Books, Life of a Dietitian, Trip Planning Tips/Hacks
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My 3 Books to Read Right Now
Winter calls for cozy days spent reading.
Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell - I love any Malcolm Gladwell book but this one feels particularly relevant in this day and age. He also has a great podcast called Revisionist History.
The Wedding People by Alison Espach - Judging by the cover art, I was expecting a soft rom com novel. It’s not what I got. This is one of the top rated books of the year and I loved it.
Empire of Pain - The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty - Not to be super depressing, but you can’t even believe this story is true. And how the greed and absolute denial by one family (and frankly their employees) created the epidemic we now have. Don’t be put off by the lengthiness of the book. It’s a quick read.
LiFeng Xie from Nutrioria Inc. - What is a Dietitian?
LiFeng Xie is has a PhD in Dietetics and is working on her postdoctoral. She has her own consulting company Nutrioria, Inc which does consultations with individuals and companies who are looking for nutrition advice in their product development or seeking nutrition advice.
What is a dietitian and is it the same as a nutritionist?
A dietitian needs at least a bachelor degree. We need to do 1 year of internships which could be community, public health, food service, clinical or research. After that, depending on which province you are in, you may have to do certification exams. Only after that are you a dietitian. We are part of a regulatory body and we have continuous education requirements.
Dietitians can give suggestions on when to eat, how to eat, etc. or we can be in a cafeteria and be a manager and do human resources. It’s extremely varied.
It depends on what province you are in. In Quebec both are protected titles and you need undertake the proper education in order to use those titles in order to get the certification. In other provinces, such as Ontario, it’s different. In Ontario, only a dietitian can be a health care professional and anyone can call themselves a nutritionist.
Why did you decide to become a dietitian?
Originally I hesitated between architecture, accountancy and dietetics. I wanted to use my R-score (in CEGEP) to the best of my abilities and my father had Type II diabetes, so those both influenced my decision. In addition, in my Chinese culture food is very important and I felt that in order to be a professional with food becoming a dietitian was a good way to achieve that.
What do you focus on within your role as a dietitian?
I always wanted to do paediatrics in a hospital, and never 1:1 outpatient work or sports nutrition. Of course, I started my career with outpatient work and sports nutrition. I realized I liked it because of the connection with the client. It’s almost a more flexible schedule. I still want to be in paediatrics though, and I do have that training.
With paediatrics, I work with private clients in a 1:1 scenario with children 0-5. We focus on picky eaters and introduction to food solids amongst other things. I also work with weight management for all ages including individuals and families as a whole.
It’s a meaningful and gratifying role.
You’re very popular on social media. Why do you feel you connect so well with others?
The first day I got my licence, I decided to post for the first time on social media. I made a post stating that I was a Registered Dietitian and anyone could ask me a question. I was very proud expecting a big response, and I got nothing.
My first goal was to create a page for the Chinese population. But I realized it takes time, and money.
My goal was to take scientific articles and make it more digestible for the general population. I got a lot of pushback with people disagreeing with me. In particular, I was attacked after I posted something on protein powder and bars. It was both by individuals and manufacturers. I lost my confidence and moved to posting recipes. It was only with time and practice that I gained the confidence to go back to posting the scientific articles. I now pay closer attention to my words and how I am translating the articles.
In order to connect with my followers I ask for a lot of feedback. It’s also how I get my ideas.
How has your social media presence help you grow your business.
Through my social media, I was provided with a PhD opportunity which in turn is now a postdoc. My PhD is on using digital products to promote healthcare information. My postdoc is to build an online education platform for healthcare professionals in Canada.
It also helps to build my clientele for 1:1 consultations. I don’t need to explain what I do - people know by looking at my social media site.
My Top 3 Places I Take Visitors to Montreal
Walking around the McGill Macdonald Campus
Heading out of town? Check out Magog - a beautiful town in the Eastern Townships.
You can find Lifeng Xie at Nutrioria Inc.
Trip Planning - My Top Tips
I love planning trips. So much so that I could almost just get pleasure in planning a trip without even going. But it *is* a lot of work - especially if you want it to be smooth.
My first trip with kids was a weekend to NYC. We travelled before but they were more like visiting family trips with less planning involved.
In NYC, I planned it nearly perfectly but didn’t do much research on restaurants. I found it such a downer to have everyone looking at me wondering where to eat and me checking frantically on Google. I’ve found that I’d much rather over plan and decide not to do it then wing it and have hungry eyes annoyed with me. I realize this is a bit of an ‘each to their own’ scenario and not everyone has such picky eaters or have families content to wander.
Here’s how I go about it. Clearly this is an evolving thing but here are my basics. Keep in mind that I get a lot of pleasure out of this - so I do go a bit crazy. If you don’t just pick and choose.
Wanderlog - You need to have a ‘home’ for your research and I think Wanderlog is the best organizer out there right now. I use it all the time and love it.
Advice from Friends - Choose wisely - not everyone has the same taste or budget but this is a great start.
Old fashioned travel books - I always get a Lonely Planet of my destination. I already spend a lot of time on the computer and it’s nice to be able to relax with a book to get an overview of the country or destination.
Food
General
Condé Naste Traveller, Thrillist, Lonely Planet , Afar, Travel and Leisure, Hotels Above Par
Reviews
Sorry, but Yelp reviews are terrible and TripAdvisor will give you the worst hotel as the top pick in the region. I’d rather delve into the depths of Reddit to get specific. I also find Google reviews better than Yelp.
Instagram is a great place to get recommendations but can be super overwhelming. The flip is that everyone goes to the exact same places. This was super evident when I visited Borough Market in London last year. There were MASSIVE line ups for very specific items. Find someone whose style you love.
Hacks
Did you know you can use ChatGPT to plan your trip? Be very specific when you put in a request. For example: Plan a day out in Montreal starting at 10:00am that includes some sightseeing, brunch at a trendy restaurant in Montreal and at least one museum. Make sure the day does not cost more than $100 for a family of 4. The day should be OK for a 7 and 5 year old.
Check out what is on offer from some of the more expensive tour operators and plan your time around it. For example, luxury tour operators Abercrombie & Kent offer journeys all over the world and are a great start. I’ve even heard of people copying day itineraries, hiring someone on Viator and just sending them the itinerary.
Not a hack, but hiring a travel specialist or doing a tour. As I recently found out from my trip to Mexico City, having someone local or specialized can unlock doors for you and give you experiences well beyond what you can do yourself.
Again, not a hack but book in advance. Gone are the days when you can walk into the Louvre at peak times, and even in Montreal you have to book in advance for the best restaurants.
Flights
I tend to get most flights through points, but a friend suggested to always try Hopper and SkyScanner - especially if you have flexibility.
Do you have any travel tips?
EnRoute recently published the 10 Best New Restaurant list with two spots in Montreal and one in Mont-Tremblant. I reserved the tea at Sabayon and it sold out in less than a minute. I’ll let you guys know!
Eater’s Best New Restaurants in America includes a restaurant in Burlington! Road trip anyone?
I do not believe you need to go fancy to get good food and La Hueca in the Faubourg (!) is a testament to that. The restaurant (take out counter really) has amazing, fresh and different Ecuadorian food that you’ll find at the end of a long snaking aisle through a warren of interesting and different restaurants. Is Faubourg going to revive itself? I know that there were definitely a few places that caught my eye and I am going to go back.
What length of flight is too long? Would you rather break it up or do it in one shot? Here are the world’s longest flights including the longest at 18 hours 50 minutes from NYC to Singapore.
Just for fun - 50 Best Britpop Albums of All Time plus an interview with Trainspotting Director Danny Boyle. I definitely listened to a lot of Britpop and these album covers bring back a lot of memories.
The American election left me with a heavy heart. It reminds me that I may not be able to vote, but I can decide where to put my money and the end profiter of the money.
I try as much as possible to avoid Amazon - but it’s hard, I know. All I can say (and I am saying this to myself) is that for Christmas gifts this year, start early. Pay attention to where you put your money. I’ll be sharing gift guides from local businesses. If you come across any you’d like me to share here let me know. Also, let’s please normalize second hand gifts.
The Cookery Holiday Gift Guide
Not a Gift Guide but such a great idea for skiing families
Need a fun hobby this winter? How about painting by number - but personalized.
Plan visiting your Christmas Markets in advance - blink and they are gone. I’m having a hard time locating information on all the smaller local ones like the Danish Bazaar in NDG. If anyone has any leads please share.
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Michelle Little is a photographer who specializes in family, maternity, newborn, headshots and boudoir. I offer studio, in-home and outdoor photography. You can see her website here and get in touch here.
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