What’s the best weight loss plan? Is it keto? High-carb, low-fat? The Mediterranean diet? The options are as varied as any of the packaged food items you’ll find in a typical grocery store aisle, but research indicates that the best healthy diet is the one that a person can stick with for the long term. While it’s not your job as a fitness professional to design meals for clients (unless you have the required credentials), there is still plenty of room on the proverbial plate for your educated coaching and guidance.
What’s next in nutrition? That’s a big question seasoned with even bigger opinions and a side of multiple research-based answers. However, if you’re hungry enough for answers, you’ll find them. When you add research to your existing expertise, both theoretical and practical, you can feel confident in sharing nutritional insight with clients and still remain within your scope of practice.
Here’s a small taste of the trends experts foresee in 2022:
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Sustainable nutrition—keeping the planet in mind when planting.
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Personalized diets based on DNA, biochemistry and the microbiome.
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Nutrients that focus on immunity (vitamin D, zinc, selenium and vitamin C).
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Healthy, convenient snacks (registered dietitians say consumers are snacking more).
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Plant-forward food choices, or making half your plate plant-based.
However, there is much more information available for fitness professionals to explore, which is one reason why it’s vital to stay up to date with continuing education credits.
The Front Lines of Behavior Change
Fitness professionals understand that proper nutrition is the perfect program design partner. At the same time, neither approach—diet nor exercise—will glean results unless you’re able to successfully champion behavior change. IDEA and its members are keenly aware of this. Why? For 40 years IDEA has been taking cues from the very best fitness professionals in the world, choreographing education that does much more than just skim the surface. IDEA dives deep into data and presents health and wellness research in easily accessible formats. The goal? A world that thrives and benefits from IDEA members’ strength and leadership.
That is what the “plus” stands for in our reimagined membership—it represents all that you do to Inspire the World to Fitness®.
As a member, you have access to vast content and resources, and we’ve featured a small fraction of our library below. If you’re not a member, you can still access this education and get a feel for our community.
Articles
Feast on additional Nutrition Information from IDEA
How to Answer 3 of the Most Common Nutrition Questions Like a Pro
As a fitness professional, you probably get a LOT requests for diet- and nutrition-related advice. That’s why we created this cheat sheet, with evidence-based, easy-to-understand answers for three of the most common questions. Want more? Find answers to all 11 of the most frequently asked nutrition questions here.
The Nutrition–Fitness Hybrid: Bending the Model
What are consumers looking for when they come to your gym or studio? Sure, they want great workouts and access to the latest equipment in a welcoming, fun environment. But above all, they really want to attain their health and fitness goals.
Nutrition Adherence: Making Lifestyle Changes That Stick
Research has shown that the best weight loss plan is the one people can stick with for the long term (Johnston et al. 2014). For some, that may be a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet. For others, it may be a high-carbohydrate plan that’s low in saturated fat. Yet another group may need a complete macronutrient balance.
Stress and Nutrition
Feeling stressed? You’re not alone! The trick is knowing what to do about it. Research tells us that stress-relieving strategies include making a concerted effort to minimize stressors, engaging in meditation and physical activity, and nurturing strong social relationships. That’s good advice, but it ignores the common plan that many of us resort to: the “comfort food” strategy.
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View Nutrition Education on Your Own Time
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Whole-Food, Plant-Based Fuel for Fitness
Navigating all the trendy diets touted in the media is confusing for your clients. They come to you for sound…
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Nutrition Tips From the Trenches
Gain the practical advice, tools and science-based information you need to make nutrition goals a reality. This informative and timely…
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To Dairy or Not to Dairy? Translating the Science for Your Clients
With the growing popularity of plant-based food options, this session will explore the science behind the nutritional, health and sustainability…
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Weighing The Evidence Behind Nutrition Research
It took more than 7,000 studies and the deaths of countless smokers before the Surgeon General’s report on tobacco was…
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Interested in learning more about how to grow with the fitness industry as it enters a new era? IDEAfit+ affiliation is the key to life-long success as a fitness and wellness professional.