Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Cara Kasdorf, Co-Owner of Blueprint Nutrition, located in Waterloo, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Blueprint Nutrition is a nutrition counseling business that specializes in two core areas: I am the head of our Sports Nutrition division, where we work with athletes and active individuals, and my business partner heads our Child & Family Nutrition division, working with kids and families.

We help our clients fuel and nourish themselves and their families for everyday life and athletic performance. We use a food- and body-positive approach, where body image resilience and a healthy relationship with food play a central role in the work we do.

Tell us about yourself

I first developed an interest in nutrition as a high school runner and grew passionate about how whole foods can best nourish and fuel the body for sports and performance. Early on, as a student-athlete, I thought eating well was all about restriction, deprivation, and following a prescribed plan. Adhering to this type of eating myself, I often felt miserable, obsessed over what I ate, and expended loads of energy worrying about everything I put in my mouth.

Now, as a registered dietitian and seasoned marathon runner, I understand how wrong and damaging that approach can be, but sadly, how prevalent it is in the athletic world. I truly believe that eating as an athlete means understanding how to fuel your body for what it needs, listening to and respecting what your body is telling you, enjoying delicious and nourishing food, and, most of all, appreciating all that your body does for you!

The athletes I work with motivate me every day because they are hard workers, enthusiastic, and passionate about what they do. They are also open to a new approach to food and fueling and resisting the weight-centric paradigm that often persists in sports. I also have a fantastic business partner and a team of like-minded dietitians that provide support and motivation to continue to thrive in what we do.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Sports nutrition is a niche area, and I'm excited that I've been able to create a full-time practice working exclusively with athletes. I've worked with athletes at all levels of sport, including professional athletes and athletes competing internationally. It's exciting to be part of their success.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

One of the hardest things about being a business owner is staying focused on a clear vision for your business. It's easy to be pulled in a million different directions and get sidetracked and distracted by things that may not actually align with your values and vision for what you want to do. If you can keep your vision at the center of your decisions, it will help with decision-making and clarity.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

My top 3 tips would be:

  1. Have a clear vision of what you want to do in your business (and this may change over time, which is ok too!) and use that as your guide to making decisions.
  2. Find a community of like-minded people. I'm lucky to have an incredible business partner and a team of like-minded individuals that build each other up and provide support.
  3. Be ok with where you are today. It's great to have goals and want to move forward in your business, but make sure to enjoy the present instead of always focusing on striving for the future.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.blueprintnutrition.ca/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blueprintnutritionrd

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/blueprint.nutrition.kids/
https://www.instagram.com/blueprintnutritionsport/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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