I absolutely love talking to Amelia. She has masters degrees in nutrition and public health and is one of the most knowledgeable people I know. Not only is she a personal chef, but she also does nutritional counseling, puts out a newsletter, blogs, and teaches cooking classes. As part of my new series on local small businesses, I’m profiling Amelia’s company Eating Made Easy, formerly Amelia’s Meels.
Amelia’s approach to food and nutrition is very reasonable, which is why I enjoy talking to her. She isn’t advising cutting out all carbohydrates or never having a cupcake again. She’s giving clients manageable lifestyle changes.
“People are always looking for a quick fix and there isn’t one,” she said.
Take, for example, cleanses. These popular remedies are used by some people at the beginning of the year to try to detoxify after the gluttony of the holidays. They are supposed to clean out your system and help you lose weight in the process, but do they work?
No. No they don’t. “It’s so preposterous,” she said. “It’s like saying ‘I’m going to take a razorblade to your skin because you got a sunburn.”
What is the best way to detox after you’ve been brutal to your body? Eat more fruits and vegetables and limit caffeine and alcohol. “The majority of people have all the systems they need for toxins to leave their body within 24 to 48 hours. There isn’t anything so toxic unless they are drinking Windex.”
Having a personal chef has always been an unrealized dream of mine. When Amelia gets a new client she caters the menu to each person’s dietary needs – gluten-free, vegan, peanut allergy – no problem.
The same is true with weight loss and nutrition counseling. If the goal is to lose weight, she figures out what works best for that person’s lifestyle. That might mean eating less sugar or cutting down on smoothies. If someone eats fast food everyday at lunch, she figures out a way to cut a certain number of calories so that person can lose weight – maybe no fries one day, or half a bun the next, or cut out the soda to save 200 calories.
She also had some advice that I think might help me lose a couple of pounds. I’m a sucker for those fluffy stories on yahoo or in doctor’s office magazines that tell me what to eat to make my stomach flatter. Nuts and oatmeal are always on the list so of course I put walnuts or almonds in everything so that I don’t have to do crunches. Well, apparently adding 500 calories to an already full diet will not give me a sick pack.
Speaking of advice, Amelia’s blog is also a great source. When friends ask her questions like, Which yogurt is good for me and which one is the nutritional equivalent to a candy bar? Here’s your answer.
“The main thing I would want people to know is that I’m not here to preach to you what you should be eating, but teach you how to make a healthy lifestyle a reality no matter what your life is like,” she said. “I want to inspire you to love healthy food as much as you love unhealthy food.”
To learn more about Amelia visit her blog. To contact her about personal chef services, nutritional or weight loss counseling, or cooking classes email her at info@eating-made-easy.com or call her at 310-484-6140.
This is part of a series I’m doing on local small business. I don’t get paid for this, but because I have a small business I want to highlight other entrepreneurs I believe in.