Finding a balance

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This article was published 21/10/2023 (1084 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Chanelle Lagassé has managed to do at the age of 30 what many would take lifetimes to accomplish: creating a life that reflects her values and interests.

She recently celebrated the first year anniversary of Evergreen Nourish Co, the online business she launched last August. The registered holistic nutritionist is also an environmentalist currently completing a degree in environmental studies with a focus on environmental health.

As a plant-based entrepreneur, Lagassé works to empower millennials and others to nourish their bodies with more plants and align their lifestyles with their environmental and social values. Evergreen Nourish Co was created from a passion for both the health of people and the planet, with services centred around helping people achieve optimal wellness. The savvy online content creator regularly posts short, lighthearted videos that inform, inspire and encourage viewers to live in healthier awareness, benefiting themselves and the environment.

As a holistic nutritionist, Lagassé takes everything into consideration when working with a client, including lifestyle, nutrition and mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health.

“I think I always had a kind of a connection to both health and nature,” said Lagassé, who was born and raised in a small community near Winnipeg.

Her first career as a dental hygienist didn’t provide the environmental dimension she longed for, so she returned to school to study holistic nutrition through the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition, where the environmental component was significant, offering a variety of health courses and a focus on how food impacts the environment.

“It really resonated — I loved that. When I became a nutritionist, I had already dabbled. I wanted to have the whole environmental space in the nutrition space,” she said, adding that being able to address people’s health issues from that perspective is unique.

“I always knew I wanted to have a career that helps people and protects the Earth. I wanted to do something in health, to be healthier, to help people be healthier. I was in the environmental space online, transitioning to a low-waste lifestyle and I wanted to be able to do something that touched both.”

Lagassé has been following a low-waste lifestyle and eating plant-based for five years.

“Most people have heard of zero-waste lifestyle, which is sometimes not realistic. I was buying everything in bulk — I had to drive further to get to the store, using fossil fuels, it was hard … whereas low-waste is doing what you can within your means and your budget. It’s choosing what you are able to do, not being so hard on yourself. It’s much more sustainable in the long-term. In the back of your mind, you’re doing what you can to be sustainable, without it taking over your life. If it’s stressful to your life it’s not good for your health,” she said.

Lagassé believes in our busy society, it’s vital to view health holistically rather than with a narrow lens, as many health issues are exacerbated by stress.

That means assessing food choices, movement, stress management, sleep quality, what we expose ourselves to in our environments and our mindsets. It’s not just what we’re eating, but how we’re eating, and who we surround ourselves with, according to Lagassé.

“That’s why as a holistic nutritionist, I help clients with a lot more than just food,” she said. “We have to address lifestyle, too, to balance our hormones and our gut.”

Though not all of her clients are vegan, Lagassé notes that plant-based registered nutritionists and vegan dietitians in Winnipeg are few and far between. Being able to offer that as a service in the community fills a much-needed gap. For anyone who is also environmentally minded and cares about social and environmental justice as part of their values, working with Lagassé is more likely to have good results.

“Since I’ve been vegan it’s becoming so much more mainstream, so much more attainable. All of the options in the stores makes transitions easier,” she said.

With her active online presence, which includes sharing food resources, Lagassé has attracted millennials to her business but she has had clients of all ages and offers free discovery calls for potential clients to ask questions and learn about her programs. As more people are becoming eco-minded, the connection between health and environment gains more attention.

“Obviously, with the climate crisis, it’s becoming more and more obvious that our day-to-day activities are affecting the climate. We feel very powerless, but there’s quite a few things that we can do,” she said, noting that having support to take those first steps can be crucial to making long-term changes.

“I really love being able to empower people to make changes because it does help climate anxiety when doing something that is impactful. You’re always feeling that you could be doing something better. We can make a huge difference. I feel like any time that you’re able to do something that feels good for you it motivates you to do even more.”

Clients appreciate Lagassé’s ability to work one on one and offer a safe non-judgmental space to explore ways to better their health. They’ve reported more energy, better sleep and improved mental health.

Identifying dietary deficiencies, learning about gut health and the impact of hormones are just some of the areas Lagassé will explore. Clients can be vegan, wanting to go plant-based or just interested in optimizing meal plans to feel better.

“My practice is fully virtual; I can see clients from anywhere in the world without them having to commute. They can be sitting in their pyjamas. I love that I don’t have to commute to an office. I had considered this when I was about to graduate. I really wanted to make it my own: intentional with my particular background, very environmentally focused.

“The online model is a lot more accessible for folks, for people of different abilities. It’s really exciting. This is only the first year.”

Visit: evergreennourishco.com