Sydney Navid

Navid’s story starts in the kitchen. She fondly remembers coming home from grade school to help her mom make dinner while the Food Network played in the background. When her mom began taking health-focused cooking classes, Navid started to see food differently. “It wasn’t just something I loved and enjoyed, but something that could play a role in how you feel and how you take care of your body,” Navid says.

Today, Navid is even more convinced of the power of nutrition—especially when guidance can be individualized. “What’s really exciting about Atria is that we can advance the field of precision nutrition. We can take genetics, microbiome, metabolic health, and other biomarkers, and use them to inform the nutrition plan,” she says.

Navid graduated from Emory University with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Health and a minor in Nutrition Science. She then moved to New York City to earn a Master of Science in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology from Teachers College, Columbia University.

After her master’s program, Navid leaned into her culinary roots, becoming a private chef and cooking class instructor. She cooked in clients’ homes, creating meals around their preferences, routines, and health goals—work that she continues to this day.

In addition to her culinary work, Navid has deep clinical experience. She completed a dietetic internship at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, where she trained in medical nutrition therapy for adult and pediatric patients, including those with digestive diseases, diabetes, and cardiac, renal, oncology, and critical care needs. There, Navid saw the value of coordinated care. Working as part of an interdisciplinary care team, she strengthened her appreciation of nutrition as a lever in preventive health care.

Following her internship, Navid worked as a registered dietitian at New York Nutrition Group, a private practice where she offered personalized nutrition recommendations to help manage symptoms of chronic disease. In addition to her work at Atria, Navid currently practices at MPM Nutrition, where she sees clients virtually across the country. She provides nutritional guidance to address gastrointestinal health, cardiovascular health, blood sugar regulation, GLP-1 support, and pre-natal and post-natal nutrition. She also works on improving people’s relationship with food and body image.

Navid begins every new relationship by learning the individual’s story and their “why.” She looks at their health history, lifestyle, and goals, and at what could get in the way of change. “If you don’t pinpoint the why, it makes behavior change and translating any education into real-life practice that much more difficult,” she says.

Navid believes in small, gradual steps when working on a nutrition plan. Rather than overwhelming someone with information, she creates an individualized game plan that they can tackle together over several sessions. “I’m their guide, but ultimately, I’m a big believer that everyone is the expert on their own body and they know themselves the best,” Navid says.

Navid helps people cut through the noise around nutrition on social media. “The whole purpose of nutrition is to make sure that we’re nourishing our body. Nourishing our body means that we’re getting a balance of all the macronutrients,” she says, regardless of what the latest viral trend may say to the contrary.

Her culinary expertise remains central to her work. Navid teaches in-person and virtual cooking classes, continues to work as a private chef, and creates food and nutrition content for social media and her newsletter.

In her free time, Navid loves exploring new farmers markets and health food stores, then bringing home seasonal produce to build a menu for friends. “Anything that’s centered around food, cooking, and bringing people together is my favorite thing to do,” she says.