Transforming Lives through Nutrition | Karalynne Call's Journey to Just Ingredients

In this episode of Rise and Grind, host Thurl Bailey sits down with Karalynne Call, the founder of Just Ingredients, a thriving health and wellness brand dedicated to educating consumers about nutrition and the importance of clean ingredients. With a passion for healthier living, Karalynne has built an engaged community of over 1.3 million followers on Instagram, where she shares invaluable insights on nutrition, mental health, and sustainable lifestyle choices. During the interview, Karalynne opens up about her personal health journey and the inspiration behind creating Just Ingredients. She discusses the challenges she faced in educating others about the benefits of natural foods and how she overcame them through dedication and perseverance. Karalynne also shares practical tips for incorporating healthier choices into daily life and emphasizes the importance of small, sustainable changes. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur, health enthusiast, or someone looking to improve your well-being, this conversation is packed with motivation and actionable advice. Join us as we explore how Karalynne's journey can inspire you to take control of your health and make informed decisions about the ingredients in your life! Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and leave a comment to let us know what you think of this empowering episode! 

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

If you have a log and you have a saw that needs to um cut the log in half, that saw goes back and forth, back and forth. If it just stays equal or stays neutral and balanced on the log, then nothing happens, right? It doesn't do its work, it's not effective. And so she said, your life is the log, you are the saw, you're going back and forth, back and forth, mean work, family, work, family, back to work, back to family. And so she's like, the problem comes when the saw gets stuck on one side and doesn't move back to the other side.

SPEAKER_00 1:12

Today we have a really special guest who embodies the spirit of health and wellness, Carlin Call, founder and CEO of Just Ingredients. As a certified nutritionist and passionate wellness advocate, Carlin has built one of the country's fastest growing health and wellness companies, fostering a vibrant community of over 1.3 million followers on Instagram. Through her engaging content, podcast, and speaking engagement, she inspires people to make healthier, happier lifestyle choices through simple sustainable changes. So join us now as we dive into her personal health journey, the challenges of running a successful business, and her insights on using real food to transform lives. Carlen, welcome to Rise and Grind.

SPEAKER_01 2:09

Well, thank you so much for having me. It's an honor.

SPEAKER_00 2:12

Well, I this is unsolicited. I hope it's not tacky, but I just want you to know that I I am I'm one of your biggest fans.

SPEAKER_01 2:20

Oh, I love it.

SPEAKER_00 2:21

And you didn't know I was gonna do this, but not just myself, but my family as well. So I want to thank you for that because you know, health, health and wellness has always been important to me because I you know I played a long time at the highest level in the NBA. But after I retired, my health became more important to me. I know we're gonna talk a little bit about that too. Um, but but thank you for that.

SPEAKER_01 2:45

So well, thank you for using our products. I appreciate that.

SPEAKER_00 2:49

No, it's it's it's my pleasure, our pleasure. So, look, no successful journey just happens, right? It all starts on a personal side. Can you share your personal health journey that led you to become a certified nutritionist and advocate for healthier living?

SPEAKER_01 3:08

Yeah, it's quite the story. So I have to start back about 19, 20 years ago because that's when it all started. So um, about 19, 20 years ago, I had three little boys at the time. And after um the little my youngest boy was about a year at the time, and I found myself with really bad depression. And um, and depression looks different for everybody, and I feel like I had every phase of it where there were days I couldn't get out of bed, days I had to fake it and get out of bed, days I couldn't make decisions, days that everything was overwhelming, days that I was mad, days I was frustrated. There was just no joy or happiness in life. And so I kept thinking to myself, well, I haven't always been like this, so something must have happened. And so I would go to doctor after doctor asking for help. And they would say, Oh, we don't know how to heal depression, there's nothing to heal depression. Um, we can give you this antidepressant. And don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against antidepressants. They can be life-saving for the moment and for the time being. Um, but I was looking for something to heal, and I was getting so frustrated with these doctors just telling me there was nothing they could do for depression. Now, granted, this was, like I said, 19, 20 years ago. So if you have a doctor today that says that, run because we know so much more about mental health. Um, but I just went a year about two years looking for a doctor and could not find anybody to help me. And so one day I remember someone saying, like, you'll see the light at the end of the tunnel. And I was sitting in my rocking chair in my room thinking, there is no light at the end of this tunnel. Like, this life is miserable. And finally, one day I just had had it. I said, I'm not good for I can't even raise my kids. I this is terrible living every day like this. I'm this is not good for my husband. I'm done. I want to be done. And so I actually attempted suicide. And thankfully, by the grace of God and complete miracles, the act failed. And at that point, then I really realized I had hit rock bottom and needed help, whatever it took. And so um at that point, I did go on antidepressants because I needed them. And then for it took two more years to finally find a doctor that was like, yes, I will help you heal from this. And she was like, depression is just your body screaming for help that there's something wrong. So we've got to do a lot of blood work and urine tests and saliva tests and all these different tests and figure out what your body is screaming to you. And long story short, I was just eating the typical American standard diet, thinking that's what you do. And um, I had after all those tests, we found out so many things from little things to bigger things. So things as simple as like being low in vitamin D and not absorbing my B vitamins and being low in magnesium to having some liver issues to some cortisol issues to some some hormonal issues to food intolerances. Like the list just went on and on. And um, the doctor's like, well, no wonder why you're not functioning the best that you can. Your body's not being fueled properly. Like, I need to teach you how to fuel your body so that your body can do the best for you. Your body wants to do the best for you, but you have to give it the right fuel. And so I went on a two-year journey with her where she helped me heal from depression. She taught me what to um fuel my body with. And after those two years, I was able to get off the antidepressants, and that's been about 15 years from now, or since, and I have never dealt with depression since, just because I learned how to fuel my body.

SPEAKER_00 6:50

Well, first of all, I want to thank you for being so vulnerable because I know, and you know for a fact, that there are a lot of people out there that are sometimes afraid, maybe even to talk about it or to to get help.

SPEAKER_01 7:07

Well, for sure, because there is still a lot of judgment out there. Yes. And I was judged really harsh when I was asking for help years ago, and so that's why I am trying to be vocal about it, to be like, we know how to help people with depression, like, go get the help. There is hope out there. It's when I lost the hope of any healing that I wanted to end my life. And so that is part of my message of Just Ingredients is that there is hope out there and healing out there.

SPEAKER_00 7:33

That's an amazing journey in itself. Was there a specific moment or experience that kind of solidified your commitment to health and nutrition as you as you started to launch just ingredients?

SPEAKER_01 7:48

Well, so let me tell you how this led into Just Ingredients, and then that will answer that question. So about seven or eight years ago, I felt like everybody around me, community members, neighbors, extended family members, they all were dealing with like anxiety, depression, uh, chronic fatigue, uh, migraines, uh, ADHD, I mean, you name it, someone was dealing with something. And I was like, this is so much illness around me. And I was like, I wish I could just go into these people's homes and cook for them for a month and grocery shop for them for a month. I know I could help them so much, but of course you can't do that. So I was like, you know what? I'm gonna just start a little Instagram account then, and my goal was to get 2,000 followers, and I was like, I'm just gonna start this account and teach people little swaps, like go to Walmart and buy this ketchup that doesn't have the high fructose corn syrup that's sitting right next to the one that has high fructose corn syrup in it because, and then I would try to teach them like high fructose corn syrup can degrade tryptophan, but you need tryptophan to make serotonin to feel good. So I was just trying to teach these simple little things. I wanted 2,000 followers. I thought, um, if I could get 2,000 followers, that then I'm done. My passion.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

2,000.

SPEAKER_01 9:01

Yeah, and so it just started growing, and people were curious about this information, and people were looking for an easy way to be healthy. Um, I have six kids, and so I wasn't teaching like, oh, you have to eat kale and sardines only. I'm teaching like here's a healthier mac and cheese and hamburgers and pizza and things like that. And so it just resonated with people. And then once I got to about a hundred thousand followers, I thought, oh, I have a customer base now. Why don't I start trying to go make products that I can't find out there on the market that I wish were on the market? And so that's what really started just ingredients into making products for people.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

Well, I know it wasn't easy. So as you dove into this, as you committed to this, what are some of the biggest challenges you faced before?

SPEAKER_01 9:55

There have been a yeah, there have been a lot of challenges because of my background of knowing that like real food really nourishes the body and we need the proper fuel to do our body the best so that our body can do its best. Um, I was adamant about making products with only real food ingredients. And let me tell you, when I went to food scientists after food scientists, they all told me, like, oh no, you can't do that. You have to put natural flavors in, you have to put artificial flavors in. We can't do that. Finally, I found one food scientist that was willing to try it. But I remember our, I think our third protein powder we came out with was pumpkin spice. And I was like, Yeah, we're gonna make it with pumpkin and spices. And he's like, There's nothing on the market that makes that any pumpkin flavor on the market made with pumpkin and spices, it's all fake flavors, it's artificial or natural flavors. And I'm like, no, I want real food. And he's like, You can't put pumpkin in protein powder like that, just will make it too moist and too wet. And I'm like, we're gonna figure out a way to do this. And so um, we figured out a way. All you have to do is freeze-dry the pumpkin, and then you have pumpkin in there, and so um, we did it with pumpkin and spices, but it was a constant battle at the beginning of no, you can't use real food. Real food will go bad, real food won't taste the same throughout the board. Real food costs way too much. You can't make it with real food. So it was an uphill battle, I feel like, for so long to try to convince food scientists, manufacturers that I wanted to make products with real food.

SPEAKER_00 11:36

Well, I think uh anything worth doing, you're gonna find those kind of challenges, as you well know. Speaking of challenges, have you encountered any uh challenges in educating other people? I mean your your audience about using natural ingredients in their diets? Because we're we're creatures of habit, Carly.

SPEAKER_01 11:56

We are.

SPEAKER_00 11:57

We are uh you know, uh have you had have you faced any challenges in that sector with your Yeah, it's been crazy.

SPEAKER_01 12:05

I will tell you, um before COVID, people thought I was crazy. They were like, who cares what you eat? It doesn't matter what you eat, it's American standard diet, it's safe, it's on the store shelves. I will tell you, after COVID was a big eye-opener for people, and people started believing me. So before COVID, I would get rude, rude, nasty comments, such, such mean hate out there, as you know, on the internet. And I was like, wow, I didn't realize this is what I was walking into starting an Instagram, all this hate and meanness, you know. But then after COVID, I think it opened people's eyes of like, oh, food can help the immune system, and food actually plays a role in how we feel. And so then the comments and things started being nicer, and it was easier to educate after COVID, crazy enough.

SPEAKER_00 12:54

Well, you've obviously developed a huge platform, and and you've been able to transition into podcasting, public speaking. Um, was there any specific thing that motivated you to expand your reach beyond social media? And what kind of goals do you have for those platforms?

SPEAKER_01 13:12

Yeah, so our whole company is really a mission and passion-driven project of mine. I feel like I was given a second chance at life, and so I need to use my second chance of life doing something good. And there's just so many people out there struggling with health issues, whether it's mental or infertility or you know, energy or hormonal, or I mean, the list goes on and on of people dealing with health issues. And um, my whole passion is just to keep trying to educate in any way or shape that I can to try to teach people like, look, like I've said on here before, your body wants to do it you good, but you've got to fuel it properly. And it's such a simple message, but yet it's so hard for people to comprehend and actually do on a daily basis. And so I started doing other platforms, hoping that if they heard from other people or in different ways, that maybe something would click or resonate with them. And so I started my podcast purely to bring on top scientists and top doctors in their fields and some doctors to talk about thyroids and some about the heart and some about, you know, hormones and all different topics, so that people could have another resource to go to if they were dealing with that health issue. And so um I laugh because we're on TikTok, which I hate you. It is like you've got to do all these trends and you know funny things. But I'm like, you know what? I'll do it if it helps get the word out there of like, look, there is a way to live a healthier um life that will give you a life full of energy and happiness and purpose. Um, then I'm willing to do the dumb old TikTok trends. So really, we're trying to create all these platforms purely to help people and teach people and let them know, you know, there's a life of happiness and health out there.

SPEAKER_00 15:06

You've got a pretty good sized family, right? Six kids and a husband, and uh that takes a lot of balance. How do you balance your personal life and the demands of running a growing business? I know it can be tough. And so how do you manage what what tips might you have for other entrepreneurs as well?

SPEAKER_01 15:23

It can be really tough. Um, I'm not gonna lie, I've got six kids, like you said, and running a full-time business. Um, one, I do tell people it's also the season of life that you're in. I don't think I could have done this with six toddlers or you know, six little kids. They're growing a little bit. And so I was able to have high schoolers that could help carpool or help take kids to games or you know, things like that. But the best piece of advice that someone gave me that I love is she told me, look, uh, if you have a log and you have a saw that needs to um cut the log in half, that saw goes back and forth, back and forth. If it just stays equal or stays neutral and balanced on the log, then nothing happens, right? It doesn't do its work, it's not effective. And so she said, your life is the log, you are the saw, you're going back and forth, back and forth, meaning work, family, work, family, back to work, back to family. And so she's like, the problem comes when the saw gets stuck on one side and doesn't move back to the other side. And so thinking that way for me has really helped because I'll be like, oh, we're in a busy time of work. Okay, that's fine. My saw is going to work. Okay, I've been in this busy time for what, a week or something? I really need to go back and focus on my family. I'll make sure I have family time. And so making sure that saw goes back and forth has helped me not freak out about every uh having to be balanced every single day because it's not a daily basis that it needs to be balanced.

SPEAKER_00 16:58

Well, and I'm pretty sure you you have to have uh a team around you that can help you do that, right? Uh on on both sides, uh especially on the business side, to where you've got people you know you can rely on. Um especially so talk to us about that that support and that team that you you've you've built to to Yeah, which is hard.

SPEAKER_01 17:22

Yeah, which is hard also because um at the beginning it was me and my kids, you know, and then it was me and some nieces and nephews that were helping me, and then my husband who quit his job to come help me. And so it really did start out as family, and so my kids, nieces, nephews, things like that were my support to grow this business. And then from there, it was starting to hire people. Well, actually, then it became friends. Then friends came on to help me, and I mean that's what happens a lot of times in a little startup. And then um, once we went through family and friends, then I started hiring experts in the field, right? I needed someone who actually knew about marketing and someone who could actually be over operations and someone a CFO and you know, things like that. And so um, yeah, it started with family and friends, which a lot of startups do, and then finally reaching out to experts, and now we're still growing, always trying to find team members that are, you know, have a specific knowledge about something.

SPEAKER_00 18:27

Well, Carl M, we're gonna take a quick break, and when we come back, uh we're gonna get into what a lot of people deal with. That that other person next to them that throws in the self-doubt, right? And and a lot of people can't get out of it. They want to move on, they want to they want to move on with the grind and be successful. So when I come back, I want to ask you about that. So stick with us. We'll be right back. Hey guys, time out. You know, you give your best to your work, your family, and your responsibilities. But to keep showing up strong, you've got to stay dialed in. At Game Day Men's Health, the nation's leading men's clinic, they help you get back in the game. With a custom game plan built around your labs, your goals, and your performance. Testosterone, peptides, real optimization. Come in today for a free testosterone test and consult. Tell them Big T sent You, and you get 50% off your first year membership. Game Daymenshealth.com. Victory starts within. Welcome back, everybody. Thorl Bailey here. Rising and grinding with Carlyn Call, CEO and founder of Just Ingredients. And uh, Carlin, I want to talk to you about that self-doubt thing because it it hits all of us at some point. There have been, of course, there are listeners out there and viewers who have had dreams and goals and have talked themselves out of it. Um, did you experience any of that? I'm I'm guessing you have, and and if and when you did, how did you climb out of that pit?

SPEAKER_01 20:08

Yeah, so I've faced that actually quite a few times in building just ingredients. Um, and one thing, well, okay, so having attempted suicide, you feel a lot of guilt, a lot of shame. You could really be a victim. And so one thing that I really had to learn um is that you've got to quit being a victim to your past and not worry about your past because a lot of self-doubt I think comes from the past of like, oh, I could never do that, or I tried that, it couldn't happen, or whatever. And so I had to learn how to get out of victim mentality. And okay, yep, that happened, but I'm moving forward and I'm trying to do good from what happened in the past. And so as soon as people get out of victim mentality, I think they can look at life um in a broader and bigger way and be like, okay, I can do this, I can accomplish this, I'm not a victim to my past. So that's been one thing, but another thing that's been really helpful for me is um I truly believe in their science that shows this, that your brain believes anything that you tell it. And so if you tell your brain you can't do it, then you your brain's gonna believe you. Yeah, you can't do it. But if you tell your brain you can do this, which is really hard for a lot of people to do because we always worry about things or like, oh, I don't think I can do that. I don't know, that's too big for me. That's too hard for me. If you tell your brain you can do it, you really can do it. You your brain will figure out a way to do it. And so those have been my two huge things is like, okay, I'm not a victim to my past. What happened in the past can be learning experiences to help me shape a better future. And then two if I'm gonna do this, if I'm gonna tackle this, I'm gonna tell my brain I can do this, and we're going to accomplish. This and I guess there's two other little things I will say really quick. One is being consistent. Um, consistency, I think, is the key to a lot of things. If we're consistent, then usually things happen. And the last thing I would say is don't let a no from people be your no, is what I tell people. Because I've been told no so many times I can't even tell you. And if I had listened to all of those no's, just ingredients wouldn't even exist. And some of our new products that are coming out wouldn't even exist. And so um I've learned to turn somebody's no into fuel to make me want to do it even more so. And so um those are my tips of you know what, we all have self-doubt, we all have a past, we all have a brain. Let's tell our brain to do good and let's not worry about the past and let's move forward.

SPEAKER_00 22:56

I love it. So, with everything, even kind of in my past field in professional basketball, there are trends, things change quickly. I felt like we went from short shorts to caprice in no time, Carlin.

SPEAKER_01 23:13

Hilarious.

SPEAKER_00 23:14

But uh how do you stay, how do you stay current with nutrition trends and research to keep your community informed? And are there any particular resources you rely on?

SPEAKER_01 23:26

Yeah, the trends are changing all the time. Um, we try to stay up on the research. I love I just have a huge passion for nutrition. So crazy enough, I just love listening to the scientists and the doctors talk about nutrition. So I constantly am trying to stay up just with the latest research, um, purely to make sure I'm educating people correctly. And a fun thing that we've done on our Instagram lately is like new studies that are coming out. I'll try to educate others on these new studies so that we're all aware. I'm like, if I'm learning it, then I might as well be teaching it to my audience. And so um these days it's so easy. You used to have to go delve into the studies, which we still do um to make sure things are factual. But with all these podcasts out there and books, it's so easy to listen to these doctors and scientists and experts. And so I do love that, but then the trends in products is even different than the trends in the research of nutrition. We're trying to just disrupt the market, is what I say. Yeah, and so I feel like we disrupted the market with protein powder, with making with real food. Now there's a lot of other brands that do it. Whereas when I started five years ago, there wasn't there was one other company that we knew of that was making with real food. Um, and so now I'm trying to disrupt the market in the can industry because as I have these teenagers and young adults, I see these energy cans all over the place, everybody drinking these energy cans. And I'm like, okay, if I'm gonna disrupt the market, we're going to go make energy cans that are made with real food and actually ingredients that nourish the body, that actually give the body energy and help like the mitochondria and the ATP things like that, rather than just this fake energy and stuff full of crap ingredients.

SPEAKER_00 25:17

So I'm gonna hit you with kind of a lightning round. What small sustainable changes do you recommend that can lead to helpful to impact your health results? Any small sustainable things that you found on your journey that you can recommend?

SPEAKER_01 25:36

Yes, I I think people don't eat enough fruits and veggies and don't get enough fiber to feed the good bacteria in the gut. So just add fruits and veggies to breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

SPEAKER_00 25:48

Do you have a uh a resource that has significantly influenced your work?

SPEAKER_01 25:55

So years ago when I started um learning all this stuff, so 15 years ago, and he's still around, is Dr. Josh Axe. Um, he was one of the first doctors to help me learn about nutrition and how food plays a role in our health and things like that. So he still is someone that I look up to and love reading his papers and things like that.

SPEAKER_00 26:19

Carl and what kept what kept you showing up? And I know you've covered some of this, but what kept you showing up when everything told you the stopping? This is a really important piece for our listeners because you know that's why we're here, right?

SPEAKER_01 26:31

Right. So what keeps me showing up is I've sort of mentioned this before, but it's three threefold here. Um the the blessing of giving being given a second chance of life. I really feel like if everybody had that experience of, oh my gosh, I was given a second chance of life, okay, I'm going to do something good with it, it changes your whole perspective of life and this world and humanity and things like that. And so that keeps me showing up, but also the fact that I don't want my kids to ever have to go through what I went through. And I want to teach them the help and nutrition that they need so that they don't have to go through what I went through. And so showing up for my kids and just everybody out there that needs to learn about help, that is honestly what keeps me going. And if people don't have a passion for their business, I say it's gonna be really hard. You've got to have a passion for it.

SPEAKER_00 27:28

You are so amazing. Um tell everybody where they can find your podcast and the name of it, and and kind of a uh little hint of kind of what's coming up.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

Yeah, so you can find me at just.ingredients on all the platforms, TikTok, social or uh Instagram, Facebook, things like that. The podcast is also called Just Ingredients. Um, you can find us on our website, and we have over 250 different products of things that are all made to nourish your body with no hidden or controversial ingredients, things like that.

SPEAKER_00 28:07

Carlin, you're you're amazing. Thank you for what you've done for a lot of people and sharing your journey with us. And uh, we're gonna post all those things here on our podcast for people to on this episode for people to follow you and listen to you. Uh, I'm a big fan. Uh, and I may be one of your biggest fans. I'm seven feet tall, so literally.

SPEAKER_01 28:30

I love that. Thank you so much. That was so nice of you.

SPEAKER_00 28:34

Yeah, I you've got uh a lot of fans out there. I want to thank everybody listening and watching this podcast for joining us on this episode of Rise and Grind. And if you found value in Carlin's journey and insights on health and wellness, I encourage you to take that inspiration and apply it to your own life. Remember, small, sustainable changes can lead to big results. And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and leave us a review and share this episode with someone who might benefit from Carlin's message. Connect with us on social media and let us know what steps you're taking toward a healthier lifestyle. Keep showing up. Until next time, I'm Theryl Bailey. And this is Rise and Grind. Thank you. We'll see you next time.