Episode Ninety-Eight: Helen Marshall on the Benefits of Primal Eating
In this episode, I had the opportunity to speak with the wonderful Helen Marshall. Helen founded Primal Alternative – a range of products which provide a variety of organic and allergen-free alternatives for bread, pastry, wraps, cookies & granola.
Helen shared that several years ago she experienced a health crisis, where she “fell victim to the food pyramid” by consuming food she was taught was healthy (i.e. low fat) but was filled with sugar and artificial ingredients. She constantly felt unwell, anxious and overwhelmed so decided to make the switch to a gluten-free diet but was initially unimpressed with the selection that was on offer in mainstream supermarkets. Helen then wished to try “primal eating”, a stripped-back diet based on humans’ ancestral roots and found her health and well-being improved significantly. She found that for herself and her family, the key to maintaining this change was simply making small tweaks to recipes that they loved by swapping out ingredients in their favourite recipes, so that food was still a source of pleasure and there wasn’t a sense of deprivation or missing out.
Helen shared that the beginning of her healing journey was quite a bumpy one, and she recounts it to be almost akin to a “detox” experience. She said in hindsight she figured that she was likely gluten intolerant for some time, but just didn’t realize it. Helen explained that during this period when she was educating herself and making changes, she truly realized that gluten was prevalent in so many foods that she was completely unaware of, and it was an eye-opening experience. This newfound knowledge, paired with a strong feeling of intuition, inspired her to take the plunge and take her business to the next level.
We then chatted more about Primal Alternative, and Helen explained more about the interesting business model the company utilizes. Primal Alternative products are crafted and distributed to the community via local networks, headed by producers called “Primalistas”. Primal Alternative has a strong collaborative and community sense, which Helen is proud to have fostered. Helen shared that her past in recruiting gave her an insight into corporate trends and habits, and she noticed that women often got left behind when they took time off work to raise their children. She wanted to find a way for mums to work from home that would fit around their lifestyle, which turned into a “sisterhood” of sorts, and now women in all stages of life are currently involved as Primalistas.
Thank you, Helen, for this insightful talk and to hear more listen to Episode 98 now!
About Helen Marshall & Primal Alternative
Helen’s mission is to empower people to be accountable to their purpose with a new business model of freedom – the Primalista Licence.
The model was born from a desire to share a successful grain-free food business model. As a health coach, Helen saw first-hand how people ‘fell off the wagon’ as they missed comfort food staples like bread, pizza, pastries and cookies. So she created nourishing alternatives to the foods everyone loves and they literally sold like hotcakes.
Helen gets the struggles many face in finding a vocation that aligns with their values. She packaged everything she’d learnt about creating a food business from home whilst on a healing journey, raising a family and designing a lifestyle around the things she loves.
The Primalista Licence meets the needs of many people in all areas of their lives: vocational, financial, mental, spiritual, social, physical & familial.
To date, over 185 Primalistas have joined Primal Alternative in Australia, New Zealand, USA & UK.
She hosts the Primal Alternative Podcast on the Wellness Couch, Australia’s Number 1 health and wellness podcast station.
Before ditching the rat race, she was a Fitness Instructor and Personal trainer, then a Business Manager for a leading recruitment company in the city. Helen has interviewed people all of her life listening to their desires around health, work and lifestyle and has combined those skills to bring her greatest contribution yet – the Primalista Licence.
Helen lives on 100 acres of wilderness in Albany, WA with her husband Mike and their children Sam & Milly. She likes pilates, massage, coffee with her bestie, sunbathing, meditation, walks in nature, and champagne in the spa.
What You’ll Learn
The correlation between gut and mental health
How imbalances in internal health can manifest themselves in exterior ways
How easy it can be to maintain eating foods that you love, by only doing simple swapping of ingredients whilst cooking
What “greenwashing” on supermarket products refer to, and why you need to be wary of it
How success presents itself differently to separate individuals
Listen Now!
Links & Resources
Recommended Reading…
What’s Wrong with Normal Bread? – Primal Alternative blog
Primal Alternative Recipe eBook
Get connected with Helen Marshall on…
Instagram @primalalternative
Connect with Amy via the below links…
Instagram @amyinneshealth
Facebook @amyinneshealth
Uplevel your life community Facebook group
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