Challenging the status quo of diets and meal plans, New York-trained dietician Chella Po is making a name in the Philippines for her gentle—but hardworking—approach to eating healthily and in ways that suit your lifestyle and personal preferences, gaining a niche clientele of truly happy (and fit) customers along the way.
Chella proposes a gentler, more sustainable approach, which she calls a “feel-good approach.” Is a diet devoid of calorie-counting, weighing ingredients, or even gluten or dairy really possible, and what effects can we expect?
A year after she had graduated from university, a young Chella Po kept busy in New York, employed at a non-profit organization in one of thousands of office jobs in the bustling city. Yet while still in the prime of her youth, Po found herself constantly having to catch her breath. Tired and burnt out only two years into her professional career, she committed to finding ways to improve her overall health. The fitness-loving culture in the city helped inform her what to do. “I found out I wasn’t eating properly and how much of a foundation that was [to good health].” Also armed with the power of the internet, Chella buried herself in research and the information did nothing but overwhelm her. She was met with misinformation left and right. She also discovered the disparity between what she was taught about diets back home in the Philippines and the many fitness trends in the West.
Curiosity and careful consideration had then brought Chella to a crossroads: She then established that she wanted to become a registered dietitian. In 2018, she became a student once more to earn her master’s degree in Clinical Nutrition at NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. She was determined to crack the code on restrictive diets and pave a sustainable way to eat what you want while prioritizing your body’s needs.
“Nutrition is a science,” she says, “We did a lot of science courses. We went in-depth [into] biology, physiology, biochemistry, nutritional biochemistry. We learned how the body works, down to the very basics of how it digests and absorbs food.” The complexity and ever-changing information and requirements for research excited the then-budding dietitian.
As a fresh graduate the second time around, Chella pushed the restart button, moved back home to the Philippines, and established what was first an online business called Better Being, a nutrition coaching service. She subscribes to the belief that there is no single perfect diet to suit everybody. With that, she personalizes each program and tailor-fits each approach according to her client. Clients usually start with a 15-minute discovery call with Chella, where they determine the client’s lifestyle, challenges, and needs. “Are you cooking right now? Is there someone else cooking for you? How much time do you have to prepare your meals?” are some of the questions that are frequently asked. After taking notes, she advises her clients regularly, conducting check-ins and follow-ups with what they have been eating, or any issues that come up. These meetings can be every week for a month.
For those with larger goals, Chella offers programs that run for three months. “I’ve seen people experience changes already in one to two weeks,” she says. “I remind people that my goal is always for them to learn about the basics of nutrition so that they don’t need me anymore. They can do this sustainably.”
“Diets in the Philippines are very restrictive. They’re calorie-counting, macro-counting, low carb, high-fat, or extra high protein. People weigh their food, remove gluten, dairy, and follow an elimination diet.”
Clients don’t have to come in already having a diet in place. They can come on Day 0, she reassures. That’s one common misconception about her programs. Another is that removing rice from their diet would be the instant solution to their weight loss woes. For Chella, it has never been about cutting off one food, it’s mainly about portioning. “Diets in the Philippines are very restrictive,” she says, “They’re calorie-counting, macro-counting, low carb, high-fat, or extra high protein. People weigh their food, remove gluten and dairy, and follow an elimination diet.” Her approach is much gentler, which she describes as a “feel good” approach. This perspective allows her and her clients to focus on physical and mental health. They are encouraged not to eat just to look a certain way. She picked up on this while training at an eating disorder recovery center. What she observed there, she connected to her own experiences with a restrictive diet and how it never worked.
“I remind people that food is fuel. Food interacts with you, and it’s information for your body,” she shares. “Food also has a link to health and how you feel.” In fact, she adds, “It’s linked to brain health, gut health, and has ties to mental health and mood.”
Food cravings, on the other hand, are not to be ignored. This does not mean giving in to every craving, but cravings can serve as messages from your body letting you know what certain nutrients you need. Another way food interacts with the human body and sends signals is through gut health. Eating certain foods with more fiber, such as fruit or vegetables, can contribute to good gut bacteria. In turn, a good and healthy gut can affect your mood, immune health, blood sugar, heart, and brain, as it’s said that we are more bacteria than human cells.
Women’s health is a separate and hefty topic to tackle. Chella notes another new practice is eating in accordance with a woman’s cycle. Since women expel nutrients during their time of the month, there are certain nutrients they need to fill in the gaps. Since women possess a dynamic hormone cycle, the body is in a constant state of change, where hormones are up one day and down the next, making women more tired, hungry, or energetic. It’s during these stages that certain nutrients are ideal to quell deficiency, decrease mood swings, or even ease menstrual cramps.
For both men and women, a healthy diet is an essential part of the beauty regimen, as Chella shares that consuming antioxidant-rich plant food can repair damage from eating healthy fats. Incorporating vitamin C and protein into one’s diet can contribute to skin health and make the skin glow.
There are countless other benefits our body can gain from food. This drills back to her point about food being linked to how human beings feel and its ability to give you the strength and energy to do what you want to do in life. Whether it’s going to school, attending to work tasks, spending time with your loved ones, or seeing any plans through, food is physical and mental fuel. “Food makes you able to do all those things you love,” she says.
For more information about Chella Po and her Better Being program, visit betterbeing.ph
