‍As a practice management platform designed for nutrition professionals, we built Healthie with sports dietitians in mind. Today, we’re excited to share how you can tailor Healthie’s robust capabilities to fit your needs as a sports nutritionist.

Macro and micronutrient intake, nutrient timing, hydration… the list of nutritional concerns for athletes is vast. Individualized nutritional care is increasingly seen as an integral component of enhancing athletic performance and recovery.

Athletes equipped with proper tools for accountability, therefore, have a great advantage thanks to enhanced communication. With the technology available today, it simply makes sense to use tech-based tools to assist in the nutritional care of athletes.

We spoke with Greg Salgueiro, MS, RD, LDN, CIC, Nutrition Director for American Academy of Sports Dietitians and Nutritionists (AASDN), who shared that “with new HIPAA secure web based organizations, like Healthie, the ability to provide nutrition guidance anytime, anywhere is unlimited.”

Here are 7 ways Healthie’s practice management for sports dietitians can help your business and clients:

1. Track client workouts and activity

Whether you’re working with professional athletes, a first-time marathon runner, or a new mom getting back into weight-lifting, you can help your clients if you can evaluate their needs.

That’s why tracking workouts in Healthie’s client-facing app is so useful.

Sports nutritionists using Healthie tell us that seeing the workouts their clients complete helps them best shape an athlete’s nutrition plan.

You can easily keep records of cardio, strength training, and flexibility workouts, plus rest days and any other specified activity that impacts dietary needs. Even more, your clients can check off their workouts right on their smartphone (it doesn’t get any easier than that).

Healthie also integrates with Fitbit for even easier tracking. Your clients can automatically sync workouts, weight, meals, and physical activity. This data is entered directly into your client’s journal, so you can view all client data in one place, with the click of a button!

2. Monitor performance goals

Either you or your clients can set specific goals within Healthie’s goal-tracking feature.

Some goals you may choose to track as a sports dietitian are:

• Liters of water consumed per day
• Hours of sleep
• Consumption of pre/post workout nutrition
• Other nutrient timing goals

When a specific goal is achieved, clients can mark off that goal as complete. Your clients will feel more accountable since you’re so closely connected to their training regimen. Furthermore, you’ll be able to better direct your work together, providing the best guidance based on completed goals. Goals can also provide more opportunities to check in with your clients.

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3. Utilize picture-based food logging

As you know, nutrition requirements for athletes vary depending on their sport, the position they play, and individual variability.

Although numerical approaches to food logging are important for athletes, it can be tedious to log every item of food consumed. Plus, traditional number-based food journaling often neglects the quality of food consumed.

By using a picture-based food log, you and your clients can view food choices holistically and accurately estimate nutrient content and portion sizes.  

4. Evaluate metrics

You and/or your clients can track any metric you want within Healthie.

Here are some popular metrics tracked by sports dietitians and trainers:

• Macro and micronutrients
• Caloric intake
• Hydration level
• Heart rate
• Fatigue level

Even more, for athletes who require counseling in the off-season, it may be beneficial to include records of these metrics for comparison.

5. Customize charting notes

Did you know you can create a custom charting template of your own within Healthie’s EHR feature? Alternatively, we can upload the custom template that a coach or team prefers.

ADIME, SOAP notes, free-text, and intake forms are already included within Healthie’s built-in templates. These templates reduce the time you spend charting during and after sessions, so you can focus on what really matters – your stellar care for athletes. Electronic charting also provides an easy method of communication between you and coaches, or other members on an athlete’s care team.

6. Schedule telehealth appointments

A huge benefit of Healthie’s practice management platform for sports dietitians is seamless client engagement. Easily provide long-distance care to traveling athletes through telehealth virtual consultations. You can also provide brief HIPAA-compliant check-ins in-between scheduled sessions, through Healthie.

Healthie’s practice management software is completely HIPAA- & PCI compliant.

Greg Salgueiro, MS, RD, LDN, CIC, and Nutrition Director for American Academy of Sports Dietitians and Nutritionists (AASDN), points out the benefits of telehealth:

“When I first started working with athletes and other nutrition clients, services had to be delivered face-to-face, one-on-one, or in small groups. Now, you can easily communicate through multiple channels, no matter what the distance is between you and your client.”

7. Send Motivational Messages

Keep your clients even more engaged by sending quick message blasts to individual clients, or an entire team.

Here are some ways coaches, dietitians, and trainers are utilizing Heathie’s message blast feature:

• Remind clients to update their metrics
• Send motivational messages
• Deliver well wishes before any games or competitions
• Respond to questions in-between sessions

This type of client engagement keeps athletes motivated and bridges the gap between sessions.

If you’re just starting out in sports nutrition, Greg Salgueiro recommends getting specific about who you want to work with:

“If you choose to work with clients that excite you and you are passionate about, then the rewards are incredible. But if you just take any clients on to try and make ends meet, then you will soon find yourself physically and emotionally drained. Once you select the right client base, it’s just a matter of staying current in the field and building a network of solid colleagues around you.”

There are wonderful resources and communities to take advantage of in the field of sports nutrition. Check out the Collegiate & Professional Sports Dietitians Association (CPSDA) for support, continuing education, and connections within the industry.

As a sports dietitian, you serve as a unique coach and indispensable contributor to your clients success. Make sure you have the best resources and tools in place to benefit you and your clients throughout their athletic career.