VSG Diet support after gastric surgery with Kristen Davidson

Hello,

I’m Kristen.

I know what it feels like to live in a body that does not feel aligned with the life you want to lead. I have navigated childhood obesity, decades of dieting, a work accident that forced me to rethink everything, divorce, weight regain, weight loss surgery, strength rebuilding, and formal study in nutrition and physiology.

I do this work because health is not about shrinking yourself.

It is about building strength, clarity, and longevity — and that requires ownership, not perfection.

Growing Up Different

I was born in 1969, at a time when childhood obesity was uncommon and highly visible. By the age of nine, I understood I was different. I was the only overweight child in my school year. The comments were not extreme, but they were consistent enough to shape awareness.

My school uniform came from a different shop because the standard supplier did not carry my size. Clothing became one of the earliest ways I felt the divide. There were very few shops that stocked larger sizes, and most catered to older women. The cuts were sensible, the fabrics heavy, the colours muted.

As a teenager, when fashion begins to feel like identity, I could not wear what my friends wore. I often felt frumpy long before I was old enough to understand what that meant. I felt older than I was. Slightly misplaced within my own generation.

There were moments in changing rooms where I felt quiet self-hate — not dramatic, but internal. A feeling that the outside did not match the energy I felt within.

And yet, I liked who I was. I had good friends. I laughed easily. I was kind. If I could not control my size, I could control my character.

That steadiness stayed with me.

Loving Food, Resenting Diets

Food was never rebellion or chaos for me. It was pleasure. It was culture. It was long meals, good quality wine, shared plates, and conversation.

Dieting, however, felt restrictive and punishing.

From eighteen through to thirty-eight, I tried almost every approach available at the time — Weight Watchers, Atkins, Dukan, Slimming World, cabbage soup, Herbalife, diet pills. Each one began with hope and ended with quiet disappointment. I would lose weight, feel triumphant, then watch it return when the plan became unsustainable.

Over time, I accepted a calm belief: perhaps this was simply how I was built.

I married at twenty-two. I built a life. I functioned well. But the background negotiation with my body never fully disappeared. Even as fashion became more inclusive, I often chose clothes because they fit — not because I loved them.

I became skilled at making do.

The Accident That Changed My Direction

At thirty-eight, a work accident interrupted everything.

My body was physically damaged, and recovery took nearly two years. For the first time, I was forced to confront not how my body looked, but how it functioned. There was vulnerability in that period — physical and emotional.

I realised something fundamental: this body was mine. I was the one who would carry it into older age.

No diet club was going to rebuild muscle. No shake would restore structural strength. No external programme could take responsibility for me.

That was the turning point.

I did not want to be smaller.

I wanted to be stronger.

As strength began to return, confidence grew — not loud confidence, but grounded self-respect. Growth shifts posture. It shifts standards. My marriage ended during this time. It was painful, but necessary. I was no longer willing to remain small — physically or emotionally — to maintain comfort.

Even those closest to me needed time to adjust to the steadier version of me emerging.

Choosing a Tool, Not a Miracle

In my mid-forties, I found love again. Life felt settled and joyful. Some weight returned — not from distress, but from ease. Shared meals. Shared wine. A comfortable rhythm.

But beneath that happiness was clarity. If I wanted to age well, travel freely, move confidently, and enjoy life fully, I needed a sustainable solution that acknowledged biology — not just willpower.

In 2017, at forty-eight, I chose Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy.

Not as defeat. As a tool.

Surgery reduced hunger and altered my physiology, but it did not fix my habits. It did not automatically protect muscle mass. It did not teach me about nutrient density or metabolic health. It created space — and what I did with that space determined the outcome.

Over the following two years, I lost eight stone. I began structured training. By 2019, strength was visible. But more important than the weight loss was the alignment I felt.

For the first time in my life, I could walk into a shop and choose clothes because I loved them — not because they were the only option available.

That freedom was not vanity. It was congruence.

Understanding the Physiology

Two years after surgery, feeling alive rather than restricted, I chose to study health formally. I wanted to understand the science behind what I had lived.

I qualified as a Naturopathic Health Coach with the College of Naturopathic Medicine in 2022 and completed further study in Nutrition and Wellbeing with the University of Aberdeen in 2023.

I am currently undertaking advanced training in Nutritional Therapy at the Institute for Optimum Nutrition, deepening my clinical understanding of personalised diet, metabolic health, and long-term disease prevention.

I am a member of:

The Association of Naturopathic Practitioners
The Nutrition Society
UK & International Health Coaches Association (UKIHCA)

What I learned confirmed what experience had already shown me: willpower is not the whole story.

Health is built on real food — not ultra-processed products filled with industrial seed oils, chemical additives, stabilisers, and flavour systems designed to override appetite regulation.

It is built on:

• Quality protein to preserve muscle and metabolic rate
• Fibre-rich plants to support gut integrity
• Healthy fats to regulate hormones
• Micronutrients that fuel cellular processes
• Stable blood sugar that protects energy and mood

It is strengthened by walking, which improves insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular health.

By resistance training, which protects lean tissue as we age.

By sleep and stress management, which stabilise hormones and protect long-term resilience.

And it is sustained by enjoyment — not deprivation.

Where I Stand Now

Now, at fifty-six, my focus is no longer shrinking.

It is building.

Building muscle.
Building longevity.
Building clarity.
Building metabolic resilience.

I no longer dress to hide. I dress to express. I no longer see health as punishment. I see it as an investment.

I understand what it feels like to try and fail repeatedly. I understand that surgery is not the answer — it is the beginning. I understand that medication can help — but only when supported by education and structure.

And I understand that real life is layered. Health sits alongside relationships, stress, work, ageing, and identity.

How I Can Support You

If you choose to work with me, you are not being guided by someone who has only read textbooks.

You are being supported by someone who has:

• Lived in a larger body
• Navigated decades of dieting
• Used surgery responsibly as a strategic tool
• Rebuilt strength and confidence
• Studied the physiology behind metabolic health
• Continued advancing clinical knowledge

Together, we focus on understanding your body — not fighting it.

I will help you learn:

• Which foods to prioritise and why
• How protein protects muscle and metabolism
• Why ultra-processed foods disrupt appetite regulation
• How blood sugar stability supports energy and mood
• Why walking and strength training matter
• How to create sustainable routines without rigidity

Health is not about punishing your past.

It is about building your future — one where you feel strong, capable, and at ease in your body, in your clothes, and in your life.

If you are ready to understand your body properly and build lasting wellness, I would be honoured to guide you. Say hello and tell me your story. We are in this together, kristen@vsgdietsupport.com.