THE | DIET DETECTIVE^®

Chief Nutritionist and Director of Program Development  for Jenny Craig, Lisa Talamini serves as head of program development and liaison to Jenny Craig’s prestigious Medical Advisory Board in creating innovative, effective approaches to long-term weight management. She leads a team of registered dietitians who develop all Jenny Craig menus and educational materials, support staff training and serve as a nutrition resource to Jenny Craig Centres.

Name: Lisa Talamini

Birthday: (can be without year) April 5th

Location: Phoenix, Arizona

Q: Tell us how you got to where you are now.

A: I have always had a passion for combining the art of nutrition with its science, which has been reflected in a career path that has included pediatric intensive care, dialysis and transplant and weight management. I am fascinated by the change process, whether it’s motivated by health  changes or personal desires. Throughout my career,  I’ve been further challenged to strengthen both my technical skills and my counseling expertise, because both are necessary for facilitating healthy lifestyle change.

Q: Define and discuss failure.

A: I don’t think in terms of failure, either for myself or our clients. Carl Sandberg said, “Success is a journey, not a destination,” and Mickey Rooney said “You also pass failure on the way to success.” From working with our clients, I’ve learned that whatever the goal is, the road will be bumpy, and there is as much learning to be gained from “lapses” as there is from “wins.”

Q: Is there anything about yourself that you've changed your mind about in the last 20 years? 

A: Having been a science major, I originally thought that my greatest strengths lay on the left side of my brain, and I am pleasantly surprised to learn that they actually gravitate toward the right.

Q: What's the next major item on your "to-do" list?

A: A wine-tasting, walking trip through Italy

Q: Define individual responsibility and how you react to adverse situations.

A: While it’s tempting to say “things happen,” it’s probably more accurate to say, in many situations, “we make things happen.”  The Serenity Prayer has been a major mantra of mine – acceptance of what can’t be changed, courage to change what can and knowing the difference is a lifelong learning. I am more effective in adverse situations if I try to meet them and ride them like a wave instead of avoiding them all together, and I am much less likely to have a wipeout.

Q: When do you have time to think about your mistakes, mishaps, achievements, and minor victories; in other words, do you have any reflective time for yourself of your career?

A: I am an early morning person, in the stillness of dawn, I do my best reflection. This is the time I practice mindfulness-based meditation, which has strengthened my ability to look at all aspects of my life with greater objectivity and compassion.

Q: What is your most influential story, fiction or nonfiction, from a film, book, magazine, newspaper or parable? Explain its impact on your life? What's you're favorite saying?

A: To Kill a Mockingbird …it taught me how  justice, beauty and truth in often found in unforeseen places.  I find the saying by Helen Keller, “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all,” to be inspirational on just about any day of the week.

Q: Was there a defining moment in your life when you made a decision that changed the course of the rest of your life forever?

A: Yes, it was a single moment where I chose to truly take accountability for my own happiness.  The experience left me with tremendous empathy for the difficulty of choosing change, even when we know it’s the right and healthy thing to do.    

Q: What's the most bodacious chance you've ever taken?

A: Selling my house, moving my family and accepting a job I didn’t intend to keep for the chance to move to San Diego – 15 years later, I love that job.

Q: What's the biggest lesson you've learned about yourself? What's the biggest lesson you haven't learned?

A: The biggest lesson I’ve learned is to trust my intuition.  The biggest lesson I’ve yet to learn is to say “No” – I always think there’s room to juggle one more thing in my day.

Q: What keeps you going (your motivation)?

A: I am tremendously curious about people and what makes them tick.  I am amazed at the way in which individuals not only survive life’s difficulties, but are transformed by them and thrive as a result.

Q: How do you stick to your diet on days when you really don’t want to? What are techniques you use to stay on track? 

A: My relationship with food has evolved so that I don’t think about diets, or sticking to a regimen.  For me, and for our clients, it’s about balance - balancing the healthful choices with the pleasure of eating.  If I’ve had a day when I’ve tipped the scales to the less healthy side, I don’t judge myself…I just move my choices to the other side, and balance out the calories with a little more physical activity.  After all, a single choice, or a single day of choices, doesn’t make or break my lifestyle.

Q: If you could eat one forbidden food whenever you wanted without gaining weight, what would it be? 

A: I no longer believe in forbidden foods, and I’ve let go of depriving myself of just about anything that I want in moderation.  Since I’ve taken that approach, weight gain has not been an issue for me. 

Q: What dessert do you dream about?

A: I don’t dream about desserts, but I revel in hot, freshly baked cookies.

Q: If there were one healthy food item (something you love) that you had to eat every day, what would it be? 

A: Red bell peppers – love them cold and sliced with hummus dip, roasted with garlic and rosemary on a slice of foccaccia or stir-fried with snow peas and mushrooms with teriyaki shrimp- they’re low in calories, rich in vitamins and antioxidants, full of crunch and visual appeal – one of my all time favorites.

Q: What do you think is the most important thing that makes or breaks a diet for someone? 

A: Self-awareness – knowing what and why you eat, understanding (without judgment) both your beliefs and behaviors around food, physical activity, your body and even your own efforts to reach a healthy weight – this is the most critical element in getting and staying on the road to a healthy weight.                                                           

Q: How did you come to your conclusions about weight loss and dieting?

A: Twenty years of struggling and resolving my own weight and body image issues, followed by another 15 years of ongoing learning of the literature regarding the successful weight management strategies and applying it to the programs of thousands of weight-losing clients.

Q: Do you think that failed attempts have influenced you approach to dieting? How have past struggles help you find a system that works for you? If insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results, then my trap was one of excessive restriction and perfectionism – arbitrarily depriving myself of certain foods, and then harshly judging myself when I couldn’t “stick with” my plan. In fact, this approach worked against me – greater success came from “tuning in” to my needs versus ignoring or judging them, and over time I eased into a lifestyle of moderation and a relationship with food that I relish today. 

Q: Have you dealt with weight issues personally?

A: I have struggled with both ends of the weight spectrum, and am grateful that, over time, I found a “middle ground” to a healthy weight.

Q: What’s the best book about health that you’ve read?

A: I think of health as a mind/body  enterprise that is enhanced by personal connections so, two of my favorites would be  Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabat Zin and  Love and Survival by Dr. Dean Ornish.

Q: What are your two favorite health magazines? Fitness and Health

Q: What do you consider the world’s most perfect food?

A: Perfection is in the eye of the beholder, and I do have a foundation in pediatric nutrition, but at it’s purest, I  think it would be breast milk, made by humans, designed for humans. 

Q: What physical activity do you do to keep yourself in shape?

A: Outdoor walking, especially at the beach, is my favorite way to burn calories and connect with my family and friends, though stationery biking is my multi-tasking way to stay on top of my reading. For an all-out calorie burn, I still love a full-bore aerobics class or stint on the stairclimber.

Q: Do you have a favorite healthy recipe or cooking tip? If so would you share it?

A: Cooking is my passion, so I have a variety of favorite recipes – I am famous for simple, seasonal recipes like roasted root vegetables/asparagus with fresh herbs, virgin olive oil and asiago/chopped nuts.  My favorite tip has to do with managing high fat ingredients. When considering options, choose small amounts of those richest in flavor – a small amount of gorgonzola, sesame-flavored oil, Greek olives, etc. goes a long way, especially if added just before serving.

Q: Do you have a Calorie Bargain? What food did it replace?

A: One of my favorite calorie bargains is a fruit-flavored popsicle – ranging between 15 and 60 calories each, they really hit the spot for a sweet, refreshing after dinner alternative to ice cream or other high calorie desserts.