About Amy Plano,
Registered Dietitian
Note: So just a heads up, I, Amy Plano, RD, am no longer actively working with clients. Instead I oversee the day-day operations of my practice. I literally has THE best team of dietitians on staff. Therefore, there is no shortage of awesomeness at The Plano Program. So please know you are always in good hands.
Growing up as a three-sport athlete, I always had a general interest in nutrition. If I wasn’t chasing a soccer ball, I was defending the net as an ice hockey goalie or taking shots on goal as a college lacrosse player. After college, I took up triathlons. And now in my 40’s I am rocking (and loving!) pilates. Being active has always been a top priority! Therefore, not surprisingly, my love for all-things-food was a natural progression from my passion for fitness.
Prior to becoming a Private Practice Dietitian, I worked for 10 years at Yale New Haven Hospital as an outpatient nutrition specialist. It was during this time that I became Board Certified in Diabetes Education. Based on my strong clinical experience (AND that of my rock-star team!), there is really no type of nutrition need The Plano Program cannot service!While a large area of our practice focuses on adult and pediatric weight loss, body composition, Sports Nutrition, PCOS, and diabetes – we have RDs who are trained in the dietary management of just about every avenue of nutrition including food allergies and intolerances, renal disease, GI disorders such as Crohn’s, colitis and IBS and vegan and vegetarian diets.
My (smokin’ hot!) husband is an exercise physiologist and personal trainer to boot. He and I run and operate a wellness center called The Plano Program in Orange, CT. My practice is located inside of our training studio.
I cannot tell you how stoked I am you have stumbled upon my website! I look forward to seeing your smiling face at The Plano Program in the near future.
XOXO,
Amy
Introducing our ROCK-star team members!
Audrey Castell-Watts,
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Audrey Castell-Watts is a dedicated Registered Dietitian Nutritionist with a strong passion for working with individuals and families to help them achieve their nutrition and wellness goals.
Audrey’s mission is to work with her clients to build sustainable lifestyle changes that empower them to live their best life. She has experience providing nutrition therapy to clients with a wide variety of conditions and is especially skilled in weight management and family nutrition. Audrey understands the many challenges related to lifestyle changes and believes with hard work, creativity, and persistence, all obstacles can be overcome.
Audrey enjoys cooking, spending time outside, and staying active. When she’s not swinging kettlebells and sweating, you can find her at the farmer’s market picking up all sorts of amazing local foods to get busy within the kitchen!
Audrey holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of New Haven and completed her dietetic internship at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a focus on health promotion and disease prevention. She holds a certificate in Childhood and Adolescent Weight Management from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Audrey offer both in person visits and telehealth visits.
Audrey is an awesome for patients looking for dietary support with PCOS, sports performance, weight management for adults, overall healthy eating,Type 2 Diabetes, family nutrition, plant-based nutrition, vegetarian and vegan diets.
Grace Altamura ,
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Grace Altamura is an ambitious Registered Dietitian Nutritionist with a strong clinical and training foundation in a myriad of disease conditions, age groups, and clinical settings. She is focused, personable, and passionate about helping others achieve their personal nutrition and wellness goals.
Grace is understanding and able to help translate the ever-evolving field of medicine and nutritional science into practical and client-centered implications to sustain health and well-being for the long term.
Grace achieved her Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition from Cornell University whilst completing the Didactic Program in Dietetics. Following, she matched and completed her postgraduate supervised practice experience through her Dietetic Internship at the Yale New Haven Hospital, clinical affiliate of the Yale School of Medicine with a focus in nutrition support. She has invested years of training through her Ivy League exposures and top-ranked clinical hospital sites. As a Connecticutian and ex-premie herself, she wished to serve at the hospital that she was born in, in order to give back and show support to her local community prior to moving to a challenging and autonomous role at one of the oldest and largest teaching hospitals in the United States. She has since spearheaded efforts and close collaboration with gastroenterologists, surgeons, intensivists, and other medical practitioners in the field of intestinal failure, intestinal rehabilitation, and transplantation.
Grace spends much of her down time in the kitchen cooking homemade Italian meals for others, on a morning run with her dogs, or finding a local dining restaurant or ice cream parlor. She values her family, friends, and appreciates attending or watching a sports match!
At this time Grace only provides telehealth visits.
Grace is your girl when it comes to ALL things GI. She literally is a GI-nutrition guru. She is also awesome with weight management & bariatric nutrition as well.
Stephanie Labrusciano,
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Stephanie Labrusciano is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist with 15+ years experience of helping her clients create healthy habits that last and meet their nutrition goals.
Coming from a large Italian and Colombian family, a love for food is in Stephanie’s roots. She has a passion for cooking and loves helping her clients choose whole foods that fit their preferences, creating a personalized approach. She believes food is our best form of preventative medicine and should always be enjoyed! With Stephanie, you will focus not only on what to eat, but how to implement these changes. Her goal is to give people the tools they need in order to build healthy habits and ultimately live a balanced lifestyle.
Stephanie earned her Bachelors of Science in Nutrition and completed her internship through the University of Connecticut. Throughout her years as a Registered Dietitian she has worked in medical centers in New York City and Chicago, has started a private practice, became a Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist and also holds a certificate in Adult Weight Management from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Stephanie enjoys spending time outside with friends and family, eating at local restaurants and gardening. She currently lives in Fairfield County with her husband, two young boys and their four-legged friend Bailey!
At this time Steph only provides telehealth visits.
Steph is a super well rounded RD. While she is pretty freaking awesome at GI stuff, she is also incredible working with kids and their respective families. Weight management & PCOS are also her jam.
Dana Schwab,
Registered Dietitian
Dana Schwab has dedicated her career to helping children and families as a pediatric Registered Dietitian. Dana has strong experience treating high-risk preemies, infants, children, and adolescents with diverse feeding difficulties.
For the past 5 years, Dana has served as a dietitian for the Yale NICU GRAD Program and Yale Pediatric GI/Aerodigestive Program, where she has developed individualized feeding plans to support optimal growth and developmental outcomes.
Dana’s mission is to deliver quality patient and family-centered care. With a true love for her job, Dana is hard-working and innately kind. She aims to put families’ minds at ease by implementing structured goals and plans for change.
Outside of work, she enjoys attending indoor cycling classes and late-night reading. She loves living next to the Farmington Canal, where she enjoys walks with her husband and friends.
Dana currently offers both in-person and telehealth visits.
Dana is our pediatric specialist. She has superpowers when it comes to working with infants, children and their families surrounding dietary issues. Dana will be out on maternity leave starting mid-June.
Deirdre Pizzoferrato,
CT-based Registered Dietitian
Deirdre Pizzoferrato is a CT-based Registered Dietitian specializing in customized nutrition & behavioral interventions for her adult and pediatric patients/clients.
Deirdre has dedicated much of her 25-year career to obesity research and development of commercial products and weight management programs. As the Director of Protocol Innovation for Ideal Protein, an international weight management company, Deirdre led the R&D of Ideal Protein’s 3-phase weight loss program.
In 2021, Deirdre made the decision to return to private practice and individualized nutritional therapy and joined Amy and her team in January of this year!
In her down time, Deirdre enjoys cooking, hiking, and spending quality time with her three “young adult” children and her amazing fiancé.
Deirdre is a jack-of-all trades dietitian in THE best sense of the term. She is wicked awesome at working with women with hormone imbalances, weight management, menopause, and PCOS. But in all due respect, there is not much she doesn’t have experience with. She is also one of our family nutrition experts, too!