What Coaching Real People Taught Me That My Degree in Nutrition Did Not
Written by: Sabrina Atterbom, Black Iron Nutrition Coach
I graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2020 with my degree in Nutrition Sciences.
When I started college in the fall of 2015 as a pre-veterinary biology major, I knew what I had always known: I was going to become a veterinarian. For as long as I could remember, I just wanted to help. My entire 18 years leading up to that point, I swore I would help animals.
Animals had never wronged me. They had never left without also feeling the pain of that hurt too. They always forgave me when I made mistakes. Their love was so unconditional and pure—I wanted to help them with that same love.
But in 2017, everything changed.
I fell in love with the journey of taking care of myself. Prioritizing my health. Moving my body. Learning what it meant to fuel myself well. And I realized I was placed here to help humans instead.
Shortly after a lightbulb moment that early summer, I changed majors and started down a new path: a degree in nutrition.
Learning to Love Myself
You see, I had never really liked myself too much. I didn’t like how I looked in the mirror, and I didn’t feel like I made a very big impact on my friends or family. This wasn’t the result of bad parenting or teaching—it was just an internal discomfort I couldn’t shake. A drive to be more, better, different… that never seemed satisfied.
But when I found myself in a CrossFit gym, surrounded by other like-minded people who seemed to feel the same way, something shifted.
I started to love myself for the first time.
So when I made the switch to nutrition, it felt like coming home. I was now surrounded by students—mostly women—who cared deeply about helping people. Unlike the biology major crowd, who often hoped their classmates would fail, the nutrition program was full of cheerleaders. People who wanted to lift others up.
Eventually, we all wanted to be in the field somehow—helping however we could.
I knew being a dietitian, although an incredible path for many, wasn’t my calling. From the beginning, I knew I was meant to help people before they were inside the walls of a hospital. I didn’t want to educate someone when it was already too late. I wanted to help prevent chronic disease and obesity before they even happened.
To clarify—yes, dietitians also do this. But I knew I didn’t want to spend a year in a hospital internship when I could start helping people right away as a coach.
My Education Gave Me the Tools
I spent the next two and a half years soaking in everything I could from my professors. I coached CrossFit. I took on nutrition clients at the gym. And slowly, I started to realize how much passion I had for helping people—something I never expected, since for so long I thought I’d only help animals.
Once I learned how to save myself, I realized I could maybe save another person like me—someone who had never been taught how to love themselves, or where to begin.
My degree in nutrition taught me so much. We explored:
The relationship between food, health, and the human body
How diet can prevent and manage disease
The social and cultural aspects of eating
Public health principles and food systems
Dietary assessments and case study work
Vitamins, minerals, and motivational interviewing
We memorized the DRIs (Dietary Reference Intakes), like the EAR, RDA, AI, and UL—nutrition guidelines meant to apply to the “average” person. As if you could take 340 million people and lob them into one set of numbers and call it a day.
We scoured restaurant menus for nutrition data. We ran detailed case presentations. We practiced client conversations. I studied hard. I paid attention. I passed the tests.
I had the tools.
Real Coaching Is Different
But it wasn’t until I coached hundreds of real human beings that I truly became the coach I am today—and continue to become.
Case studies can give you a glimpse into reality. But until you’re sitting across from a real person, hearing their story, their struggles, their shame—you don’t really get it.
Here’s what coaching real people taught me:
You can’t copy and paste a formula for success.
Everyone is an individual. No one needs the exact same thing.
The EAR might be for the “average” person… but almost no one I coach is average.
Empathy isn’t in a textbook.
We are all incredibly hard on ourselves—even when we’re making progress.
You don’t need a perfect plan to start. You just need a spark of curiosity.
Even the most set-in-their-ways person can change—if they have the tiniest bit of desire, and someone patient enough to walk with them.
You can spend your entire life in a classroom, learning… but until you sit with someone and build a relationship with curiosity and care, you won’t truly be a great coach.
This Is Why I Do What I Do
My degree in nutrition gave me the tools to be a coach.
Helping every person I work with—with excitement, empathy, and anticipation, like they are the last person I’ll ever get to help—is what makes me believe I will continue to become a great one.
Ready to Feel Supported?
You don’t need to have it all figured out to get started. You just need a little curiosity and someone in your corner.
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