Nutrition Sonja's true calling

Sonja Gardiner

A Hamilton nutritionist-with-a-difference, Sonja Gardiner got in touch with Hamilton News recently to find out if someone would be interested in doing her flagship 'Reset' programme and writing about the three-month process. Having set myself New Year's resolutions to take better care of myself this year, I took Sonja up on the challenge and will write a weekly diary-style column about the programme and my journey.

You can find my first column on the page 17. But first, read here about Sonja and how she ditched life in HR and admin and is now living her dream.

Sonja Gardiner says she feels like she's "on purpose" with her life.

This is more than just a job to Sonja. It's a way of life, something she's truly passionate about - and has been since she was a child.

"I was quite an anxious child and I wanted to know what I could do to make myself better so I went to the library and worked out that I needed B vitamins so I increased my leafy greens and started exercising for happy hormones," said Sonja.

"That's where it started for me."

Born in South Africa, Sonja went to the UK for what she thought would be six months.

"I ended up staying three years and I met a Kiwi lad there who is now my husband."

The couple moved back to New Zealand eight years ago and have two young children.

"When I left the workforce to have Scarlet I was HR manager for Novotel and Ibis Tainui. I'd come from HR and admin background. After I had Scarlet I decided not to go back to work. I reached that point, that a lot of mums do, where I asked 'what do I want to do with my life?'. That was when I said to my husband that I need to figure this out. He jokes about it and calls it 'the day you found yourself'.

"I went away for an entire day and I tried to figure out what I wanted to do. It was really clear - I started with what I love, how I wanted to spend my time and it all fitted so beautifully together at the end of that day so it was back to school for me. I studied through the Naturopathic College of New Zealand because I really wanted to approach it holistically. I don't believe in the food pyramid and didn't want to do the traditional model of nutrition."

Sonja started studying in 2013, graduated last year and is now a registered clinical nutritionist.

"I started practising in my second year. I needed a lot of cases to work with for submission to the College and so I started a Facebook page to get people in. From there it snowballed. I never really meant to officially start my business. I had all these clients through and they'd talk to other people and then before I knew it I was seeing paying clients."

Last June Sonja "took the plunge" and moved out of her home office into a commercial office in Flagstaff.

"It was a big leap of faith but I've had awesome business mentors I've worked with. They had confidence in me and that really helped."

Recently Sonja moved to her new base at Advance Physiotherapy in the CBD.

Sonja says her holistic approach is what sets her apart from others in her field.

"It's a whole body approach for me. I don't work with any complaint in isolation. I look at the whole body to see what's going on everywhere else. And weight loss is often treated like that. It's a calorie approach - your intake is too high for your expense. I look at diet, energy, signs on the skin, the nails, I'm trained in iridology, I look at the tongue, the face - a lot of Eastern complementary assessments."

She also works with them on an emotional level. "That's really rewarding because there is so much tied into our automatic behaviours and thoughts. Seeing that breakthrough is really awesome. I love helping women who have struggled for years on the yo yo to understand their body and finally make some lasting changes."

It's not just weight loss clients Sonja works with. She sees those with digestive complaints, irregular bowel motions, skin conditions and infertility clients. "They're a real joy to work with. It's so great when they come back and say 'I had a period!'."

Sonja's flagship 'Reset' programme includes comprehensive coaching, goal setting and a reflection process. She tackles the psychology of eating and self-sabotage.

"This can be really enlightening. I've had people who go through it and say 'I thought I was coming to see you to lose weight but it's so much more than that. I want to feel radiant and healthy, I want to be able to roll around on the floor with my kids or do a half marathon.' It's not actually about that number on the scales anymore, but that's an added bonus in the end."