Work Well Feature Stories

Each month, we shine a light on someone from our Work Well community, sharing their journey. These are honest conversations to inspire, encourage and remind you that you’re not alone on the path to creating work that feels good and does good.

Real stories from real people building meaningful businesses in the wellbeing space.

Our August feature is Anna, a nutritional therapist and health coach who focuses on women's health through her business Wellness With Anna Whyte. Let's dive straight in to see what she has to say..

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Q. What inspired you to start your wellbeing business?

A.  I have always been interested in food and nutrition, however growing up I wanted to be a primary school teacher. I taught for four years, and although I loved working with children, my teaching job came with stress, pressure and an ongoing to do list. I spent my evenings and weekends working - to satisfy the perfectionist in me and get the job done. Although I was eating well and exercising regularly, many areas of my health were not fulfilled. After much thought I knew I needed to make a change. I decided to leave my career as a teacher and fulfil my other passion in nutrition and health. I discovered the impact our diet can have on our overall health, whilst focussing on how our lifestyle can hugely impact this too. After studying for 4 years and with 6 years’ experience in the world of wellbeing, I love spending every day helping to support women to feel their best. My main areas of focus are women’s health and digestion.

Q. What’s one unexpected lesson you’ve learned since becoming self-employed?

A.  There are so many wonderful people working locally in health and nutrition. Initially, I think being self-employed can feel like you’re competing in a race and you have to move at the same speed / offer the same services as others to stay relevant / successful in an ever-growing field. What I learned quite quickly is that community is key and we can all learn from each other rather than work against one and other. No two people work in the same way, the way you work will always be unique, however working together can support your progress, help you learn and allow you to reach a wider audience. I have loved being a part of collaborations with other health professionals (especially as the self-employed world can feel quite lonely), whether it’s to work on a wellbeing event, network ideas or refer clients between, it has been a great way to grow whilst keeping my values and what I promote at the core.

Q. What part of your work fills your cup and reminds you why you do what you do?

A.  I absolutely love client conversations; educating an individual on potential changes they could make which could make a big difference to their health and witnessing the progress along the way. Sharing recipes is my absolute favourite thing, showcasing ways in which people can eat healthy and delicious food that isn’t overly time consuming and fits in with their family and work commitments, alongside supporting their health goals – there really is nothing better.

Being a part of an individual’s journey toward nourishing their body and hearing positive results / seeing symptom improvement is a big highlight of the job.

Q. What’s one thing you do regularly that helps you stay balanced?

A. Prep! Although food prep can be time consuming, implementing speedy hacks that can help you get prepped and organised for some of your meals in the week ahead is key for me – it’s a form of self-care. It not only helps me to balance my plate and prioritise nourishing food that helps me feel more energised, but it saves me time during a busy working day so that if I do get a bit of a break in the day, I can get outside or do something else that brings me joy. Of course, life happens and we don’t always have time, but when I make food prep a priority in my week, I feel calmer, more focussed and well fuelled.

Q. What would be one free tip to help others Work Well?

A. Eat protein and healthy fat for breakfast – this allows you to start the day in a healthy blood sugar range, with the potential for better concentration and focus, less fatigue and reduced cravings throughout the day. This could mean spending 20 minutes prepping a big frittata on a Sunday evening to fuel your mornings and keep you focused in the week ahead.

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