Historically speaking, maintaining a healthy, balanced diet in the corporate world is no easy feat. But ask the workforce at One Two Pru and they’ll tell you otherwise. Thanks to Amelia Belmonte, One Two Pru’s Registered Dietitian from LifeStart (the force behind our state-of-the-art Health Club), tenants have the rare opportunity to work alongside an expert and achieve their greatest health goals without leaving the office. We sat down with Amelia to learn more about her motivation for studying nutrition, how she runs sessions with clients each day and why we should always pack a snack as a hack — all below.
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into nutrition?
I was diagnosed with Type One Diabetes when I was three years old. Everything that I eat and drink affects the way I feel, which led to my curiosity in nutrition. As a teenager and into my college years, I really began to see how balanced nutrition and exercise is important for me and how I feel every day. Now as an adult, I continue to work on adapting my nutrition and exercise so that I can maintain my health and wellness.
Why did you decide to team up with One Two Pru?
The One Two Pru building is inspiring in design, with all of its amenities and the gorgeous view. Since becoming a LifeStart Dietitian, I’ve had the pleasure of working with several companies in the One Two Pru location, so it was only natural to further this partnership!
What does a day in the life look like for you at One Two Pru?
Most weeks I have at least one or two nutrition events. Depending on the day and when those events are, I will start preparing for any individual nutrition sessions I have with clients that day. This includes reading past chart notes, checking up on their nutrition tracking or new metrics that they’ve posted, preparing information on topics that we’ll discuss or doing some research on a question that they asked during our previous session. Then, I’ll usually spend some time creating or reviewing material for whichever nutrition event is happening that week. If I still have time at the end of the day, I brainstorm for future nutrition programs, presentations or cooking demonstrations!
Can you explain your process of providing nutritional guidance to tenants?
To start, I need to learn everything possible (that’s relevant to nutrition and wellness) about the tenant. This includes past medical history, current diagnoses, food likes and dislikes, intolerances or allergies, their normal eating schedule, if/when they exercise, etc. Once I have as much data as possible, from there I assess where I see deficits or areas to improve and then work with the client in providing nutrition education and solidifying small goals to work on.
Nutritional guidance happens as I provide the education on topics like metabolism, macro and micronutrients, antioxidants, sleep and hydration. As clients learn more, they become aware of what their areas of improvement are.
What happens in a typical session?
After the initial consultation, follow-up sessions depend solely on what the client’s goals are. I usually start by having the client review their week. How did they feel implementing some of the process goals, did they run into any obstacles, and we go over some of their recent intake. Then I like to provide some insight on a nutrition topic. In the first couple of follow-up sessions we talk about some of the basics, but after that I like to get some ideas from the client in regards to what they’re most interested in learning about.
It can be topics they’ve seen on social media or in magazines, or maybe they just heard their friends talking about some new diet. Lastly, before closing out the session, we decide if we will continue working on some of the process goals we’ve made, or are we going to build on the progress we’ve made so far?
How would you characterize the work-life balance of tenants at One Two Pru?
From what I’ve experienced with the One Two Pru tenants, they are hard working but still like to take advantage of life outside of work and enjoy some of the finer things that the city has to offer!
Why do you think achieving mind-body wellness is so important, particularly when working 9-5?
Work can be stressful, tiring and busy. Not a great combination while trying to maintain wellness. Not only can these factors impact our physical health, but also our mental health. Finding a wellness routine is vital for managing stress, maintaining physical and metabolic health, but also so important in making sure we feel good outside of work to enjoy our social life and hobbies!
What’s your greatest health hack?
Always pack a snack. If you’ll be out and about for more than two hours without plans to eat, bring something with you! Having nourishment every two-three hours is ideal to avoid intense hunger and control cravings.
Top five foods you’d recommend?
Greek yogurt: a fantastic source of protein, rich in calcium, magnesium and potassium. Dense, whole grain bread: great source of fiber and loaded with B-Vitamins. Walnuts: contain healthy fats including omega 3’s and omegas 6’s. Chia seeds: have similar fat content to walnuts but also are a great source of fiber. Lastly, cauliflower: less because of its nutritional content (though it is packed with nutrition) and more for its versatility!
If you could give one piece of advice to someone looking to optimize their health, what would that be?
Incorporate more plants! Whether that means venturing into the world of plant-based proteins and substituting animal proteins here and there for options like tofu, seitan or tempeh. Or if you just increase the amount of plant foods you have daily, the benefits are so incredible! Not only are you getting a hefty boost of fiber, but the increase in vitamin/minerals and antioxidants is something we could all use more of.
Explore all that One Two Pru’s Health Club has to offer here.
