It’s easy to forget that we have a life-long relationship with food. It’s different for us all, individual, woven into the unique tapestry of our lived experiences and cultural histories passed down to us. That relationship is always in flux - a conversation between our microbiome, mind, and society. Sometimes it brings us joy and connectedness, and sometimes it brings us guilt, pain, and isolation.

Today we are asking a “Radical Dietician” about how we can look differently at food and our relationship with it.

If you shop our markets, you might have encountered today’s guest at Olsen Farm’s stand at the University District Market. Virginia Newman (RDN) has been devoted to local sustainable agriculture for many years and it inspired her to pursue a career in nutritional science and therapy work. Here is a brief conversation we had with her. We hope it helps you navigate your relationship with food in a more joyous and creative way.

It’s a meaty conversation so let’s dig in!

Please tell us your name and title (if any) and explain your credentials.

 Hi! My name is Virginia Newman, and I'm a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN)- which means that I have a Masters of Science in nutrition and dietetics, and that I completed a year long dietetic internship (paid to work for free!) and sat for an accreditation exam to become an RDN. Lots of people are confused about the distinction between dietitian and nutritionist, and really it depends on licensure requirements state by state.

In Washington state, the only difference is that as a dietitian, I did the internship and sat and passed the exam. Colleagues of mine that are nutritionists have degrees but did not go through the internship or exam process. Often time people will say dietitians are "better" but I don't necessity think that- I think that there are a lot of harmful professionals all around whether they have completed extra training or not- the important thing is finding a good fit, and someone who is continuing their education, getting mentorship, and doing their own work- that's an important one!

 I'm also the owner of The Radical Dietitian, my business and practice for the past 7 years. I work with clients who suffer from eating disorders and mentor professionals in the field. I'm currently working on an online community that supports people with community and education around embodied eating practices, called the Deep Nourishment Nest. 

 

What about the farmers markets drew you in?

It was actually farming that drew me to get my master's in nutrition.

I used to farm in my mid 20s- I worked at Jubilee Farm in Carnation Valley, the Seattle Youth Garden Works Farm in South Park, and at Rosehip Farm and Garden on Whidbey Island.

I herniated a disk farming when I was 25, and that put an end to that career path- so that's when I started to look at going back to school to get my masters. I moved back to the city from living and farming on Whidbey, and once I was up for it I applied to work at Nash's farm selling at the markets. I sold with Nash's (some long time customers may remember their famous carrots!) throughout my time doing prerequisites and getting my masters, and even for a summer after I left my first dietetic job and got my practice off the ground. I wanted to stay connected to the farming community and I always loved selling at markets, even at the end of a long week of farm work.

There is something really special about the community that forms around food and farming. Some of my most favorite people are farmers and have taught me so much about life and living.

I started selling at Olsen's in 2022- I called Brent, the farmer, in June and asked him if he needed a hand at any of the markets. In full transparency, I had worked from home, living alone, since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. I let myself quit online dating because I hated it so much, but self talked myself into the need to leave the house because if I wanted to meet a partner and I wasn't going to online date, then unless I was going to date the mail man or the pizza delivery guy, I had to be out in the world (severe introvert here). So, being a capricorn, I got another job lol. Brent obliged and I've been slanging meat and potatoes for Olsen Farms at the U-district market ever since, and it's the best! It is my church - to be back in that community and to be eating all of the delicious food grown and made with such heart and soul. AND, I met my partner shortly there after, and now he's a regular customer ; ) 

 

What struggles have you had with food throughout your life and how has it impacted how you view your work? (What’s your relationship with food?)

Great question! I wish this question was asked more in general.

We tend to focus on physical health outcomes instead of the mental aspects of such a - unfortunately- minefield topic like food in our culture.

I have a history of an eating disorder, orthorexia, which is basically an obsession with "healthy" eating/ living. It started after my back injury and subsequent health issues I had- recurring injuries and digestive issues that impacted my quality of life. Unfortunately I was getting care from people who had adopted the mentality that it was all attributed to food intake and habits (which, from where I'm standing now, was such a harmful and short sighted way to treat a patient). I've defined that moment as the match that flamed my eating disorder.

I see this often in my practice- people get a new diagnosis or are struggling with quality-of-life reducing symptoms and the intervention sparks off intense disordered eating or an eating disorder. It's difficult because it's in these times that people, like me, are vulnerable and desperate for relief. When we talk about "holistic medicine" it is necessary that we include people's mental health and trauma story, along with a realistic picture of what's possible. Often people are given impossible and irresponsible meal plans (I was told to eliminate all carbohydrates) without an evaluation of the previous relationship to food, any trauma histories, and current barriers to said intervention. In the case of my intervention, it was irresponsible and should not have been made, but in the case of evidence based interventions with a reasonable hope for relief the practicality of the solution for the patient needs to be discussed with them. 

 But, back to your question, I struggled with orthorexia, which was also a means of coping (eating disorders and disordered eating are ways to cope) with unresolved trauma from my childhood, navigating the chronic pain of my back injury and subsequent injuries and digestive issues (distracted myself with highly controlled intake), and navigating a rigorous graduate school program with undiagnosed ADHD, when I began to look at my food relationship as disordered and started to lessen the intensity of my rigidity. It wasn't until a training with the Center for Body trust that I really was able to deeply heal and as I started to work with folks that struggled, in some cases in my early years of practice I was just a few steps ahead of some of my clients (whatever that means, because healing is really never linear!). 

Being someone with lived experience has really strengthened my work, both because of the passion I bring to it, knowing the deep harm that systems like diet culture (a system of thinking designed around food and body control) cause, and the deep relationality I can develop with clients because in some ways, I get it.

I'm happy to say that now, my relationship with food is embodied. I moved from a place of anxiety, control, guilt and shame to a place of calm, pleasure, creativity and community. I want this for everyone! And everyone deserves this. I'll say one last thing about this because it's a topic I'm very passionate about- as I was healing from my eating disorder I gained weight, because of how restrictive my disorder had become I needed to weight restore. As I was healing, and gaining weight, I dealt with weight stigma, from family and friends. Mine was minimal, considering where my body was and where it ended up, and it was incredibly painful and difficult to reckon with. Often times when I'm treating people I ask them, how would it be to recover if the world around us did not judge and pathologize bodies like we do? And most people say, it wouldn't be a problem.

But in fact, the stats on recovery from eating disorders in the US are abysmal, which is multifactorial but most certainly influenced by weight stigma and the oppression that occurs for people on the higher end of the weight spectrum. We all have a lot of work to do when it comes to internalized weight bias. The reality is that bodies come in all shapes and sizes, and we know nothing about anyone's health story just by looking at them- this is absolutely silly, but sadly many healthcare professionals still diagnose based on body size which translates into a denial of care for those in larger bodies (which, if we are thinking critically, could be the cause for health disparities in higher weight individuals, not the weight itself). I could talk about this forever, but I'll stop. :)

 

What is something that gives you hope about the food culture in Seattle?

Okay, admittedly Seattle does have some work to do when it comes to its relationship with healthism (the idea that the pursuit of health is a moral obligation and the expectation that everyone can achieve it).

That being said, it was in Seattle that I was able to really cultivate my connection to the land through farming and the sustainable agriculture movement. The way that Seattle embraces local sustainable produce and supporting farmers is something that I did not experience in Virginia, where I grew up (Yes! It's my name too- but it's a family name I wasn't named after the state) which is part of what helped me to develop a deep reverence for food, even far before I started to recover and heal. The way that the regular customers at the farmer's market show up every week, rain, shine, wind, snow... to buy from us and to stop and chat and ask about how things are going- is food culture that I want to be apart of. Where people start to develop a sense of what it is to really grow and produce food, and therefore develop more of a reverence for it, and for the land.

The farmer that I worked with on Whidbey, at Rosehip Farm and Garden, Linda Bartlett, passed away in 2019. But she lives on in many ways, and one of which is that she is always with me when I think about my own values around this land, the food it produces, and the bodies that tend the soil and receive it's nourishment. We all deserve to feel safe, respected, supported, and nourished, and I think a food culture that develops community around all aspects of production is an excellent place to start. So good job Seattle!

I think that when we start to look at food in this way, as connected to a community web, it can minimize the ways that, admittedly my profession, can reduce food to equations and solutions for problems rather than a necessary and joyful component of creating peaceful relationships to ourselves and our bodies and each other and the land. 

How does your work impact the local community?

Thus far my practice has treated people in the greater Seattle area, going virtual in 2020 helped to expand the scope of who I can serve. So I'm offering healing to our local community. I'm in a place now where I'm wanting to expand beyond client work- so this interview was nicely placed.

I want to reach more folks with my work. Because though I work mostly with clinical eating disorders in my practice, not many people are unscathed from the impacts of diet culture and all of us have at least some work to do when it comes to our relationships with food and our bodies. I feel that this is important because with it, we become more embodied, which means we come closer to our own humanity. With that, we start to be more gentle with ourselves, the people around us, and other humans in general. And damn, if that isn't needed these days, right? 

What are 5 tips you can offer our readers about the kitchen and how to shop for and prep food?

1. Reduce perfectionism Perfectionism kills creativity- and food and cooking is a great opportunity to be creative- explore, dink around, try something new, if you fail it's okay- you learned something! If you have a history of an eating disorder, or if you have food insecurity in your past, or if you are struggling with a diagnosis where food is an intervention, or if you have digestive issues, or are disabled in other ways, (and many more things I'm not naming) Food and cooking and kitchen management can quickly become overwhelming. It doesnt have to look one way! Perfection is a lie. The most important thing to keep in mind is that your own personal food culture just needs to work for you (and your family if you have one). There is no one way of eating that is morally superior or that will cure anything. Try new things, have fun and be playful with it. 

2. Allow it to be fluid A lot of the meal prep and planning stuff that I see is rigid- ie go shopping once per week on Sunday and prep everything for all your meals for the week that you decide beforehand. First of all, that's a lot of damn work and second of all, it does not work for most people because life is lifey! Allow yourself to have plans and then back up plans and then "f***k it" plans. It's all okay! There are some weeks when I know I want to cook and will have the time and space and that's when I purchase more raw foods and ingredients (do emergencies come up/ motivation shifts happen- for sure!) and other weeks that I load up on easy foods- pasta, pre-prepared stuff, because I know it's going to be a busy / low capacity week and I need ease. And typically unpredictability is the norm so I have a pantry of things that can accommodate both.

3. Build your "Staples Pantry" Most cookbooks have front sections where they have their pantry recommendations, which is great- but remember- there is no one right way to eat! I really encourage people to explore their own staples pantry. Because you can stock up on all the sesame oil you want but if you don't like it / don't typically use it/ don't know how to use it- it will just clutter up your space. What are the things you find yourself buying week to week? what is your favorite frozen meal brand (for those low capacity weeks)? What sort of picked items/ sauces/ dressings do you really enjoy? Don't know and want to start a new cooking and kitchen routine- start trying things! I know that it can be a bummer to try something and waste it, but you could pass it to a neighbor and, really, better to waste in some instances than continue to eat food you don't like or outsource your cooking (*if* you want to cook morem or are constrained by finances, otherwise there's nothing wrong with outsourcing your cooking to restaurants/ delivery/ meal delivery/ etc).

4. Try walking through the market and only buying what "calls to you" (ie what looks particularly yummy and tasty) I had a friend pose this to me years ago, and I was stunned at the time at how difficult it was for me. I had always walked through the market and got the same sorts of things, always according to the plans I had in my head. My body and cravings really had no say. Today I walk through the markets differently- of course I load up on the seasonal goodies when they are available- and I just wonder to myself what looks good? and then decide what to make from there. Something interesting about my recovery was that I never used to crave vegetables, because that's what I was cramming down the most, out of "shoulds". But now I crave vegetables- from my body not my mind- and I let that guide me towards my choices and meals. Of course, there is a lot of luxury in this and it's not always possible on a low income, with incredibly busy schedules and many mouths to feed- so if you are eye rolling I see you. If it's not accessible- keep on with your routine- you are doing great! But if it lights something up in you, play around with it sometime- see what you uncover.

5. Let your pleasure guide you In the spaces and places that you can, let your pleasure guide you. One of the many things diet culture has messed up is our relationship to food and pleasure. It is common to hear "I was bad today because I ate x, y, or z" (typically a food that has been deemed "bad" ie one that will make you gain weight or one that is bad for health). The way that we have made food a tool for body control is (and connected our moral worth to it), in my professional opinion, causing way more harm than good, for sure. Most people in recovery work towards a model of "all foods fit" food, where they can trust their body to lead them to a wide variety of foods and pleasure, without guilt, shame, or fear, gets to be a part of the equation. Think of the world we are living in these days- there is so much devastation, harm, oppression, war- it's awful! Consider if you had the opportunity to bring pleasure in to your days, 3-5 times a day, as a natural part of your life, to sustain you. What a gift! Pleasure is not wrong, though lots of people have complicated relationships with pleasure, especially when it comes to food. Start to explore what gets in the way of you seeking pleasure from food.