When Susan Kundrat was a college basketball player at Minnesota State University, there was no such thing as sports nutritionists. Kundrat, who was studying dietetics at the time, would draw out diagrams of what her teammates should eat and why certain nutrients were important. Over a decade later, Kundrat has made a career out of helping college students decide what to eat.

Kundrat, a registered dietitian, works with the University wrestling team, as well as many athletes at Northwestern University and Bradley University. When she is not driving around Illinois to visit her clients, her office is located in Strawberry Fields, an organic and nutrition food store at 306 W. Springfield Ave. in Urbana. There, she holds open office hours for students with questions about eating, dieting or exercising on Mondays from 3 to 5 p.m. She also offers to make a personal nutrition plan for a fee.

“A lot of students come to me because they want to maximize their diet,” Kundrat said. “They want to prevent cancer or heart disease. If students start making the decisions now, when they are still young, it is easier to make changes that fit their lifestyles and they will continue to live by these changes.”

Kundrat consults students who are looking to lose or gain weight, as well as students who want to become vegetarians, students who want to reduce high blood pressure and high cholesterol without medicine, or those just looking to stay healthy. The location of the office in Strawberry Fields is especially helpful, Kundrat said, because she can show her clients what they should be eating and they can get what they need right away. Kundrat said there is an easy way to plan a good meal.

“When you sit down to eat a meal, you should divide the plate into quarters. One quarter should be protein, one should be a carbohydrate, one should be a fruit and one should be a vegetable,” she said. “It can be a fast meal or a simple meal, as long as everything is balanced.”

Jack Wallace, the general manager at Strawberry Fields, said he accommodated Kundrat’s office when he made an addition onto the store a few years ago. Having Kundrat on hand to answer questions and give advice has helped business, he said.

“It adds a lot of credibility to our store,” Wallace said. “People are crazy about her, and she brings in some people who wouldn’t ordinarily come in here. We also will start carrying a product if it is something she recommends.”

In her work with the University wrestling team, Kundrat tries to help wrestlers lose weight or gain muscle in a healthy way. Head wrestling coach Mark Johnson said Kundrat has made a big impact on the team.

“She’s made an outstanding difference in their performances, the wrestlers really enjoy her,” Johnson said. “She teaches them nutrition in a common sense way, and it’s great that she comes out to see them compete, too.”

Students who come in to get a consultation from Kundrat usually achieve their goals, Kundrat said, because they are driven to do whatever they can to improve their health. She has seen students successfully lose over 50 pounds, get off of diabetes or cholesterol medicine and get into better shape.

“A lot of students don’t start a nutrition plan because they are afraid that if they are not perfect it won’t work,” Kundrat said. “That’s not true. As long as you are working towards your goal, you can get healthier.”

Kundrat encouraged interested students to check out her Web site at www.eatnmove.com or to stop by Strawberry Fields to ask questions.