The Alible Nutrition New Look Story

Welcome to the official launch of Alible Nutrition’s new look!  While the appearance and packages have been updated, the quality of service has not changed.  As a client you will continue to receive a friendly, professional and calm service.

While the present and future are the drivers for this post, I wanted to include a bit about the past.

You may have seen that I found the word “Alible” on a preview page of a dictionary.  It is an old word meaning nourishing.  I quite liked this but on its own I knew the word wouldn’t mean much to many people.  So, I decided to add “Nutrition” which helps to emphasise the science element of my services.  Nutrition is the science of nutrients and is a key part of the services that I offer.  Investigation into the science of how nutrition impacts individual’s health forms a significant element of these services – especially Nutritional Therapy.  We all need good nutrition, but good nutritional therapy is not a one-size-fits-all approach.

I’ve seen discussions about the benefits of using personal names instead of formal business names.  For me, using a formal business name reflects professional approach.  I’m still friendly and personable of course, but I wanted to create a boundary between my personal and professional lives.  For example, as a client you probably wouldn’t want to hear about my son’s school achievements, or my to-do list!  I do not wish to hide behind a business name, I just like to provide a separation between nutritionist Karen, and family Karen.  I am my business, my business is not me.  Don’t get me wrong, an informal chat and small-talk beyond nutrients and food is not completely ‘off the table’!

Another thing I considered with business names is the possibility of future employees.  I expect that it would inspire a team more if they share a business’ goals than share my goals.  Maybe this is a remnant of my corporate past, which included Investors in People implementation and reviews!

Alas, I can’t take all the credit for this new look.  The brand design was developed alongside local designer Helen Bell Designs.  In line with my approach, Helen gets to know her client’s needs and preferences before establishing an approach which is discussed and agreed; not imposed.

The colour palette agreed is based on the old Alible Nutrition green.  I like green.  It feels fresh, calm and natural.  It reflects my calm approach during consultations, and the fresh feeling clients should have once we’ve improved their diet.  Of course, natural food (not heavily processed) is important and is a key feature of the food-first approach.

The shapes are intended to reflect four of the many elements in a diet.  It was a challenge not to ‘promote’ any particular foods, while also not suggesting that I automatically cut foods from clients’ diets.  The unnecessary removal of foods is something that I do not encourage, nor do I promote diet trends.  Helen and I chose to reflect plants and the macronutrients.

Not only are plants necessary for oxygen and pleasant surroundings, they are also food and food for our food (if we consume animal products).  Plants provide important macro and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals), including fibre, to support our health and wellbeing.  They should form the basis of our diets.

Fat is an energy source, but it is also has many other important roles.  Although, the ‘wrong kind’ of fat is not so good for us, fat in general should not be feared.  Healthy fats help us to absorb vitamins, protect our organs, support our joints, produce hormones, and support cell growth.

If you are trying to lose weight, or simply eat more healthfully, do not remove fat completely from your diet – you need some!  Opt for healthier fats with oily fish, olive oil dressings, coconut oil, seeds and nuts.  But, don’t forget to include a small amount of animal fat (assuming you don’t exclude it for ethical/moral reasons) – despite the bad press we need some saturated fat in our diets to support our health.

We use carbohydrates primarily for energy, but carbohydrates may also support our memory function.  Fibre is a type of carbohydrate that is not digestible, meaning that it has no energy value.

Of course, the type of carbohydrate consumed is important.  Opt for wholefoods to get the nutrients you need, not just the energy.  However, we do need to avoid large amounts of carbohydrate and refined carbs such as sugar.  Excess carbohydrate intake, particularly simple carbohydrates, is believed to contribute to insulin resistance and harmful abdominal fat.

Can’t live without chocolate but don’t want the sugar?  Try a high percentage dark chocolate – 70%+ if you can.  You are likely to eat less due to it’s strong taste and it has less sugar and other unhelpful ingredients than milk chocolate.  Also, dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants and iron – see, chocolate can be good for us!

The types of protein we eat, is not necessarily the type of protein we use.  Protein is broken down during digestion and then re-built to form the proteins our bodies need for muscles tissues, bones, hormones, enzymes, immunity, and more.  Proteins are broken down into their amino acids, for which there are two types: essential and non-essential.  We can make the non-essential ones ourselves to some extent, but we must provide the correct supporting nutrients for this to work.  However, the essential ones must come from our diet and only animal products contain them all.  Vegetarians and vegans can get all the essential amino acids, but they need to eat a greater variety of sources than meat eaters do to get them.

Protein is also a source of energy.

I hope you’ve enjoyed learning a bit more about Alible Nutrition, and a few important nutrients.  If you want to learn more about how your diet may be affecting your health, take a look at my Nutritional Therapy and Nutritional Review pages to see how I can help you.

Alternatively, request a call to discuss your needs and how I can help you.

Don’t forget – you can keep up with Alible Nutrition news, health tips and nutritional info by following our social media pages: Facebook and Instagram.