While Dina loves being nerdy, her first career as a software consultant didn't provide the fulfillment she was seeking in life.
The fire was ultimately lit to change careers to the field of nutrition after two separate but very important life events happened: seeing the power of improved daily nutrition patterns in extending her Dad's terminal cancer prognosis and her suffering a huge gut bomb during one of her early marathons that ruined her first try at a Boston Marathon qualifying time (she got it later though!).
Her fascination with the human body and the interplays of nutrition led to her pursuing a Master of Science degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition from Colorado State University and delving into sports nutrition.
Since then, Dina has worked as a Registered Dietitian and Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics in the clinical, outpatient, and private practice settings. But she finally found her true calling as the Nutrition Mechanic!
Catch Dina as podcast co-host:Â Launched in December 2021 with Sport Dietitian colleague, Bob Seebohar, tune into the "Inside Sports Nutrition" podcast to hear a variety of discussions and interviews on all things sports nutrition.
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WALKING THE TALK
Dina likes to "walk the talk" and as such, has competitively participated in half marathon, marathon, ultra running, triathlon, and cycling events (even earning a handful of top placement and age group awards in several events!). For other activities, she enjoys her HIIT and strength workouts, hiking, snowshoeing and open water swimming.
Some notable athletic accomplishments and achievements include RunRabbitRun 100 mile trail run, the Leadville 100 trail run, the Comrades 52-mile road ultra race in South Africe, Ironman Coeur D'Alene, Boston Marathon (sub 3:25 finish), NYC Marathon (3:26 finish), the San Francisco North Face Endurance Run 50k, and the Mount Evans Hill Climb. She is also proud to have served as a sight guide for Diane Berberian at the ITU Paratriathlon World Championships in London in 2013. Additionally, she has enjoyed crewing and pacing for athletes at events such as the Moab 240, Tahoe 200, Badwater 135 in Death Valley, UTMB/CCC races in France, Tor de Geants in Italy, and the Leadville 100 MTB race.
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While Dina works with all levels of athletes, from the recreational to the professional, some of the recent athletes she's worked with include:
- Kim Levinsky, who set the women's FKT for the 358-mile Long Path in New York in July 2023
- Syd & Macky, professional mountain bikers
- Kevin Goldberg, multiple 200+ mile finisher
- Anna Strehlow, professional triathlete
- Megan Eckert, elite ultrarunner
- Don Reichelt, elite ultrarunner
- Hillary Allen, professional ultrarunner
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In addition to the various podcasts and webinars she's been featured on, Dina's been included at both the U.S. Trail Running and the Nutritional Therapy Association annual conferences for her nutrition expertise. She co-founded the highly successful Optimal Thrive group nutrition programs with Meredith Atwood, which ran from 2017-2018. She has also co-authored e-books with Bob Seebohar, and is a contributor author for "Triathlon for the Every Woman" by Meredith Atwood (Swim Bike Mom) and "Cycling Science."
Dina has also served as a professional reference for several sport-related magazines and websites such as Outside Magazine, Ultra Running, Runner's World, Bicycling, and LiveStrong.
