, creamy dishes and fried food have a lot of saturated and trans fat. Opt for something else on the menu. Drink one whole glass of water while you wait for your meal. Drinking water before your meal will help to decrease your appetite and prevent overeating. Plus, it increases your hydration! And every now and then splurge on a dessert. Life is about balance. What is your favorite thing about dining out? #sustainablelifestyle #sustainableweightlosstips #onlinenutritionaleducation #holisticnutritionist #diningout #monctonnb #inspirewellness #itsallaboutbalance #howtoeathealthy #dietssuck #poweroffood #healthyeatinghabits #healthydiningouttips #newbrunswick

How many hours of sleep did you get last night? Getting enough sleep is great for your brain your body and your mood! While you’re asleep your body is busy recovering and recharging from yesterday and setting you up for success today. Studies show that over the past decade, many of us have been going to bed later but still getting up at the same time losing about 40 minutes of sleep on workdays!... Not getting enough sleep can raise your stress hormones and also throw your hunger hormones out of whack! Both of these are implicated in weight gain over time. So if you’re struggling with getting enough sleep and can’t change the time you wake up, go to bed earlier to get those 40 minutes back! What’s your nightly average? #breakyourlimits #fitnesstipsters #fitnessjourneys #fitnessprogress #healthmotivation #justkeepgoing #wellnessmotivation #healthytips #wellnesstips #progressnotperfect #holisticnutritionist #onlinenutritioneducation #monctonnb #newbrunswick #sustainableweightloss

FRIDAY RECIPE DAY Coconut Avocado Grasshopper Bars! Base Ingredients:... 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut 1 med-large ripe avocado cup maple syrup or honey 6 Tbsp (1/4 cup & 2 Tbsp) melted coconut oil Dash of pink salt or sea salt tsp peppermint extract Topping 4 oz dark chocolate chopped (or 100 g chocolate bar) 2 Tbsp coconut oil Directions: Line a 8x8 pan with parchment Combine base ingredients together in a high powered blender until well blended mixture should still have some texture Scrape into prepared pan, spread out basethen freeze Combine chopped chocolate & coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until melted OR melt very slowly in a microwave Pour chocolate mixture over frozen base and refreeze 10 min Score chocolate topping to make cutting easier & return to freezer. (this is important) Lift parchment to remove bars from pan onto cutting board. Cut into squares with sharp knife. Keep wrapped & frozen Can be made as individual tarts/bars using silicone molds #fridayrecipes #healthytreats #healthytreatsfeature #monctonnb #newbrunswick #holisticnutritionist #onlinenutritioncoaching #onlinenutritioneducation #mealplanning #allboutbalance #sustainableweightlosstips #cleaneatingrecipe

Did you eat breakfast this morning? Interesting Fact: studies show that people who eat breakfast tend to be healthier. Researchers aren’t sure whether that’s due to actually eating breakfast or because people who eat early in the day tend to have healthier habits.... Either way, it’s a positive sign! What did YOU have for breakfast? #eatyourbreakfast #tuesdaythoughts #onlinenutritionaleducation #proteinpacked #proteinrecipes #healthybreakfastideas #moncton #newbrunswick #inspirewellness #healthybreakfastclub #healthyeatinghabits #healthyeatingrecipes #holisticnutritionist #proteinmeals #eatcleanrecipes #eatcleangetlean #eatcleantrainhard

Reasons To Meal Prep! MEAL PREP SAVES YOU MONEY! You don't need to worry about spending all your money on takeout, or after work stopping to grab something because you've already got some freezer meals at home, or you've prepped for the week ahead. The money you spend per meal is SO MUCH CHEAPER because you're creating your meals in bulk and you're repurposing different ingredients for multiple meals. MEAL PREP REDUCES FOOD WASTE! This is a big one for me. I used to buy ...groceries on a whim and I was finding a lot of my produce going bad, or forgetting about food in the freezer. I think one of the best parts of meal prep and planning is being able to have a dual purpose for ingredients. Learning to make meals with overlap in ingredients helps you cut down on food waste because you know exactly what's in the fridge and how it's going to be used. MEAL PREP SAVES YOU TIME! Saving time is sometimes just as important as saving money! Life is go-go-go, and whether you're working from home, in an office, or even on the road, I promise life is so much easier when you've already got a packed lunch. Making your meals in bulk is such a time saver and will keep you feeling satisfied, energized and great for the waistline. MEAL PREP DOESN’T HAVE TO BE BORING! One of the biggest misconceptions is that meal planning is a lot of hard work, and it's often made up of boring, plain meals like chicken, rice and brocoli. Umm, NO! I'm always thinking of new ways to serve up healthy, vibrant flavours while still using minimal ingredients with an emphasis on real food and nutritious fuel for your body. Healthy and delicious is SO POSSIBLE. MEAL PLANNING REDUCES STRESS! This is different than saving time and money. Trust me when I say from experience that having all your breakfasts and lunches ready at the beginning of the week is a life saver and allows you to free up mental space and energy during the week so you can focus on getting things done. No last minute scrambles to get dinner on the table either. Do you meal prep weekly? #mealprephacking #mealprepmadeeasy #nutritionconsultationsonline #nutritioncoachtips #holisticnutritioncoaching

New Year’s Goal Planning: Expect the Unexpected If there is one thing that 2020 has taught us, it is to expect the unexpected. This year has brought forth challenges that nobody could have predicted. But with those challenges, we have also had the opportunity to learn, grow, and adapt. ... These traits are especially important when we set and pursue our own individual goals. When we set a goal, we envision the outcome that we want to achieve. We determine the steps that we will need to take to reach that outcome. And we get to work! But there is one really crucial part that we often forget in our planning process: to expect the unexpected barriers. Barriers that can easily derail our progress. What is your goal this year? Take a minute to write it down. What steps will you need to take to get there? Write those down. Now, look at your list of steps and think about all of the possible unexpected barriers that you might encounter - and what you will do if they come to fruition. How will you handle each barrier? For example, if you are trying to make healthier eating habits and one of your steps includes limiting sweets and alcohol, a barrier to that plan might include gatherings or special events. By identifying that potential barrier, you remove the unexpected aspect and have an opportunity to create a plan for how you want to navigate the challenge. I have been thinking and focusing on my own personal goals for 2021. One of them is building a more impactful business online. I'm learning. Stay turned for more!

Here’s a little teaser from my time spent with Tosh and Jenna. The show is airing on Rogers TV on Monday. What an awesome privilege and opportunity to be able to share my story and journey from my MS diagnosis to allowing the label to define my life leading me into a wheelchair, to changing my mental game and focusing on proper nourishment and lifestyle choices to allow me to becoming a marathoner and triathlete and most of all to be able to say I have MS but MS doesn’t have me! It really is possible to live a vibrant life in the face of autoimmune disease. #autoimmunesolution #autoimmunenutritionist #autoimmunenutritioncoach #msnutritioncoach #rehab1nutrition #nutritioncoachforwomen #pickleplanetmoncton

Give Thanks To Your Body! It’s the season of being thankful and showing gratitude. We are often thankful FOR our bodies - grateful for our health, strengths, working systems etc. ... But have you ever thought about giving thanks TO your body? Sounds weird? Hear me out. Our bodies are pretty incredible. The multitude of working systems that symbiotically keep us breathing, moving, laughing, loving and living are a work of art. The problem is that sometimes caring for our bodies feels like a chore. And our society of instant gratification has somehow made the work of caring for our own bodies seem unpleasant. So I challenge you to shift your mindset. Choosing to eat healthy and give your body the nutrients that it needs is a way of saying THANK YOU to your body for all of the hard work that it does for you. Choosing to work out and exercise is a way to say THANK YOU to your heart, lungs and muscles. Making healthy lifestyle choices and focusing on wellness is a way to say THANK YOU to your mind and body for making you YOU. Look at caring for your body as an act of gratitude. Say thanks TO your body. What is one thing that you will do to say thank you to your body? #gilliancrooksnutrition #rehab1performance #rehab1nutrition #multiplesclerosis #mswarrior #givethanks #nutritioncoach #holisticnutrition #oneononeconsultation

After doing my Sugar Series last week and receiving such positive feedback I put together a FREE guide for you. It's my 14-Day Sugar Detox Guide. Sign up below to receive your free copy!

How to Build Healthy Nutrition Habits A habit is defined as a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up. It is hard to give up bad habits and it is hard to start new habits. ... Studies show that it can take 21 - 66 days to form a new habit. Most people need to spend about 2 months consistenty repeating a new, healthy behavior before the choice to do so becomes a natural tendency. Many psychiatrists believe that it can take up to 254 days of practicing a new habit before the natural tendencies become permanent. That’s right. Lasting change takes time. The trick is to take it day by day. Those 254 days are going to pass whether you are making healthier choices or not! Don’t be overwhelmed by the number. You need consistency in order to truly lay the groundwork for making a new habit. Ups or downs will happen but recognize that the clock restarts on your habit forming process. I challenge you to choose something doable and start a new healthy habit this coming week.. maybe it is morning yoga or meditation, maybe it’s cutting out sugar in your morning coffee or trying to eat a vegetable every day. What habit can you commit to for AT LEAST 3 weeks? #gilliancrooksnutrition #rehab1performance #nutritionconsultationsavailable #mswarrior #foodismedicine #healthylifestyle #multiplesclerosis #mymsstory #healthyhabits

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to hire a Holistic Nutritionist? I know many people have questions about what this would be like, so let me share three cool things about working with me We work TOGETHER on a plan that fits you and your life (you will not be put in a cookie cutter program where one size is supposed to fit all)... You get insider access to a professional for questions (no more scrolling through Google looking for answers) You get insider support, encouragement and accountability from me in between our sessions. Leave a comment or send me a DM if you have any questions. I’d love to get to know you better! #gilliancrooksnutrition #rehab1performance #rehab1nutrition #holisticnutritionist