Testimonials
"I had the privilege of working with McKenna, a registered sports dietitian, for the past year, and I can confidently say that she has been instrumental in my success as a triathlete. Her expertise and guidance have truly transformed my performance and overall well-being.
As a busy mom of three boys and a full-time Women's Health Nurse Practitioner, finding the balance between training and maintaining a healthy lifestyle was challenging. McKenna's personalized approach to counseling and nutrition planning helped me navigate these demands flawlessly.
One of the areas where McKenna truly excelled was in optimizing my fueling during workouts and recovery nutrition. Her recommendations significantly enhanced the power of my workouts and expedited my recovery process. Additionally, she provided me with invaluable advice on race-day nutrition, ensuring that I had the best opportunity for a repeat performance.
Beyond her expertise in sports nutrition, McKenna also provided day-to-day guidance on lifestyle nutrition for optimal wellness. This not only improved my athletic performance but also boosted my energy levels and focus throughout the day. I was amazed at how her advice translated into tangible improvements in both my athletic pursuits and everyday life.
I have competed for 6 years in the sport of triathlon. 2023 was a momentous season for me, as I competed at the Age Group World Championship Standard Distance Triathlon in Pontevedra, Spain. During my world championship race, despite facing a setback of losing a third of my hydration on the bike, I had the confidence to continue and adapt my race nutrition strategy thanks to the counseling and education I received from McKenna. Her support and guidance proved to be invaluable, and I ended up achieving my best finish with a Bronze medal on a world championship podium.
McKenna's evaluation, planning, and coaching were absolutely key to my success as an athlete. As a Women's Health Nurse Practitioner who counsels women daily on lifestyle modifications, I was able to learn so much from her expertise, improving not only my own health but also my ability to counsel women in my practice.
I cannot recommend McKenna enough. Her dedication, knowledge, and passion for helping athletes reach their full potential are truly exceptional. If you're looking for a registered sports dietitian who will go above and beyond to support and empower you on your athletic journey, McKenna is the perfect choice."
~Beth R.
"I'm a lot of things, a wife/mother/triathlete/educator/etc. In addition to these titles, I am also a vegan. This poses a very interesting situation when it comes to feeding myself and my family nutritiously, ensuring that we are all supplementing correctly, and (because all four of us are athletes) making sure that we are fueling and replenishing our bodies correctly.
Initially, I was sent to McKenna because some of my bloodwork was off as well as my energy levels. While I still do not think the issue of my energy levels deals solely with nutrition, I am elated at the knowledge gained working with McKenna to ensure that I was feeding, fueling, and replenishing my body correctly in regards to triathlon training.
My sessions with McKenna were invaluable. She helped me with ideas throughout the day to make sure that my body was primed for training but that it was also recovering well after sessions. Additionally, McKenna talked with me, very specifically, about race day nutrition, and she helped me plan out how many calories, carbs, sodium, etc. I should be taking in pre, during, and post race. I am a gal who likes a plan, and our nutrition planning for race day has proven successful throughout multiple races! What a difference this planning has made.
My favorite part of working with McKenna would probably be seeing her thoughtfulness at work. She is extremely specific in her thinking and planning and truly takes time to consider options and resources. I am quick to trust her judgement and knowledge given her work ethic and the success I have seen."
~Jenine N.
"I am currently recovering from ACL surgery, but was a collegiate track athlete and am pursing a career in policing so staying in shape is very important to me. With that being said, I’ve always struggled with disordered eating so I took the opportunity while recovering from surgery to understand and improve with my eating habits.
My goals progressed through each appointment but I focused on one full meal a day until I got three full meals in a day plus some fueling snacks, when eating these meals I took the time to enjoy them without distraction, and we integrated some ways to make it fun and less like a chore.
Integrating all of these things in wasn’t easy, especially if you're not used to eating three meals a day but with a slow progression it become more 'I’m eating because the food is good and my stomach is growling' vs. 'I’m eating this one meal today because I have to live.'
Also one of the biggest motivators for me was seeing the weight/muscle gain combined with the workouts. I went from 118lb to 130lb of muscle and obviously some fat but nothing that bothers me. If anything, I feel the best I ever have in the gym because I’m fueled and love the way my body looks!! So it just continues to motivate that long term goal of 'if I eat to fuel I can go to the gym and gain to feel great physically and mentally.'
You actually took the time to understand what was going on in my life and wanted to help me get better compared to most people I’ve encountered in health care that sadly just want a pay check. It took a lot for me to even make an appointment because of the 'care' I’ve gotten in the past, but I’m so glad I did. You were also very easy to understand and hold a conversation with.
5 stars, 10/10, couldn’t have asked for anything more!! Thank you."
~Hannah M.
"My 16 year old son is a competitive swimmer balancing high school and club swimming. He needed a nutrition plan to properly fuel his body.
My son was constantly feeling tired and not performing close to the level he had previously reached.
Immediately after leaving your office he put into practice the suggestions discussed. He has added at least two snacks into his day. He’s also drinking Gatorade during his practice. His energy has improved and at a large invitational over the MLK weekend (first meet after seeing you) he swam 4 events and had 4 significant time drops!
You didn’t want to do a complete overhaul, you gave suggestions that were easy for Evan to put into place.
Our time with you was very informative.
As other swim families have asked about our experience, I have recommended you more than once. I wish someone was talking about nutrition with HS athletes before they find themselves in a deficit. Thank you for helping Evan get his season back on track!"
~Jennifer Z.
"I’m a retired wife, mother, and grandmother who wanted to increase travel and time with family. I needed help getting healthier to help with that.
Recently diagnosed with IBS. Wanted to be able to go out with family and travel without worrying how far the closest restroom was.
The outcome was excellent. Working with you gave me tools to understand what was happening around my eating habits. You gave me many resources that were invaluable. Helping to think more about what I was eating and what to stay away from.
You listened and made suggestions! You gave me resources. You were very accessible for questions
I really don’t have any suggestions for improvement. I felt like I received all that I needed. When something didn’t work you were available with something else to try. Can’t ask for more than that!!"
~Mary B.
"I felt like I was eating ok but also felt like I could do better. I was interested in learning more about nutrition from someone I could actually meet with in person. I am a generally busy/active person but was also looking to improve my overall fitness.
I was prescribed blood pressure medication and was also almost 40 at the time. I also had a spike in my total cholesterol number. It felt like a good time to get serious about nutrition and identify gaps in what I was already doing. I had also experienced times where eating a meal made me feel sick and I didn't understand why. Long term my hope is to come off of blood pressure medication but I also understand that nutrition may not be the only factor contributing to high blood pressure.
Overall I feel much better and more even nutritionally. My eating habits were very sporadic and created a lot of ups and downs in my day that I had not contributed to eating and nutrition. I now eat breakfast and regularly through the day and have not had those moments of feeling sick after a meal anymore. My cholesterol is still a little high but improving. I am hoping to dive more into cholesterol during our next visit.
I enjoy the conversational approach and education you have provided. Not knowing what to expect I had thought that it would start with some type of meal plan that was going to be difficult to follow when trying to eat with my family or others. You taught me more about balancing my meals and snacks so that I can really eat in any situation which makes sticking to my plan much easier.
I have really enjoyed working with you and hope to continue regular visits in the future. I knew this wasn't going to be a one-visit fix and continue to learn more at every visit. Thank you!"
~Brandon M.
"Our son Jack is a 15 year old high school athlete (cross country, swimming and track). We were referred to McKenna to discuss nutrition after a particularly frustrating cross country season.
After a minor foot injury early in his sophomore cross country season, Jack began to struggle with constant tiredness and leg fatigue. Through blood work, we learned about some significant vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Our goal was to learn more about supplements and general nutrition that would hopefully restore Jack's energy levels and ultimately his ability to compete at a level he desires.
McKenna took time to understand Jack's food likes/dislikes and general eating habits. What I like most is that all of her recommendations were simple. She didn't try to completely reinvent Jack's diet into something that wouldn't be sustainable or that he wasn't willing to try.
She provided basic guidance for what and when he should eat during critical points in the day as it relates to training and competing. Fortunately for Jack, this very quickly lead to noticeable improvements and has bolstered his confidence.
Our favorite part about working with McKenna was the relatability and simplicity. It was helpful to meet with someone who is also an athlete and can relate to the challenges and demands of rigorous training and competition. All of her recommendations were simple and sustainable."
~Shawn M.
"I’m a freshman college student who used to competitively swim while also weightlifting, cycling and running. I no longer do swimming but being active is very important to me and I wanted to see a nutritionist so I could better understand how to fuel myself properly.
I wanted to solve the problem of not eating enough and figuring out the foods that would trigger my irritable bowel syndrome.
Working with you has helped me long term because I now adapt more snacks and more calories and fat dense food to help me get to a healthy weight where I can feel strong.
I appreciate your willingness to understand and listen to all my concerns."
~Bella R.
"I am a CrossFit athlete that appreciates training hard and overall fitness. I was referred to McKenna after experiencing dizziness from low blood sugar after 2 intense workouts from not fueling appropriately given the volume.
Nutrition feedback and guidance to properly fuel for high intensity or high-volume workouts.
Positive outcome with noticeable improvement in workout performance and recovery. Nutrition and food choice options and suggestions from McKenna exceeded my expectations.
Learning nutrition habits as a means to fuel properly from someone that lives it daily in her own training habits and patterns. Sharing ideas and training habits with an athlete that was able to draw on their own personal experience was a bonus. McKenna offered to answer any questions that don't require a follow-up through email, which I appreciated.
Overall working with McKenna has been a positive experience. I value her opinion and look forward to working with her on any future nutritional guidance."
~Marc P.