We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Carlynn Winkelman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Carlynn below.
Carlynn, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.
I had been in the nutritional and wellness space part time for a few years. I was essentially on an educational path to support my own healing and health journey, which eventually led to passion of sharing my acquired knowledge with others. I went back to school for Functional Nutrition, did an advanced course in Hormone Health, as well as a tremendous amount of self education in variety of fields surrounding human physiology and bioenergetics.
During this time, I worked for a wellness company full-time that was growing fast and provided a professional development track that I felt was going to be a major career opportunity. However, one day I was let go for financial reasons which was a major unexpected blow but ended up being the biggest blessing I could’ve been offered because it gave me an opportunity to finally dive into my own business.
Starting my own business was incredibly intimediating though. A path I felt was so daunting and completely out of my league. It certainly took a while to boost my self esteem, develop the confidence to be comfortable with the unknown, and trust in myself to make this opportunity successful. The truth is, is that your professional (and financial) opportunities are capped when you work for others but when you work for yourself, they’re endless! That was the biggest motivator for me; that I could create my own business framework, utilize my creativity in numerous ways, prioritize education, and feel nourished by following my passion of empowering women.
I just so happened to have just finished a very in depth program surrounding cellular health and mineral metabolism. This was the smartest investment in my educational journey and provided me a foundation that offered a unique (scientific) lens to approaching physiology and sustainable health. One that would quiet the noise of the wellness world, debunk the “health” fads, and go back to the basics of truly understanding what fuels and nourishes our bodies in a simplistic, comprehensible way.
What I currently do struggle with is uplevelling my business and delegation. That seems to be a common thread amongst small business owners and it’s hard to know how and when to delegate so that you can prioritize your time more efficiently to really start growing your business. Luckily I have some great resources I am utilizing to help guide me on this path which is another tip I’d recommend, ask for help and lean on others whose professional expertise can help you in areas where you struggle.
If there was anything I would do differently, it would be to have had faith in myself earlier and to have started this chapter sooner! Being your own business owner of course comes with risk but an immense amount of freedom!
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am a Hormone Health Consultant that supports women get to the root cause of their hormone imbalances through a lens of mineral regulation and bioenergetic nutrition. I am help women feel empowered in understanding their nutrient + nourishment needs to develop a resilient body to ride the ever-changing waves of womanhood. I am passionate about teaching and empowering women how to leverage their physiology to restore their cycles, improve metabolic health, maximize energy, balance the hormonal ecosystem, and connect to their intuitive selves. When women adopt a mineral mindset and take on a path of naturally supporting their hormonal landscape, they’re able to move through each stage of womanhood with confidence and ease.
My passion for Women’s Health began with my own hormone health journey and empowering myself with the tools to naturally heal my body and create a strong, resilient metabolic foundation. I dealt with years of menstrual pain, poor digestion, fluctuations with weight, drastic mood swings, and went through cyclical waves of depriving my body of exactly what it needed – Nutrients + Nourishment. I had a poor relationship to my body, long history of eating disorders, never questioned where my food came from, and always felt like my menstrual cycle was a normal burden. I was constantly at war with my body which deeply affected my mental + hormone health for years.
I wanted to get to the ROOT CAUSE of my hormone imbalances so I eventually went back to school where I dived into the bioenergetics of nutrition, cellular energy, mineral metabolism, female physiology and metabolic health. I adopted a food first approach, responsibly got off birth control, repaired my gut, restored my metabolism, shifted my nutrient + nourishment needs in alignment with my cycle and built a strong mineral foundation. This has been the most liberating aspect of my adult life and has lead to a deep connection to my power within.
I now teach and empower women with the tools and knowledge to take their hormone health into their own hands. Instead of outsourcing their power, we work on simple and natural solutions that support the inner networks of female physiology and metabolic health, that help the body feel safe and nourished – good sleep, optimal digestion, healthy ovulation, and nutrient density.
I truly believe that healthy women create thriving mothers that birth nourished children and this is what creates generational shifts towards a healthier, more balanced world. This is the goal and driving passion behind my work with women!
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
The best marketing approach I’ve taken hasn’t been on online platforms and social media ads but working with other health practitioners, they’ve been my most successful marketing tool. I offered a practitioner discount that allowed them as professional to understand my unique approach and to experience the results for themselves, this has allowed for word-of-mouth to be very successful where I know don’t have to work to get clients, they come to me.
The second has been a weekly newsletter, called The Nourished Newsletter, where I really prioritize education surrounding women’s health. This is my opportunity to really expand on specific health topics, offer in-depth education, and connect with my readers. This has led to clients signing up for free consultations and converting into clients.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Helping people see the advantage of quieting the noise of the wellness world, moving away from “wellness fads” that don’t serve female physiology, and to stop using crutches as a means to obtaining one’s health goals. The largest issue I see in the health and wellness space; is people subscribing to products, protocols, cleanses, diets, and supplements that all are marketed as the key to one’s health issues. We continuously outsource our power to others by subscribing into these trends which completely disconnect us from what we need to be listening to, our own body.
This was the approach I personally took within my own health journey and now I utilize in my practice. I live by what I teach and that is what I believe attracts clients to my practice. Im not just selling but I am living and embodying what I have learned and practiced within my own life and health journey.
A lot of what I educate my clients and community on very much goes against the norm and what we’ve been largely programmed to believe. In many ways, I think this attracts those that have been burned or in the rate race by the allopathic and even holistic medical space. I absolutely utilize a science based approach but through a simplistic lens that educates people about basic human physiology and returning to what has worked throughout human history.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.carlynnchristinewellness.com
- Instagram: @carlynnchristinewellness
- Facebook: Carlynn Christine Wellness
- Youtube: coming soon!
Image Credits
Photographer: Keely Breenan