http://www.MandyCopenhaver.com/

Mandy Copenhaver Nutrition, Cincinnati, OH (2025)

06/07/2022

Drop some ❤️❤️ below for Balance!!👇👇

Social media and diet culture make it seem like intuitive eating is just eating as much of whatever you want, whenever you want without regard to your health or how you feel.😳🤦🏻‍♀️

This could not be further from the truth!

Intuitive Eating is about creating an actual connection between your mind and your body so that you can learn exactly how to fuel YOUR body to feel your very best.

Intuitive Eating focuses on balance, but balance can look different for everyone!

We all want to find balance so that we can live our most fulfilling life. 😊❤️🙌🏻 Diets make us believe that we can't trust our own bodies. However, the reality is, each person is the expert of their own body more than any random diet could be. 🤯

Learning to trust that you know what is best for YOU is the key! ❤️

05/26/2022

It's so easy to get caught up in diet culture and the thought that you have to be a certain size or look a certain way to be healthy and feel your BEST, that you forget or don’t even realize what health is REALLY about. ❤️⚖️❤️

THIS unhappy obsession over your body and your diet is permeating into every area and relationship of your life whether you are consciously aware of it or not.😔

And once you take OWNERSHIP of this truth, improving your health turns into so much more than counting calories and trying to shrink your body to be as small as possible.

It’s the vehicle that takes you on this amazing journey of life.

Your one and only body and the relationship that you have with it enables YOU to bring your best self to every aspect of your life...motherhood, marriage, friendships, employment...so you can help others THRIVE too!

This is what my 1:1 coaching is all about. 😊

I’m here to help you improve your health. To see you heal your relationship with food and your body. To celebrate with your family and be the BEST mom and wife possible. To care for yourself effectively so you can care for others...

But I’m also here to help you with so much more than that.

I’m here to help you change YOUR world... one breakthrough, one goal, one ripple effect at a time! ❤️

05/18/2022

This may ruffle a few feathers, but I just have to call out these lies that have been flying around social media recently.😩🤦🏻‍♀️

1. Carbs are our bodies preferred source of energy. 🥯🍞🥨If you find yourself mindlessly overeating carbs on a regular basis, eliminating them completely is not going to solve your problem. Instead, try pairing them with protein and fat to help keep yourself fuller for longer.

2. The yolk of the egg is a nutritional powerhouse of vitamins and minerals. 🍳Plus, the fat found in the yolk will keep you fuller for longer.

3. Sure, you may eat and drink more than you normally would on vacation and I get that a detox may be tempting when you get back, BUT one of the liver's main job in the body is to eliminate toxins. 🙌🏻🙌🏻No need for a restrictive detox. Instead, tune in to what your body is asking for and get back to your regular routine.

➡️What other diet culture lies have you heard on social media lately?!

05/13/2022

SWIPE for what a balanced mindset can look like! 👉

Drop a 💝 below if you have ever fallen victim to the all or nothing mindset dieting trap!

This is an extremely common trap that many of my clients have fallen into prior to working together. 😩You feel like you are doing great following a restrictive diet and then life happens...you have a bad day and stress eat, you are rushed for time and end up eating fast food or someone brings in donuts to the breakroom at work and you feel like you "fell off the wagon." 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

Cue the guilt and shame for being human.

Once again, diet culture loves to make you feel like YOU are the failure....if you only had more willpower, discipline, self control etc. 👎

Truth is, this is absolutely NOT the case! 95% of diets fail for a reason and that reason is NOT you. ❤️❤️

Dieting forces us to believe that we have to be perfect in order to be healthy. Here's the thing, no one is perfect and who would want to be. 🤷🏻‍♀️I know I would never want to give up my favorite foods in order to eat what is considered "perfect eating".

Part of enjoying life is being able to celebrate someone's birthday 🎂 without feeling guilty! Knowing that certain foods nourish your mind and soul while others nourish your body and health is ESSENTIAL to getting off the diet train and embracing food freedom and intuitive eating.🍦⚖️🥗

Enjoying that piece of cake to celebrate someone's birthday doesn't make you a bad person or make you unhealthy. Sit and enjoy the cake (if you actually want it) and try to eat it as mindfully as you can. If you truly don't want the cake because you simply don't desire it, then it is perfectly okay to say "no, thank you" and move on. No guilt either way when we listen to what our body actually needs. 😊🙌🏻

05/11/2022

Happy Hump Day! Who else is already ready for the weekend!? 🙋🏻‍♀️🙋🏻‍♀️

I think it’s safe to say that a lot of moms are realizing that diets don't work and jumping on every new diet you read about on IG is just going to keep you stuck in a never ending miserable cycle... 😔

After all, you don’t need to be a nutrition expert to know that starving yourself or eating cupcakes all day will BOTH make you feel pretty crummy. 🤦🏻‍♀️

There is just soooo much false and misleading nutrition information out there that it can be HARD to figure out what is best for YOU.🤷🏻‍♀️

So let’s get right down to it....

How do you eat in a way that leaves you energized, full and satisfied, while still honoring your health at the same time? A way that you never feel like you have to keep feeling out of control and have to keep "getting back on track" and starting over?🤦🏻‍♀️

Many of my clients come to me feeling like they have an unhealthy relationship with food and they either severely restrict or feel out of control.

Here's the thing, you don't need more willpower, more restriction or more tracking in order to heal your relationship with food.

Some easy things to reflect on this weekend include:

➡️Consistency: Avoid going too long between meals or snacks. When we get too hungry, it almost always leads to overeating. Aim to eat every 3-5 hours.

➡️Balance: Prioritize a balance of protein + carbs + fat. Then think about what you could ADD to your meal to make it more nutritious + what else you could ADD to make it more satisfying.

➡️Mindfulness: Practice eating your meal slowly and TRULY enjoying it. If you eat past comfortable fullness, reflect and MOVE ON. Don't let one meal turn into an all out binge weekend.

So if you want to stop having to start over week after week...take the leap off the diet train and start becoming the expert of your own body!❤️❤️

05/05/2022

Want to know one reason why you can't seem to ditch diet mentality and learn how to EAT again? 😩🤦🏻‍♀️

Let's be honest...

You still see dieting as the answer to improving your health.👎

And I can spot it a mile away because I was there too!

So take a deep breath and close your eyes for a moment...

❤️You CAN ditch diets + diet culture lies.

❤️You CAN find your healthiest weight.

❤️You CAN enjoy ALL foods without guilt.

All of these are my truths and they can be yours as well.

How do you do it?

1️⃣DROP THE PERFECTIONISM.
- Not only does this all or nothing thinking keep you in a constant cycle, but it is actually hurting you in the long run (hello yo-yo weight cycling).

2️⃣INCREASE THE HYPE
- Live in the moment and identify what small + sustainable changes you can start doing TODAY to become your healthiest self.

3️⃣DITCH THE SCALE AND FOCUS ON BEHAVIOR CHANGE.
- Obsessing over a certain number is going to keep you constantly striving to achieve that number or doing everything you can to stay at that number. Instead, focus on what you are doing to improve your HEALTH.

4️⃣ SEEK OUT SUPPORT.
- Honestly, this is the KEY that so many are missing. A supportive community where you can ask questions, celebrate your wins and receive support with your struggles is a game changer.

What I’ve learned is that living your best life and feeling your best is a balance between mental + physical health.
❤️⚖️🧠

And if you can lean into the fear of trying something new and changing your diet culture influenced way of thinking, you will find becoming the BEST version of yourself a lot easier than you think.

04/28/2022

Be careful how you speak about your body. Your kids are listening and internalizing every word. ❤️❤️

I strive everyday to give them the tools they need to avoid ever getting sucked into diet culture as they grow up.✨

Because I want to see them THRIVE for the beautiful and strong girls they are today and the women they will become.

Where they know that their bodies are deserving of nourishment and movement and they find true joy in eating AND living.🥦⚖️🍕

Where not only my girls, but all girls feel strong and confident in their bodies no matter their size or shape.

Where they know that being attune with what their bodies need is the key to finding BALANCE and TRUE mental + physical health.🥰

Slowly, the lies of diet culture are being revealed and healthy Mamas are NEEDED now more than ever to keep the movement going!

And it’s why I’m so committed to the work that I am here to do.

And even though our goals, desires and lives look different, we’re all here to be the HEALTHIEST Moms and the BEST examples to our kids that we can be. 🔥

This is the power of an invested community of strong + healthy Mamas on a mission.💪

04/26/2022

EFFORTLESS: how eating the right amount of food for your body should feel.🍪🥗🍔🥦

The feeling of simply being able to eat foods you enjoy, feel energized and thrive!❤️❤️❤️

Because the thing is, our bodies are SMART. Eating to feel your best both mentally and physically should be an effortless process. ✨✨

But for so many, they have been entrenched in diet culture for so many years that eating is the exact opposite of effortless. It is frustrating, cumbersome, boring etc.

If you can relate, take a moment and think about how dieting has hurt your relationship with food and your body over the years. Eating should be an effortless and enjoyable experience.🍽❤️

If it's not, it's time to reevaluate your relationship with food. Confused on where to start? I'm just a DM away.

04/21/2022

What is ditching diet culture and finding food freedom REALLY about?🤔💭

So you are finally FED UP with dieting and diet culture lies and have realized that life is about so much more than counting calories, measuring your self worth by a number on the scale and being stuck in a constant cycle of dieting or eating whatever whenever...

I get it! You just want to live your best life, enjoy all food AND achieve your optimal health!🥗⚖️🍪

Yet many Mamas I chat with don't really know how to achieve their optimal physical AND mental health in a way where they DON’T have to be...

✔️logging everything they eat in their phone
✔️feeling guilty for "getting off track" every weekend
✔️trying a new diet each week
✔️obsessing over calories/points/macros etc
✔️exercising 2 hours a day
✔️spending all their time prepping, planning, counting, measuring, weighing etc.

And honestly for a while, right at the beginning of my journey, that was my reality too, getting caught up in the idea that health=obsession and that the only way to achieve optimal health was to COUNT every single thing that went in my mouth and exercise like a crazy person...

It suited my perfectionist ways and I convinced myself I was happy because I was "getting healthier", but honestly I didn't know any better then😩🤦🏻‍♀️.

Until I realized one day that there HAD to be a BETTER way to live... a way in which I was able to enjoy food without guilt or without feeling like I had to earn it through exercising....and there was!🙌🏻

Enjoying all foods in a way that leaves my body feeling GOOD (not deprived or overstuffed), exercising for enjoyment instead of aiming to burn a certain number of calories and finding true BALANCE between my physical and mental health!❤️

And now it’s exactly what I teach other Mamas to create with their lives too.

Life’s too short to spend all your time counting calories, doing detoxes and exercising as punishment, when you could just learn HOW to eat in a way that feels GOOD and allows you to find your optimal physical and mental health.

04/19/2022

“I'm struggling with that idea of balance and what is healthy versus what is just restricting.” 😔

I used to have the EXACT same thought!🤷🏻‍♀️

In fact, when I would see women eating food they enjoyed in the quantity they needed and still being healthy.... it just seemed unreal to me! 🤯I could never be that person...I need to lose weight first...

So I’d spend hours upon hours a week planning, thinking, counting calories, cutting food groups, figuring out how this week I would actually be "good" all week, trying to get everything 'perfect' and getting nowhere...🤦🏻‍♀️

Until I learned how to ditch diet mentality and got out of my own head of major fears and insecurities and saw what was really going on...how entrenched in diet culture and diet mentality I really was...

The thing is, you being the wonderful and amazing Mama that you are has nothing to do with the number on the scale.🥰🥰

That number is the least interesting thing about you. You really are so much more than that number on the scale.❤️

Your health is SOOOO much more than that number.❤️

And that can be a scary yet liberating thing to realize...

Because it means you can’t hide behind dieting and diet culture lies anymore...

It means you have to dig deeper and find out the real reason behind your broken relationship with food, your body and your emotions!

It means you get the opportunity to overcome what’s really holding you back.🍕⚖️🍓

And it also means you are already making progress by simply realizing that dieting isn't the answer.

Instead focusing on your mental + physical health, what you can add to each meal/snack to make it more balanced +, nutritious and not just obsessing over the number on the scale is the key to start living your BEST life and being the BEST mom/wife/friend/daughter/employee that you can be. ❤️❤️

04/14/2022

Have you ever noticed that when you are on a diet, your mind is literally consumed with food ALL. THE. TIME?!😔🧠

When you have the mindset that in order to change your health and the health of your family forever you need to give up all your favorite foods and limit yourself to only seeing food as fuel and not enjoyment... then it is totally normal to feel obsessed!!👎🍪🎂🍰🧁🥮

And the worst part...

You are going through all the trouble of logging every calorie in your app and killing yourself at the gym doing a workout you hate (which definitely doesn't feel sustainable if you are being honest with yourself)....

All for you to have your mind filled with thoughts of delicious food that you believe you should never have again if you want to be healthy.😔

Even as I'm writing this post and reliving these feelings, it is making me feel hungry!😳

Talk about a way to keep yourself feeling miserable and STUCK...

Particularly because so many influencers and diet companies tell you this is the way to improve your health... The whole process of having to log everything you eat is super time consuming and it's definitely not a great use of anyone's time if you ask me!🤦🏻‍♀️

So what do you do instead?

Well over here, I work with my clients to take the focus off weight and focus on healing your relationship with food AND your body! ❤️I will never tell you to cut out your favorite foods, count calories or do a workout you hate because it's simply not sustainable and to be honest I have been there and it SUCKS!🤦🏻‍♀️

This way, you can spend your precious time away from your phone, just ENJOYING LIFE and improving your health at the same time!

04/12/2022

First, let me say that there is nothing wrong with having a desire to change your body in some way. However, when that desire turns into an obsession with a certain number on the scale is when the problems begin.😢

What will you be remembered for after you are gone from this earth? I guarantee it is not going to be how much you weigh.🤗

What if you didn’t have to feel defeated and have to start over every Monday?

No more jumping on and off different diets, counting calories, exercising to burn off your favorite foods, while knowing that maybe, just maybe, life is sooo much more than that....

Your own incredible adventure…

Of becoming the Mama you were meant to be...

All made possible through reconnecting with your mind and body to achieve your optimal mental and physical health where you are:

✔️Making memories with friends and family at summer get-togethers without worrying about your weight.

✔️Eating foods that not only leave you full and satisfied, but you actually ENJOY eating.

✔️Having energy to spend your summer laughing and playing with your kids.

✔️Feeling confident, relaxed, happy, free....

Because here’s the thing,

You could be living a life of food freedom and body confidence without starving yourself or counting another calorie....🤯

I know it’s easy at times to think that dieting is just part of life,

But the real truth is that you can start living a fulfilling and healthy life RIGHT NOW...

The power is in your hands.

So, do something for YOU that will not only impact your life, but the lives of future generations.

SAVE this post as a reminder that dieting is never the answer!❤️

04/07/2022

Which one resonates with you the most?!👇👇

Clients come to me with all sorts of crazy things they have been told that honestly are holding them back from finding true balance with food so they can get back to living their best lives.😢

Let's debunk some of these...

1. Myth: Veggies must be raw and without anything added in order for them to be as healthy as possible.

Truth: The best veggies are the veggies you will eat and enjoy. We love to roast, season, dip, grill, and sautee veggies around here to make them extra delicious!🥗🥦🥒🥕

2. Myth: If you don't sweat, then it doesn't count as exercise.🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

Truth: Any movement counts. Some days you may feel like walking, other days running and other days lifting weights. Find something that you enjoy and helps you feel your best.

3. Myth: Fruit is sooo high in sugar so avoid it at all costs.🍒🍓🍇

Truth: Sure, fruit has naturally occurring sugar, BUT it also has fiber and tons of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. I love pairing fruit with some protein (ex: string cheese, nuts, peanut butter etc) to give it more staying power.

SHARE this post to help debunk these diet culture myths!❤️

04/05/2022

How many things (diets, supplements, portion containers, strenuous exercise, detox, weight loss pills etc) have you tried in your lifetime in hope of changing your health, lifestyle and body forever? 💊🍓🥗

Most clients that come to me have tried any and all of the above and oftentimes might see short term success, but ALWAYS end up back at square one...😔

I wonder if you can relate to this too…

👉🏽The feeling of wanting to just find something that ACTUALLY helps you feel better and improves your health FOREVER.🙏

… For many people, they want INSTANT gratification when looking to improve their health and change their body (I get it because I was the same way!).

And the thoughts of...

➡️If I could just be told exactly what to eat or

➡️Take a pill that would suppress my appetite or

➡️Drink a special detox tea or

➡️Take a supplement that just magically makes me healthier..

then I’d be able to just do it and make it happen...

But all that way of thinking gets people is a world of frustration, deprivation and an inability to see what their body really needs...

Being that in order for you to reach your goals and live the lifestyle you truly desire, you have to SURRENDER to the fact that you have a lot more to learn than you realize…

And to do that you have to be willing to accept the fact that improving your health for good is HARD and there is NO magic pill.💊

You need to be open to receiving coaching, guidance and support from someone who has been through the journey, has the expertise and knows the roadmap to success!❤️❤️

And by doing so, it means you can stop trying every diet/pill/detox/program and finally get off the dieting merry-go-round and LIVE again!🙌🏻🎉

My advice,

The sooner you can accept that your journey to improve your health and change your life is not linear, then the more you can grow into who you are meant to be and live the lifestyle that you want for you and your family!

So lean in and trust in the fact that there is no quick fix (diet/pill/detox/supplement etc), BUT your desire and openness to accept coaching and guidance to improve your health and ditch diet culture gimmicks forever is enough to take the leap.🥰

03/31/2022

Far too often I hear women say that they need to get down to their prepregnancy weight in order to get healthy again.

Because right now, they keep thinking that if they could just lose X number of pounds or tone up this "problem area", then they will finally feel 100% confident in their body and be healthy....

BUT

BODIES ARE MEANT TO CHANGE!❤️❤️❤️

➡️If you are fixated on the scale and thinking that once you lose a certain amount of weight, THEN all of your problems will disappear and you will have an AMAZING body image and live your best life! ❌👎

But here's the thing, when we focus on diet culture lies like this (thin=happy or you should be the same weight your entire life), then it keeps us stuck and keeps us struggling with our body. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Instead, take the focus off the scale and focus on HEALTH promoting behaviors and what is amazing about your body RIGHT NOW.✨

Try to focus on:

- RESPECT: you don’t have to love everything about your body everyday (who does!?), but no matter what you ate yesterday, your body deserves to be nourished all day everyday.❤️

- PATIENCE: Knowing that dieting has been a part of your life for so long that it is not going to change in a week of trying. Consistently show yourself body kindness and self care. After all, we only get one body, right?!❤️

- GRATITUDE: Your weight is the least interesting thing about you. Practice simple gratitude each day for what your body has done for you. It brought you through a global pandemic, gave you your beautiful babies etc.🙏

- CURIOSITY: Remember that no one is perfect and no way of eating is perfect. If you ate past fullness, ate out of boredom or binged a whole box of cookies, use it as a learning experience about what you could do better next time and move on. Dwelling on it will only make you more stressed.🤔

GENTLE NUTRITION: Once you feel comfortable with the first 9 principles of Intuitive Eating, then it is time to focus on what you can ADD to your meals and snacks to make them more filling and nutritious! 🍕⚖️🥦

Your mindset is so important on your journey to better health. Digging deep and reflecting is so key to reconnecting with your body!❤️✨

03/29/2022

True health is found in the grey areas!❤️⚖️🧠

03/24/2022

Fruits and veggies are usually seen as the ultimate diet food. 🍎🥗They are filled with nutrients and you can eat lots of food for very few calories. Sounds perfect....what could go wrong, right?! 🤔🤨

You may feel full immediately after eating a meal/snack that seems "perfect". However, if you have ever just had just some fruit for a snack then you know that feeling of fullness is fleeting. 🥗🍎

Since your low calorie/low fat/low carb/low point snack has nothing else to add some staying power, you are probably going to find yourself running to the pantry or the vending machine within an hour of eating. 🤷🏻‍♀️Sound familiar?

➡️Trust me, been there, done that! It stinks! 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

You feel like you failed your diet because your "healthy snack" didn't fill you up like your diet told you it should. 😩

✨Fruits and veggies are a great snack option when you pair then correctly.

✨Try to experiment with adding some protein (hard boiled eggs, string cheese, yogurt etc.) and/or some fat (nut butter nuts etc.).

➡️Reflect on how energized and full you feel as compared to just eating the apple alone.🙌🏻🙌🏻

✨Ultimately, you need to achieve both fullness AND satisfaction from your meals in order to avoid feeling out of control ravenging through the pantry later. 🙌🏻

03/22/2022

What does food mean to you? ❤️👨‍👩‍👧‍👦⛪️🥰

We all know that food provides nourishment for our bodies, but food is so much more than a source of calories and macronutrients. ❤️

The smell of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies brings back wonderful childhood memories of baking with my Mom. 👩‍👧❤️

Food is a date night with your significant other.❤

Food is ice cream and birthday cake for your child's birthday. 🎂

Food is a night out with your girlfriends. 🍾💃

You deserve to experience all of this and more without shame or guilt. Once you experience true food freedom in which you are in control of the food you eat, instead of food controlling you, it will be life changing.

True food freedom is not being obsessed with what goes in your mouth, but finding a balance and realizing that all foods can fit into a healthy lifestyle.

Some foods provide more nourishment for our bodies, while other foods provide more nourishment for our souls. ❤️❤️

Mandy Copenhaver Nutrition