Food Freedom Q&A Series: Sammi Haber Brondo of Veggies and Chocolate
The word I immediately think of to describe Sammi is REFRESHING. As a Registered Dietician Nutritionist who believes that all food fit, she offers such an easy and approachable view of food and nutrition. She believes in listening to your cravings (eat the chocolate when you are craving it!) and also that eating and cooking food should be enjoyable, easy and not complicated.
I couldn’t think of a better person to interview to kick off my Food Freedom Q&A Series which I will be featuring every Wednesday on my blog this Spring. Hooray!
Hey Sammi! For those who haven’t met you just yet can you tell us what it is that you do and one thing about yourself that may surprise people?
I’m a Registered Dietitian with a private practice in NYC. I meet with clients individually for nutrition counseling and work with food brands as a spokesperson. Most people are surprised to find out that my job is split pretty much 50/50 between the two!
Take us through a day in the life for you!
On any given day, I could be doing a few different things: meeting with clients; creating recipes, shooting photos and editing them; researching and writing blog posts; working on my online program, All Foods Fit; or working on a number of other projects. It’s what I love the most about my job – no two days are the same. I love working for myself, but it also means that there’s always work to do! I typically try to be at my desk to start work between 7:30 and 8:00 AM. I usually catch up on emails and computer work first until about 9:00 AM, and then the day always changes from there.
How did you discover Intuitive Eating and how do you practice it in your daily life?
Like many people, I struggled with my relationship with food and my body for a while, especially as a teenager. When I finally saw a dietitian for myself in college, I learned that we need to eat all foods in order to be healthy and that healthy eating should be easy. It started me on a journey of understanding that all foods truly can fit into a healthy lifestyle. Over the years, the more comfortable I became with myself and my body, the easier it became to let go of food rules that were – consciously or not – controlling many of my eating decisions. Right now, the way I eat is second nature. I know that I naturally crave nutrient-dense foods like veggies and whole grains. At the same time, I also love chocolate and dessert and make sure to eat some every day. I don’t think too hard about what I eat (unless I need to make the plate pretty to share on Instagram!) and don’t stress about it either. I love eating out and pretty much never cook on the weekends. There are truly days where I don’t eat one vegetable at all. None of this makes me unhealthy, and I know that it’s my diet overall that matters most. It’s a really freeing feeling that I try to teach to all my clients.
What is your
definition of Food Freedom?
Like I mentioned above, food freedom involves not only allowing yourself to eat all foods, but also being able to enjoy them without guilt or thinking twice about it. It’s when you can easily figure out if you’re craving a salad or pasta when out to dinner – and feel satisfied and content with either choice. There’s no black and white or good and bad – it’s when everything easily fits into your diet.
What advice would you give someone on where to start with healing their
relationship with food/finding food freedom?
Start by getting rid of judgement – both on yourself and of food. This is where I start with a lot of my clients too. Knowingly or not, a lot of us classify food as “good” or “bad.” We say things like “I should get the salad,” or “I’m so bad for eating that!” Instead, start to notice when you label foods and behaviors as good or bad and try to slowly stop yourself from doing it. By removing these labels, you’ll start to allow yourself to eat what you want – and not what you “should” have – and also remove some of that guilt associated with eating the “bad” food. No food is good or bad – food is food.
In your practice, where do your clients struggle most with intuitive eating?
A lot of my clients struggle with letting go of control. It’s a common fear that we’ll automatically start to gain weight when we listen to our bodies instead of our food rules. And I get it – when you’ve followed rules most of your life to try to control your body, it’s super scary to think about letting go. I work with clients to slowly let go of some of those rules and control. I can confidently say that pretty much all of my clients feel amazing when they’re able to do that. So many of us have food rules that we don’t even realize we have. Letting go of those rules frees up space to focus on so many other things in life. Our bodies are smart. When we listen to them and eat in a way that feels good both physically and mentally, they’ll go where they’re naturally and healthfully meant to be.
For more resources check out the following:
Sammi’s Ebook: 7 Days to Make All Foods Fit (without guilt)
Sammi’s Cookbook: The Essential Vegetable Cookbook