This month’s How I Flourish features Certified Nutrition Specialist and Actor/Writer/Producer, Esosa Edosomwan. Also known as ‘Raw Girl’, Esosa E. has built a health platform that inspires people to live a holistic lifestyle. It was important to invite her to share the routines that comprise her personal holistic journey.
Name: Esosa E. (short for Esosa Edosomwan), MS, CNS, LDN aka “The Raw Girl”
City/Country: DMV, USA
Company: Raw Girl Coaching
Title: Certified Nutrition Specialist & Behavioral Coach
Other roles played: Actress, Writer, Producer @officialesosae
Describe your mornings, from when you wake up to when work begins: In the morning I wake up early but spend a good hour in bed before I leave it. Prayer and meditation first, and then I check my Whoop tracker to see how my sleep and recovery went while getting in around 24 fluid ounces of water. After that I usually get up and go for a workout. I’m usually outdoors hiking or running, or indoors on my Pilates Reformer or taking a class at SolidCore. I take a shower – that usually has at least three thirty second bursts of cold water towards the end to activate the vagus nerve. Normal grooming stuff – I use oils mixed with essential oil on my skin in general and have a bunch of different types. I also floss using peppermint essential oil after brushing my teeth. My beauty products are really simple – I use a coconut water cleanser and often moringa oil, and for makeup I roll with a vegan tinted moisturizer and a pressed powder I make at home from cacao and turmeric powder. I have heavy client days and days when I am writing or developing projects. On my heavy client days I check the schedule my assistant sends, prep for my clients, order any testing clients need, respond to any client inquiries in my health portal, and review their files so I am ready to see them. My first client usually is booked in my schedule at 11 AM. Before I see my first client one of my favorite fall go-to’s is to have turmeric milk (made with non-dairy milk) and add L-glutamine powder to it for post-workout recovery. That’s around the time I take some of my staple supplements. If I don’t do turmeric milk, I love a good cup of matcha tea in the morning. Shortly after I’ll usually have an organic veggie/fruit juice.
What happens when work ends? It depends on the day. After I finish my client notes or meet with my team members, if I didn’t exercise in the morning sometimes go for a workout which may be hiking or running on a trail outdoors, or doing some strength training at Solid Core or on my Pilates reformer. If I workout, I prepare dinner afterwards because I’m usually hungry and want to make sure I refuel, if I don’t I may end [up] eating by early evening.
Nighttime routine: I then usually have some non-caffeinated herbal tea, and may grab a book I’m trying to finish, listen to a book on tape, or chat with a friend or family member via phone. Brushing teeth, flossing with essential oils—peppermint is my favorite for that—and oil pulling are night time rituals. If I’m about that life on certain days I may do a bentonite clay mask followed by a hydrating face mask afterwards. Before I go to sleep I turn off my wifi, sometimes turn on my essential oil diffuser, do my prayers and I’m out. I also sleep on a grounding mat.
What is self-care to you? Self-care is the ability to take care of your bodies’ baseline needs. Self-Care to me means “Taking Your M.E.D.S.S.” which involves daily mindfulness, exercise, diet, supplementation, and getting adequate sleep. Beyond that foundation, then it’s fun to get fancy and indulge in pampering. For me that may include regular massages, acupuncture, facials and more.
Favorite self-care hacks: Taking a Weekly Sabbath, Prayer, Meditation, Grounding (walking barefoot in nature), Intermittent Fasting, Spiritual Fasting, Massages, Acupuncture, Whoop Tracker
Favorite guilty pleasure: Not guilty 🙂 But I love a good acai bowl or on very rare occasions raw vegan chocolate because I’ve managed to get rid of my sweet tooth. The only guilty pleasure I can think of are these low sugar raw vegan desserts by Urban Remedy. I like them even though they mess up my macros and are pretty high in fat so I indulge only on occasion.
Image courtesy of Esosa Edosomwan