Liberty Road

interview by Nada Jones

Lori Gigantelli is a registered dietitian who earned her B.S. from Colorado State University in Nutrition and Food Science and her dietetic internship at St. Paul Ramsey Medical Center in Minnesota. She began her career in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, counseling patients in a large outpatient clinic.

During the next 29 years, which included several family relocations, Lori continued to weave projects, volunteerism, and contract work centering around nutrition and wellness into her life, all while raising four children. She led Trim Within™, an adult weight loss program, while counseling in a Lipid Clinic. Lori has worked as a coach for the National Dairy Council's Fuel Up to Play 60 program and as a consultant, piloting the Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Childcare (NAP SACC) program. She has provided individual nutritional counseling for weight management and chronic medical conditions and has coached clients to reach their health and wellness goals in clinical and fitness settings.

In this episode, Nada sits down with Lori (funny enough, the two went to high school together) to take a look back and ahead. Lori talks about her new endeavor, MIXEVE, which started with her making chia pudding with her now college-age daughter during the pandemic. The concept behind MIXEVE was to deliver an easy-to-prepare chia breakfast and snack. Unlike many of our origin story interviews of women looking back, Lori shares the day-to-day reality of launching a start-up from the trenches. From data-driven decision-making to leaning into her past experiences as a dietitian, Lori says she's been learning new skills daily to get MIXEVE off the ground and into our homes.

Listen on Apple Podcast | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcast | Or right here!

Check out MIXEVE's website for overnight chia pudding and chia oatmeal blend dry mixes. Lori suggests you add All the Broken Places by John Boyne, Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly, The Paris Architect by Charles Belfoure, Leonardo Da Vinci, and The Code Breaker, both by Walter Isaacson, to your bookshelf. Follow on Instagram: @mixeve_overnightchia

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