Emily Frisella is changing lives, one fit meal at a time. As a two-time bestselling cookbook author, co-host of the highly rated iTunes Food in Session Nutrition Podcast and creator of The Women in Business Workshop, Emily has allowed her passions to create her empire. She uses her love of nutrition and fitness to teach women that healthy eating and exercise can give them more energy and focus to achieve their goals. She is also a firm believer that managing time is one of the truest ways to success and has created a line of planners to help you do just that. Let’s meet Emily!
FWM: Emily, thank you for joining me for this interview! Please introduce yourself and your business.
EF: Emily Frisella, I am a twice published author of the Amazon Best Seller “The Fresh Farmhouse Kitchen” and “The Saints Plate & The Sinners Dinner” Cookbooks. Creator of Fit Home & Health- a life-planning brand. Co-host of iTunes top rated Food in Session Nutrition Podcast, Founder of The Women in Business Workshop, COO of 44Seven Media, Business Coach, Brand Builder & Public Speaker.
FWM: When did you begin your clean eating journey?
EF: About 15 years ago I was an athlete all my life and into college. Once I left college I realized I couldn’t eat like I was use to. I grew up on a farm and that meant fried chicken, chicken fried steak, biscuits, lots of butter and fats…all amazingly delicious food but I wasn’t nearly as active to burn that many calories, so I gained about 15 pounds and was no longer comfortable in my jeans and always tugging at my clothes because they didn’t fit properly. I decided to start restricting my food and joined a gym. The working out made me feel great, but I always felt tired and weak because I wasn’t fueling my fitness, I was looking at food as the “enemy” when in fact it wasn’t the food at all….it was the type of food I chose to eat. I sold my first brick and mortar business in my early 20’s then helped manage my friend’s gym. It was there that I was really exposed to health and nutrition and got certified in nutrition, exercise physiology & kinesiology. I then went on to coach members at the gym and helped them with their nutrition and I myself learned that food is fuel and I needed the right fuel. That meant lots of lean proteins, complex carbs and healthy fats. I began incorporating this into my daily life and realized how good our bodies are designed to feel. I have continued this journey and continue to learn as much as I can in order to better help others.
FWM: How do you feel that you are empowering women and your community?
EF: It’s my hope that they see a normal girl that grew up on a farm in a small town chasing her dreams & making them happen no matter the hiccups may come along the way. I have shared on social media my past ups and downs in life from working since I was 14, buying my first house at 19, starting a brick & mortar business at 20, nearly losing my first business, my first marriage, selling my business and property, divorce, moving back home with my parents for a couple years, working 2 jobs while I wrote my first cookbook, leaving my career, launching my current businesses and continuing to grow and expand. Every period of my life has served a great purpose and full of lessons- and that is what I share with them. Perspective. I want to help women realize that they are perfectly capable, that they need to be disciplined, they need to put their head down and put in the work. I feel I empower women by running my business with a “win” mentality. In my Women In Business group we use the phrase “Win > WooWoo”- it’s for the babes that will work hard to outwork anyone; man or woman. I want to inspire women to work & fight like they are the third dog on Noah’s Ark and it’s starting to rain.
FWM: Please tell us about the Food in Session Nutrition Podcast
EF: My co-host Mindy Musselman and myself started the podcast in June of 2016. We are both very much into the health and fitness lifestyle and any podcasts we were listening to either had so many advertisements it made it unenjoyable, was too scientific for normal daily consumption or were only preaching “this” diet or “that” diet. So, we decided to do the total opposite and create an advertisement free, real world applicable information and share all information on diets, health and overall wellness type of podcast. Our mission each Sunday with our episodes is to deliver health information you can apply now no matter age, gender, current lifestyle or budget. A majority of people want to live a healthy life, but they don’t know where to start, we break it down in a way that makes it more of a fun conversation with your friends than a platform to preach from.
FWM: I am a planner enthusiast. I LOVE planners. I know that you have created one. Tell me what inspired you to do so.
EF: If you love planners….I love you! 🙂 I have always been a paper planner toting gal. I love to write things & cross them off. I have carried a planner every year for nearly 22 years, always finding one I thought was just okay, never truly loving it so 3 years ago I found myself frustrated that I never found the perfect planner for everything I needed. Two years ago, I was even more frustrated and decided if I wanted it, I would have to create it….so that’s what I did. I worked on the design for 20 months with my designer and finally got it perfect in my eyes. It just launched this fall and the planners begin January 2020. I am so excited to see the women and men receiving them and sharing their love for them on social media. Any entrepreneur knows it’s scary to launch a new product. You never know if it will be well received and if people will love it as much as you do, which makes it even more fulfilling to see that what you created is helping others in their life.
FWM: I also know that you are a cookbook author. I saw your recipe for a Strawberry Nutella Smoothie and it looks DELICIOUS!! What is your favorite recipe from your cookbooks?
EF: My favorite recipe from my cookbooks would probably be my Chicken Power Bowl from my newest cookbook “The Saints Plate & The Sinners Dinner” (It’s a dual cover cookbook so it’s 2 cookbooks in one. Healthy recipes on one side and more indulgent meals on the other side) The Chicken Power Bowl is filling but not heavy, a perfect balance of protein, carbs and fats, amazing flavor and easy to prepare for dinner or prepare it in bulk for your lunches for the week or meal prep.
FWM: Tell us what’s next for Emily Frisella in 2020.
EF: 2020 has me very excited. I have a special project I’ve been working on for a year for my Women in Business Workshop brand that I will launch mid-2020, I will be developing a larger planner collection for 2021 to include more masculine planners as well as the feminine ones, stickers, pens, notepads, etc. I am expanding my staff mid-year and working on my cookware line to hopefully launch in early 2021 and consistently working harder to reach and impact more women through my free webinars, courses, YouTube videos and Instagram
FWM: How can our readers connect with you outside of this interview?
EF: They can connect with me on:
Instagram @emilyfrisella
My website www.fithomeandhealth.com
Facebook: Fit Home & Health
YouTube: Emily Frisella
