If you haven’t heard about it yet, Making Good Choices is an amazing blog about healthy eating, exercising and living. The woman behind the blog, Nicole Culver, started out as a 4th grade teacher before recognizing her true calling: to grace us with her abundant knowledge of fitness, infinite delicious recipes, and so much more. Now, Nicole runs her own blog and the healthy online bakery Pure Bliss Eats, in addition to being a certified Health & Nutrition Counselor, a MyOmBody. coach and a FitFluential Ambassador . Did I also mention she’s an avid runner and does yoga? In her own words she just wants “to make healthy the new normal. Show people that healthy living is NOT hard or super time consuming.” Somehow I was lucky enough to score an interview with the Wonder Woman herself. Here’s what Nicole had to say…
Q: What inspired you to start the Making Good Choices blog?
A: I started my blog in 2009 because of my sister. My sister and my mom were always calling me asking me about recipes I had come up with over and over again. My sister kept pressing me to start one so I could share recipes and healthy living tips. Finally after a few months I decided to start one…but I didn’t really tell anyone about it for a while.
Q: Are all the recipes on the blog your own or do you find them elsewhere?
A: I come up with many of them on my own. If I’ve had some inspiration and have adapted a recipe, I’ll always say where it’s from and link to it. If I’ve made someone’s recipe exactly and I decided to post because it’s SO good then I’ll just link right to their recipe and not post it on my site. There are SO many amazing cooks, bakers and foodies blogging, it’s impossible NOT to make what they are making!
Q: When did Pure Bliss Eats start? How did you do it?
A: Pure Bliss Eats started long before it was an official, licensed online bakery. I have been baking for awhile, but it honestly started because my husband wouldn’t eat breakfast. I started to come up with different types of muffins and granolas to get him to eat! When it finally worked I started sharing the goods with friends, family, other teachers and even my students! Pure Bliss Eats was officially launched in July 2011!
Q: Do you have any tips on how to eat healthy at school?
A: Staying healthy at college has gotten easier. It’s all about being informed and not thinking that just because it has broccoli in it, it must be healthy. Fresh salad bars should be your best friend. You can fill up of fresh veggies & fruits and take some back to your dorm too.
Some colleges even have a vegan/vegetarian section there. Even if you’re not vegan/vegetarian, don’t be afraid to explore! Many times they will have great whole grains like brown rice, quinoa, millet.
Arrange your plate in a balanced way, choosing a whole grain, lean protein and full of veggies. Ask how the food is prepared and stay away from anything fried or cooked in butter. Streamed, roasted, stir fry and broiled are all healthy methods of cooking!
Also, make sure you eat your meals and snacks! Don’t “bank” all your calories and then splurge on a night out. You will end up doing more damage, especially late night! Eat like you normally would and then enjoy your night without going over board.
Q: What about healthy snacks for us college students?
A: Easiest snacks ever: raw nuts, apple or banana with (NATURAL) peanut butter, Vega shake & go smoothies, Food Should Taste Good OR Popchips with hummus, Chobani (stick with 0% plain and drizzle in honey or agave nectar), carrots/celery with hummus, Pure Bliss Eats chocolate balls or granola. If you have a mini processor you can make your own nut balls, which you can find recipes for on my site!
Q: Are there any foods that we may not know are really good for us? Or worse, really bad for us?
A: It’s all about reading ingredient labels. Foods that may be masked as “health” foods, can be filled with junky ingredients. Look for ingredients that you’ve never heard of. If you’ve never heard of it, put it back and look for something else. Check your cereal, granola bars and other packaged foods!
Q: Being at college, its sometimes hard to fit in time to exercise…Any suggestions on fun ways to stay active?
A: Every bit counts! Don’t feel like you need to spend hours at the gym. You can get in an effective workout in just 20-30 minutes! Check out free online sources like BodyRock.tv, Toneitup.com and youtube. They have amazing workouts for FREE that you can do in your own room! Get your roommates on board and challenge each other!
Q: Any advice for students looking to start their own business or blog?
A: It takes time! You need to become part of your community and network, but in an authentic way. It takes months to get a following, so be persistent and don’t give up! Find your writing voice and what makes you, YOU. Don’t try to be or write like someone else. Also join twitter and follow people with similar interests. Get involved in conversation…and follow me!
Q: Anything else you want to share?
A: It can be difficult to start your healthy living in college, but it is SO do-able! The energy you will feel if you fill your body with healthy foods will make college life/work way better AND reduce your stress levels. You don’t need to for-go your social life just to eat healthier! Find a balance. If you have any more questions or blog or vlog suggestions then feel free to email or tweet me!
I’m so humbled and appreciative that you wanted to interview me…so thank you! And thank you for reading…if you’ve made it this far! And look out for the revamp of Pure Bliss Eats website coming in March!
So there you have it friends, the health guru herself with a whole slew of easy tips on how we can stay healthy, even in the confines of our dorm rooms. So take advantage! Get yourself up and active and take charge of your health! No matter what you study or where you work, knowing how to take care of yourself is always a necessity.
P.S. All the food pictured? Nicole made it. Yum.
Want to learn more about Making Good Choices/Pure Bliss/Nicole? Follow her!
www.youtube.com/nicoleculver1
www.facebook.com/makinggoodchoices
www.twitter.com/#/pureblisseats
email: nicoleculver1@gmail.com
Works Cited:
Chocolate Gingerbread Granola (photo): Pureblisseatscom. 15 Feb 2012.
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Nicole Running (photo): Makinggoodchoicesblog.com. 16 Feb 2012.
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Peanut Butter Truffles (photo): Makinggoodchoicesblog.com. 16 Feb 2012.
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Pumpkin Muffins (photo): Makinggoodchoicesblog.com. 16 Feb 2012.
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