It was 12:29pm when Tapp Francke (local registered nutrition counselor and founder of TappsTips.com) and I realized that our one-hour session had run a little longer than planned…by 29 minutes to be exact. I have a feeling I’m not the only one who can’t get enough of Tapp’s wealth of knowledge on all things food.

Skilled artist and photographer, Tapp Francke’s journey into nutrition counseling began while pregnant with baby #1. Her desire to contain baby innocence lead to a search for “pure” baby products. After examining countless labels, (at the health food store, mind you) Tapp concluded that there weren’t any “pure” baby foods on the market that met her standards. As a loving first-time mother, she wasn’t about to feed her perfectly healthy baby something she wouldn’t even eat herself. And so her journey began with making her own baby food. When her baby grew, so did her curiosity and she went back to school to learn how to empower herself, her family, and others to flourish through food. Now, Tapp balances life as a nutritionist, artist, mom of two, wife, and chef for her clients and family. While she wears many hats daily, talking to Tapp is surprisingly calming, soothing, and totally intriguing (hence those extra 29 minutes.)

My convo with Tapp kicked off with normal bodily functions. First things first – I gave a run-down of a typical day in my diet. Though I was expecting critiques throughout, Tapp’s response was instead: “and how are you feeling?” Life’s everyday processes, as Tapp states, are the “basis of health.” If your body is running smoothly, you’re probably fueling it right. If not, you’re probably not.

How refreshingly simple is that? Tapp’s mission is to spread awareness, most of all, that we should not put up with life as we know it. Most people live day-to-day feeling mediocure, blah, tired, sick, bloated, moody, in pain, etc. Instead of putting up with it, we can find out why we feel less than perfect and change! Tapp’s mission is simply to help people feel their best day after day. If we learn to fuel and heal our body naturally, like Tapp and her family do, we too can flourish through food.

In order to do so, it takes some “digging,” a process Tapp associates with the job of a detective. Once Tapp gathers all of the facts from a client about their diet and bodily processes, together, they follow the clues, eliminate the mysteries, and pinpoint the ‘culprit.’ There’s no better way to identify our sensitivities than to rid them from our diet and reintroduce them with awareness of results. Case closed.

As much as I learned from Tapp about nutrition, (a LOT) the most valuable lesson was a simple, yet profound, reminder of self-awareness. Awareness of how foods make us feel, awareness that we can feel better, awareness of the power of food, the quality of the foods we choose, ingredients in our fuel, and how they affect us individually. Education is huge. Research is huge. But nothing beats awareness.

Chatting with Tapp also gave me a renewed perspective (aka awareness) on why I do what I do. Even in a world of fast food, disease, obesity, malnutrition, overmedication, contradiction, and a food & drug administration built on money, not health, Tapp remains confident and hopeful as the minority. Although we can’t change the system from the top down, we can create change from the ground up through word of mouth and spreading awareness, individual to individual. Not only is it the goal of One Healthy Hamptons to spread health throughout the Hamptons, motivate and connect people, but also to encourage YOU to create small windows of change. Creating change throughout small groups and communities is what adds up to larger transformations. Together, we’re pretty powerful, huh?! What can you do? Be self-aware and spread the word of health. Tell someone you know about One Healthy Hamptons, try out Tapp’s nutritious recipes, or better yet, chat with her yourself – just email Tapp@tappstips.com to set up a consultation. Trust me, you’ll learn…a LOT!

One Healthy Breakdown: Thanks, Tapp, for being an amazing Hamptons resource and reminding me of these simple super powers. And thank YOU. If you’re reading this, you most likely care too and you will be part of a healthier future.