Adding Healthy Options to My Diet

 

Happy Wednesday you beautiful soul! Today I feel called to remind you just how MUCH you are appreciated. Your direct messages, emails, comments, and time spend reading what I share bring me such joy and motivation. Anyway, today I wanted to share that Sprouts is OPEN! As of today, you can shop fresh, natural, and organic groceries at affordable prices from 7 AM to 10 PM, daily, at 2200 Woodruff Road, Simpsonville, SC. Read on through to see what I loved and learn about healthy items you can easily incorporate into your diet. Also, a little heads up…. there’s a GIVEAWAY at the bottom!

 

SPROUTS HAS EVERYTHING I NEED

Brad and I attended a pre-grand opening at Sprouts and were beyond impressed. The store is strategically designed to optimize layout and ease of shopping with no detail overlooked. If I had to pick one thing that really stood out, I would say the variety of organic and unique offerings in the store. I hop between Bi-Lo, Whole Foods, Costco, Sams, Amazon.com, and Vitamin Shoppe. Now I can skip 500 errands because I can find everything I need at Sprouts. Odd items I have store-hopped for lately, including rotisserie chicken, fresh-pressed juices, liquid aminos, mushroom coffee, organic raspberries, seaweed snacks, bulletproof products, Vital proteins, Rao’s Homeade tomato sauces, a ketogenic cookbook, and obscure vitamins like spirulina, are ALL at Sprouts.

Vital Proteins Beef Collagen is a great addition to your morning coffee. The protein jumpstarts your metabolism, helps fill your daily requirement of protein, is tasteless, and improves your hair, skin, and nails.

 

I LOVE KOMBUCHA

When we arrived to the store, Wendie Schneider, dietitian and my yogi friend at PantryDoctor.com was instructing a cooking demo. Sprouts has no shortage of kombucha varieties. Wendie advised that kombucha is best consumed after a meal as it contains digestive enzymes that help break down food. This is great to increase digestion and pacify food sensitivities. Kombucha is fermented tea that contains less than 1% alcohol. It has loads of probiotics and is low in calories. You can consume kombucha as often as you like. The flavors vary as much as sodas, so be sure to try a few before you turn your nose!

 

You are a Pro Shopper – Tips from Our Tour

1. The homemade muffins are super popular!
2. Sprouts caters to transitional shoppers and offer cookies, muffins, bread, and other bakery items.
3. All deli items are created in-house!
4. Wednesdays are the most popular day to shop because they are double-ad days! Here’s the thing: One third of the store is on sale at any given time and the sales change once a week. However, on Wednesdays, sales from both the prior week as well as upcoming weeks are BOTH active!
5. Add Sprouts mobile app HERE to clip exclusive coupons and see what is on sale!
6. The beef is organic and NEVER FROZEN. This is as fresh as it gets!
7. The “Farmer’s Market” is the centerpiece of the store. We even ran across some fruits we have never heard of!
8. Food is sorted by fruits and veggies, packaged snacks, wine, meats, sides, international options, gluten-free, vegan, protein powders, bulk items, vitamins, coffee, kombucha, breads, flowers, soaps, and more!
9. The far left corner of the store holds a vegan section.
10. The frozen food aisle is super small since everything is fresh and organic. However, they carry a legit number of Enlightened Ice Cream flavors!
11. Three varieties of coffee are available every day for 99 cents a cup. Enjoy some caffeine while you shop.
12. The store has a smaller footprint than any other grocery store but contains just as many products!
13. Sprouts is very different from any other grocery store It is extremely unique in offerings, layout, and design.
14. You can sample new products each tixme you shop!
15. They have 5-head PEONIES right now for $9.99!

 

What We Bought

First, we grabbed some things we knew we needed like cage-free eggs, soap, and other essentials. Next, looked for healthy options that are harder to find elsewhere. First up was Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV). Body pH tends to sit just over 7 on the pH scale from 1-14. Most of what we consume, and especially sugar, is acidic (1-7) and your body is constantly trying to stay in balance. Taking Apple Cider Vinegar (that is basic, 7-14) to neutralize the body pH is trending in the health world. I tried it like twice and it is as terrible as you are guessing. However, having a stable pH helps digestion, so I found another way to get my body alkalized: dressings! I love salads so I picked up an ACV-based salad dressing.

Next, I grabbed this Ashwaganda Chai Coconut Milk. I’ve learned via my podcast kick that mushrooms and fungi are an entirely untapped variety of food that is great for our bodies. Ashwaganda is an adaptogen which means that it is a non-toxic fungi that helps the body adapt to physical and mental stress. With my eczema, allergies, and lifestyle, I am excited to introduce these to my diet and reap the benefits.

 

SAMPLES

The staff at Sprouts are eager and excited to share their knowledge. All staff can provide a sample of ANY fruit, veggie, bulk, or Sprouts-brand product in the store, so you can try before you buy. Next, samples are set up throughout the store. Brad and I loved the Irish Soda bread below. Local brands are offered including Crouch’s Gourmet Salsa out of Concord, NC and Larry’s Coffee out of Raleigh, NC. We sample the salsa and bought a jar of Crouch’s Peach Salsa. In addition to 99 cent cups, samples of three rotating coffee varieties are available any time.

 

 

In case you are like us and spend too much time grocery shopping, Sprouts has a full-service deli with convenient and fully-prepared foods. Sprouts offers pre-made meals you can cook. Pre-made sides and appetizers are conveniently ready for pickup on the way to a friends’ party. Finally, they have a sushi and a full salad bar so you can skip your drive-through stop on the way home. We grabbed a 2-pack of uncooked stuffed peppers for supper. Brad and I highly recommend.

 

 

The organization of the store was immaculate. I was particularly impressed with the fruits and veggies section. In our tour we learned that the family that started Sprouts first owned a stand at a farmer’s market. The business grew exponentially, but they did not want to compromise their products, organization, or high-quality. As a result, the “Farmer’s Market” is the centerpiece of Sprouts. Props to whomever had the patience to put all the ‘organic’ stickers on the veggies!

“I pulled up in a lemon” has been in my head all day. Of course, I had to get a shot blending in with the lemons. I always buy lemons for my morning lemon water as lemon is also alkaline and neutralizes your body pH. I refresh my water infuser weekly and drink it daily, first thing in the morning.

 

Plenty of peaches, peaches for me!

Being cheeky!

 

Every fruit or vegetable you can fathom is available in perfect organization. We grabbed strawberries, raspberries, lemon, and avocado. You may have heard that some fats are ESSENTIAL to your body. Avocados are a great source of healthy fats. Avoid the really green ones because they are not ripe. Go for one that is soft to touch and has started to blacken.

BULK

Sprouts has a 4-aisle bulk section where we gathered steel-cut oats, quinoa, flax seed, dried apples, nut mixes, and chia seeds for overnight oats. We have enough pre-made mix to last us 2 weeks of breakfasts – all under $10. ONE pound of oats are just $0.69. I am eating oats this morning!

 

Brad wasn’t a fan of seaweed, but I absolutely LOVE it! We got the Chocolate Wafer Bites and Ginger Snaps in a gift bag. These Siete tortilla chips are chips free corn, gluten, dairy, or soy. Although I am putting more focus and energy into a healthy diet, I still grabbed a few snack foods including my favorite COCONUT ROLLS from THIS post!

Finally, I had to grab one of my favorite flowers, peonies. I love how suddenly and largely they bloom. The many petals are whimsical and of course I love that they are pink!

 

I loved meeting and catching up with these beautiful blogger babes, listed left to right: JoAnn of Joannsfoodbites.com, ME, Mariah of MariahHoughton.com, Mikayla of PopGabble.com, and Angie of SouthernModernMom.com.

 

I loved my first trip to Sprouts and hope you try something new on your next grocery trip! The entire store and staff were friendly and hospitable. All in all I spent just over $100 and brought home tons of new items. They are offering hundreds of sales for the Grand Opening as well as freebies you can learn more about HERE.

Finally, I am giving away a $25 GIFT CARD TO SPROUTS! Comment on my Instagram post from today, Wednesday, June 13th and tag a friend! More tags means more entries. You can also comment on this post with your favorite part of this post. I have to ‘approve’ posts so it will not show up right away. I will announce the winner on Saturday, June 16th around noon. Goodluck to everyone and have a beautiful week!

With Joy,

SHOP THIS POST

*Thanks to Sprouts for sponsoring this post!*