Some seeds have a longer germination period than others.
I have found that to be true for lifestyle changes in general, and vegan/vegetarian shifts in particular.
My personal story already has a ten year timeline. A full decade since I started this journey toward figuring out what my adult would look like if I made a shift to healthy, mindful nutrition choices and exercise. I was in my early twenties, frustrated by the lackluster monotony of day-to-day adulthood, and was settled into poor eating and lifestyle habits I had formed during my college years. Not surprisingly, I wasn’t happy.
Jump ahead to discovering the power of nutrition, just being mindful of intake and then incorporating routine movement and activity to my sedentary life. I lost 40 pounds on my own through this process, and became impassioned to share my newfound love of nutrition and wellness with the world! I enrolled in school with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and began my health coaching training. During my education, I learned about the healing power of plants, and gradually began making a shift to vegetarian and then vegan eating and lifestyle.
I started my business venture in 2012, determined to dive in head first. Well, life has its way of weaving and winding through unexpected alleys and downturns at times… I struggled to make ends meet early on, and needed to redirect my focus on the immediate needs of paying bills, and taking care of my family. I became a mother in 2016, and my whole life changed (big shock, right moms?). I needed to find a new normal, a new balance.
It was a time of tremendous, rocky, and painful change in my life. Weight-gain and disruption of healthy habits, new identity and role as a mother, and a marriage fraying at the seams.
Thankfully, this story has a happy ending. Or rather, a fresh beginning.
A new life, sprouting and growing: the fruits of nearly a decade of self-discovery, disappointments, revelations, and growth.
I am currently thriving and happily remarried, with a busy and beautiful blended family. I have dug my way through some fallow soil, and come out with a greater appreciation for what true happiness and health looks like in my life.
I am a mother to a healthy and silly preschool aged boy, stepmom to a middle school son and high school daughter, and married to my best-friend and co-pilot in this journey. Like most of you, I juggle many roles in life. I am an office manager and health coach with VitaLife Sioux Falls, where I help people lose weight quickly and healthily. I also work with a nonprofit called sINgSPIRE to empower students with Cystic Fibrosis to find their voice. I’m passionate about delicious food, helping others, sharing music, animal welfare, and finding a happy rhythm in life!
My family and life is busy and full. We have blended eating preferences (omnivore, vegan, vegetarian) and each day I do my best to find ways to incorporate healthy balanced meals that suit our family’s needs. I know the struggle of picky eating, and figuring out new ways of cooking in a chaotic schedule! I would love to be part of your journey toward finding health and balance while adding more vegetables and plant-based eating to your lifestyle.
These seeds of change take time. Are you ready to plant yours?