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These Are the Staples a Health Coach Stocks to Manage Stress and Stay Fueled

Well+Good Editors

April 29, 2018

Welcome to Next Gen of Wellness, our spotlight of the nine up-and-coming icons you need to know about *right now*. We’ve partnered with Quest Nutrition—makers of the craveable, high-protein, low net-carb Quest Bar—to showcase these icons’ mindfulness tips, nutrition advice, and routine-simplifying hacks. Below, GoFitJo blogger Jo Encarnacion shares her pantry essentials.

You can learn a lot about a wellness guru’s habits and go-to meals by seeing the jars that line her shelves—just take, for example, the enviously organized pantry of health coach and blogger Jo Encarnacion.

“My philosophy is all about simple, healthy, and fresh,” says the mother of two. “We’re a busy Bay Area family who loves nutritious and wholesome foods. But we also love simplicity in our meals, focusing on the flavor that the ingredients we use provide.”

And her mason jars back up that story. Chock full of grains, grab-and-go snacks, and adaptogens, it's got something for the modern-day wellness obsessive (Jo) and her family (including two young daughters). “We love our grains: quinoa, brown rice, and white rice. They are simple whole grains that everyone in the family including my eight year old can make with ease.”

To make healthy food choices easier, she keeps health-boosting add-ins handy for morning smoothie and oatmeal and protein-packed Quest Bars in easy-access bins—plus a tincture she swears reduces stress, anxiety, and muscle soreness (more on that, below).

Scroll down to see inside her pantry (including the two anti-inflammatory ingredients she adds to everything), and click the hotspots for more intel on her essentials.

  
  Rice
 “My kids love white rice and I’m more of a brown-rice fan, so what I’ve done in the past is mix half and half into the rice cooker or pot so that I can start incorporating more of the healthy stuff into their meals.”
 
 
  
 
 
  
  Whole-Wheat Flour
 “The big jar on the left is all-purpose whole-wheat flour. I use all-purpose whole-wheat flour and coconut sugar on the rare occasions that I bake.”

What’s something you always keep stocked in your pantry?

My family loves rice in their meals so we stock up on a lot of it. It’s quick-to-cook and something that can be used in a whole lot of different meals. Another pantry essential is turmeric. I’ve been experiencing inflammation, so I’ve been keeping a stock of turmeric and sprinkling that into any dish I can.

Your pantry is so organized. Can you describe the layout?

I try my best to keep it that way. Truthfully, it’s been a challenge to keep it this way since we recently moved and we’re still learning our best workflow in the kitchen. We have a large walk-in pantry that my kids and husband have taken over—so this one’s mama’s!

  
  Quest Bars 
 “If you warm up a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Quest Bar in the oven or microwave till it melts a little, it tastes like a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie.”
 
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There's a variety of whole nuts, sliced almonds, chia seeds, and goji berries. How do you incorporate these ingredients into meals and snacks?

I’m a huge fan of healthy fats. I sneak them into my meals as much as I can. Chia seeds and goji berries are a must in overnight oats while nuts are incorporated in salads or just a standalone snack.

You have quite the stash of Quest Bars!

Quest Bars were the first proteins bars I ever had! So I feel like I’ll always have this love affair with them. I snack on them when I’m running out of time to make something healthy or when I’m on the go and I need something to keep me fueled while I’m in between meetings or errands. I’m a huge fan of the low sugar, high protein content, and the taste.

  
  Adaptogens
 “I find that adaptogens have truly been helpful with my stress management.”
 
 
  
 
 
  
  Nut butters
 “I love [nut butters] on toast, in egg-white-and-oatmeal muffins, mixed into my oatmeal, and sometimes, you’ll find me sneaking a spoonful into my mouth when no one’s watching.”

What do you pack when you you’ll be out of the house for several hours?

I always have kombucha in hand, trail mix, and some sort of protein bar.

What are in the tins of powders?

The powders that I have are all different types of adaptogens that I sneak into juices, teas, and on occasion, my cold-brew coffee. Next to those are nut butters. They hold my life together.

  
  CBD supplement
 “[CBD] also helps me manage stress and anxiety. I feel more at ease physically and not as tense. I typically describe the effects of CBD for me to those who ask like this: Imagine your shoulders are extremely tense almost pulled up to your ears. The moment the effects of CBD kick in, I feel the tension in my body loosen up, which helps me move forward with my daily living.”

What are in the dropper bottles on the left?

The tinctures are liquid stevia. On the occasion when I want something sweetened, I’ll use stevia rather than sugar or honey. I just love having options.

One of the tinctures is my favorite hemp-oil-based CBD tincture. I use CBD specifically to help with inflammation and to help reduce muscle soreness. I find that when I take CBD prior to a workout that I’m not as sore after so it’s been a staple of mine as a supplement.

We noticed that you have more tea than coffee in your pantry. What do you drink in the morning?

I’m a huge tea fan! In the mornings, you’ll find me sipping on either a turmeric latte or a matcha latte.

In partnership with Quest Nutrition

Photos: Courtesy of GoFitJo