Meet Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist, Jana Ranger
Get to know Registered Dietitian, Jana Ranger on our team!
We are excited to introduce you to Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist on our team, Jana Ranger. Quickly upon meeting Jana, you will notice her fun-loving and bubbly personality combined with her heart-centered and compassionate approach to nutrition counseling. She is there to help guide you in achieving your goals in a gentle and safe way.
Although she has extensive experience working in many areas of nutrition, Jana specializes in women’s health, menopause, infant/child nutrition, family meal planning, IBS and gastrointestinal disease, emotional eating, weight concerns as well as eating disorders. She has also worked with clients with mental health concerns and those struggling with or recovering from substance abuse, kidney disease, swallowing issues, diabetes, and heart health.
We asked Jana to share a few things about herself so you could get to know her below in this blog post. Learn even more about Jana, her background, and her experience in her full bio here: Jana Ranger’s Bio.
What is your background as a Registered Dietitian?
I graduated from McGill University in 2008 with a Bachelor of Nutritional Sciences. When I embarked on my journey to become a Registered Dietitian, I knew with every fibre of my soul that I was meant to be a Dietitian. However, as a child and young adult, I never really knew how to answer the age-old question “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
For several years before becoming a Dietitian, I worked as a food service manager and diet technician. Although I loved working in the field of food and nutrition, none of these jobs filled me with joy. So, I tried my hand at the tech world and worked for Bell Canada for many years. While working at Bell, my routine had become to look at my stocks and calculate how many days until I could retire… I was in my 20’s!!! On one of these mornings, while checking the days until retirement, I promised myself, I would find a job I LOVED and would not want to retire from. So here we are 15 years later and I still LOVE being a Dietitian!
Since 2008 I have worked in a long-term care setting and have taught nutrition, but for most of my years as a dietitian, I have worked in a community setting in rural Ontario. Working in small towns along the Rideau Canal, including Portland, Smiths Falls and Merrickville, I have had the privilege to work with many individuals of all ages with a wide range of nutrition and health goals. I’ve provided nutrition counselling about picky eating, weight concerns, emotional eating, heart health, diabetes, digestive health and meal planning on a budget. I’ve also supporting those with addiction/substance abuse, mental health concerns, kidney disease and those struggling with swallowing issues to name a few.
What are your areas of specialty at Health Stand Nutrition?
Having worked as a community Dietitian for 15 years, I’ve seen a wide range of nutrition goals and health issues and therefore my areas of specialty are broad. I do however have a passion for counselling those on a journey to achieve their personal best weight and for women over 40 and throughout menopause. I also connect well with those that struggle with emotional eating (I’ve also struggled with emotional eating –so not only do I specialize in it, I get it!). My other areas of specialty include digestive health issues, IBS, disordered eating, mental health, and infant/children nutrition.
What is your favourite part of being a Dietitian?
My favourite part of being a Dietitian is connecting with my client and embarking on their health journey, celebrating their successes and troubleshooting their challenges. It can take a great deal of strength and vulnerability to discuss our food choices and eating habits. I always feel honoured when clients feel they can trust me with such an important part of their life.
What is one myth that you want to clear up about Dietitians?
Myth: When you meet with a Dietitian, they are going to take food away.
This is soooo not true. We can make all food fit into our diet! I honestly can’t think of any food that I would say “no, you can’t have that” (unless of course you have a severe allergy!) As homework, I will often ask my client to schedule in a soulful food. It’s important to eat foods
that make us healthy, but we also need to eat foods that make our soul and tastebuds sing!
Favorite nerdy nutritious food chosen for health?
Matcha tea!
I start each morning off with a cup of matcha tea. I think I enjoy the ritual of whisking the green powder with hot water in my pretty matcha bowl as much as I enjoy sipping the rich vibrant green liquid! Matcha tea is rich in antioxidants which can reduce damage to our cells and help prevent chronic diseases. It’s also been touted to boost our brain function –to this, I say “pour me a cup!”
Favorite soulful food chosen for taste, enjoyment, and social fun?
Big, juicy cheeseburgers…. YUM!!! My husband and I have embarked on a quest to find the best
cheeseburger in Eastern Ontario. So far, the restaurant chain “Five Guys”, takes first place. A close
runner up would be “Petra’s Place” which is a cool chip stand just outside Lyndhurst Ontario. I
must say, my husband makes a mean juicy cheeseburger too! I’d welcome any other
recommendations for the best burger locations from Montreal to Ottawa and Kingston, and everywhere in between!
Something that people may not know about you is?
I am a certified life coach! I’ve never practiced as one, but I certainly infuse my skillset as a life coach into every nutrition counseling session. Life coaches work with clients to help them achieve their goals, they help the client identify discontent, and help the client make changes to their life that will ultimately bring more happiness. This isn’t much different from what Dietitians do.
Some other fun facts is that outside of being mom of two very active boys in hockey and soccer,
you can find me kayaking and paddle boarding the Rideau River and tending to my herb and vegetable gardens or creating something fun in the kitchen. My most recent ventures include baking artisan bread and pies, drying vegetable greens into powders and making the perfect home-brewed fire cider.
Looking for more information on nutrition counseling or finding a Calgary Registered Dietitian or Global Online Nutritionist?
Learn more about Dietitian Jana Ranger and check out her full bio here covering all her background and experience!
If you want to book an appointment to begin nutrition counseling with Jana, please contact us.
To learn more about our Calgary Dietitian and Online Nutritionist services, click here.
Don’t forget to check your health insurance! Many insurance plans cover Dietitian services.
Brought to you by our friendly Registered Dietitian team at Health Stand Nutrition Consulting Inc. For more balanced living advice check out our RESOURCE MEGA BANK of nutrition articles, videos, healthy recipes, newsletters and meal planning kits here: www.healthstandnutrition.com/personal-nutrition/resource-mega-bank/
Jana Ranger
women's health, weight concerns, IBS and digestive health, kids nutrition, disordered eating, heart health
If you spend any amount of time with Jana you will notice that you feel like you are connecting with a fun-loving, relatable friend you’ve known for quite some time. Her bubbly personality mixed with her heart-centered and compassionate approach, will gently guide you toward achievement of your goals in a safe, non-judgmental way.
