The 50-year-old man who recently visited the newest research and community outreach efforts of the Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs had a specific goal in mind when he came to the Peak Nutrition Clinic in University Hall.<\/p>\n
He wanted to lose weight.<\/p>\n
But the plan developed for him by Nanna Meyer, a registered sports dietitian and assistant professor, Health Sciences, and Kelly Ping, registered dietitian and graduate student, was far from an off-the-shelf low-calorie meal plan. They had a different approach in mind, as both of them are also trained in exercise and sport science.<\/p>\n
Through a series of interviews, the nutrition clinic staff members uncovered his high-stress job, irregular schedule, lack of exercise, and hours in airports surrounded by unhealthy food choices. These factors served as triggers for overconsumption of high-fat foods. The resulting plan took those factors into account and helped him make adjustments that were effective, manageable, and sustainable. To measure progress, personal details were combined with assessment of body composition such as fat and muscle mass.<\/p>\n
Combining multiple factors as varied as personal food preferences to lifestyle and work choices into a plan is the goal of the Peak Nutrition Clinic. On a fee-for-service basis, graduate students under Meyer\u2019s supervision will create plans to help individuals meet goals that are both personal and varied. Members of the greater Colorado Springs community can learn how nutrition can help them meet goals that might include knocking a few seconds off a marathon time, improving stamina, or staving off health problems such as diabetes, heart disease or osteoporosis.<\/p>\n
The clinic is designed for anyone who wants to optimize health and performance. Meyer and Ping hope to attract campus community members as well as Colorado Springs-area athletes ranging from weekend warriors to serious competitors.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the athlete, food is fuel,\u201d Meyer, a former world-class Swiss ski racer and Olympic nutrition consultant said. \u201cThe timing of food and fluid intake is key to performance. It\u2019s a science.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meyer and Ping worked together as consultants to the U.S. Speed Skating team at the Vancouver Olympics. They\u2019ve seen first-hand the difference that a consciously selected and balanced diet can make in improving athletic performance.<\/p>\n
Ping, a former collegiate soccer and hockey player, works closely with UCCS Mountain Lion student-athletes on issues that range from avoiding dietary supplements banned by the NCAA to educational workshops showing athletes how to fuel for performance and grocery shop on a budget.<\/p>\n
Ping laughs about a recent shopping trip where students shared their favorite foods \u2013 everything from fat-laden frozen fettuccine dinners to soda \u2013 and her efforts to redirect them to whole grains, yogurt, cottage cheese and locally grown produce.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a scavenger hunt for healthy ingredients right there in the grocery store,\u201d Ping said. \u201cIt was an eye-opening experience for all.\u201d<\/p>\n
To find out more about the clinic and its services, contact Ping, 255-7524.<\/p>\n
UCCS, located on Austin Bluffs Parkway in Colorado Springs, is one of the fastest growing universities in the nation. The university offers 36 bachelor\u2019s degrees, 19 master\u2019s and five doctoral degrees. The campus enrolls about 9,000 students.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The 50-year-old man who recently visited the newest research and community outreach efforts of the Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs had a specific goal in (Full Press Release)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-539","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pressreleases"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=539"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressreleases.uccs.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}