Dietitian profile :
Jenny Westerkamp
A cheeky email that started with ‘ I want your life !’ was the first step towards Jenny Westerkamp landing her dream job as the Team Nutritionist at the Chicago Bulls .
In addition to being in her fifth season working with the Bulls , Jenny also runs her business , All Access Dietetics , which provides coaching , courses , toolkits and more for aspiring dietitians . Here ’ s a snapshot of Jenny ’ s journey , from how she got her foot in the door to where she is now .
Why did you choose to become a dietitian ?
In college , I didn ' t know what I wanted to do , but I ’ d always loved food , so I thought I ’ d be a food scientist . Then in college , they had a human nutrition major , and once I was exposed to that , I knew that was definitely where I wanted to be . Then I figured out working in sports nutrition would make me happiest within the nutrition space . I wasn ' t athletic myself , but I knew I wanted to help and be in that world .
And once you graduated , how did your career unfold ?
My career started when I was a student . I immediately tried to get some work experience and I was able to connect with the Chicago Blackhawks dietitian with an eye-catching email subject line of ‘ I want your life !’. I explained to her my strengths , how I could help her with her business – even that I could babysit her triplets and walk her dog ! She offered me an internship , and once I became a dietitian , she hired me . After four years , I got into the Chicago Cubs and after another two years , into the Chicago Bulls .
© Dietitian Connection 24 Infuse | May 2022