{Today is a follow-up to my so you want to be a nutritionist… post – I have Kristina LaRue, RD, LD sharing what her day at work looks like. In a few weeks I have another guest post scheduled from a dietitian who works in a more traditional setting – enjoy!}

As a dietitian I wear many hats. I’ve enjoyed it that way since I first began my career. Mostly because I don’t like to get stagnant, however it can create a case of scatter-brained, so I’m always learning what that balance looks like for me.

Graduating from Auburn University with a degree in Nutrition/Dietetics, I did my internship at Oakwood University in Huntsville, Alabama. My internship was a distance program so it allowed me to shadow and learn from the dietitians that are in my local– Orlando, Florida. During college I had dreams of working with sports teams, eating disorders and writing.

I cannot thank my internship enough for the experience and doors it opened up for me. After getting my RD, I started a few jobs. Again I like to keep it interesting! I did project work at the hospital for a food service initiative, started consulting at the YMCA and teaching their diabetes prevention program, consulting with eating disorders and doing freelance writing.

After I finished the project at the hospital I transferred to another local hospital and worked as an outpatient dietitian working with underserved teens in the school system. We taught an afterschool camp for the kids that included Zumba, yoga, training for a 5K, and of course nutrition education and cooking demonstrations.

Currently my day looks very non-traditional, but I absolutely love it! I work for a big media RD, Tara Gidus, www.dietdiva.net, who is the RunDisney Nutritionist and Orlando Magic team dietitian.

We always have a new project going on, so my days never cease to look different. Sometimes I’m cooking at home, other days I’m at Disney, managing social media accounts, or on set preparing for a TV segment.

A big portion of my time is devoted to the University of Central Florida Athletics as I work as the sports dietitian. I’m co-authoring a cookbook, The Belly Fat Diet Cookbook for Dummies, so I spend many hours writing and creating recipes in the kitchen.

I continue to work with eating disorders and do consulting through my blog, www.loveandzest.com, recipe development, nutritional analysis, speaking, writing, and Skype/phone consultations.

A career in dietetics is what you make of it. You can truly pursue your dreams and create a niche for yourself if you desire. I love going to work every day, it’s a lot of fun!

A big Thank YOU to Emily for having me on her blog, A Nutritionist Eats is one that that I’ve been reading ever since I discovered the blogworld. I’m honored she asked me and happy to share my nutrition journey with you.

If you have any questions or want to send me a note please don’t hesitate to email me loveandzest@gmail.com.

{Thank you so much Kristina, your job sounds so incredibly interesting and exciting, I’m a little envious!  Stay in touch with Kristina here: facebook | twitter | linkedin | pinterest}

These are the products that didn’t necessarily make the first list, but they certainly deserve a mention! Some I genuinely think are great products and some are just too interesting not to share!

1. bison bar by epic bar / This is NOT jerky…we were sternly corrected. Think dried meat and dried fruit. I’m still not sure how I feel about it…

2. nuscoop by straus family creamery / It’s a frozen dairy dessert made with organic nonfat milk and cream, agave, whey protein, coconut oil, oat fiber, ghee and a whole lot more – essentially a healthy treat that tastes almost like ice cream. (They can’t call it ice cream because it is so low in fat!) A good way to sneak in some nutrition if necessary.

3. kimchi tortilla chips by food should taste good / Since becoming obsessed with Korean BBQ in the last year, I’ve subsequently also become obsessed with kimchi. I think even if you are wary of kimchi like I used to be, you would still like these chips. I’m trying to think of an amazing korean-style dip to eat alongside them…anyone?

4. savory tea by numi organics / I still don’t know how I feel about these…I have yet to try it and the sample I grabbed is fennel spice, which sounds infinitely better than carrot curry tea.

5. kids mac butternut squash puree / Mac & Cheese gets an upgrade in this convenient frozen meal. Tastes yummy too!

6. organic chia cereal by chia rezza / I have never made chia “pudding” before, but I think I tried it at the show. (Although, I would hesitate to call this pudding…cereal makes more sense) These cereals are made with chia, hemp, dried fruits and buckwheat. The nutrition stats are great, I hope to see them in stores soon!

7. powerful yogurt / Because apparently men need their own yogurt! “Greek yogurt in a man-sized package”

8. almond water by victoria’s kitchen / Sweetened water with almond (and other) flavors, this isn’t something I would drink on its own, but I love their ideas for using it as a cocktail mixer or fun ice cubes or popsicles.

9. egg white chips by ips (intelligent protein snacks) / This concept is pretty interesting, they combined popped corn chips with egg whites. Think pop chips + protein. Each serving has 130 calories, 4 or 5 grams of fat 15 grams of carbohydrates and 7 grams of protein per serving – pretty good stats for chips!

10. chobani soho creations / The Chobani booth had lots of great products (though they had just ran out of the key lime flips which I really wanted to try) but they were also serving up some of their creations from their yogurt bar in New York. I was ecstatic because I’m constantly drooling over their instagram pictures – the cucumber + olive oil did not disappoint! Come to the sunnier coast! Chobani Weho Creations has a nice ring to it…

And there you have it. Six hours of eating and drinking – just for you!