My Story
What I stand for
Making & Breaking the Rules
I have a strong focus on seeing the positive and creating the world you desire rather than fighting old paradigms. My own health journey has taught me that preaching does not serve anyone, it is all about self-empowerment and making the healing process fun. Whether it's in my workshops, online program or in a 1:1 consultation, when you work with me I become your biggest ally and always walk the talks of what I teach. I lead by example and invite you to my workshops where you witness first hand tools and techniques I use everyday to maintain my health.
I'm a humble German girl living the life of my dreams.
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My home is a tree-top villa, I begin every day with a beach run, am filled with energy and surrounded by amazing people. Even though my family still lives in Germany, we are very close, plus I am married to my soul-mate and best friend, Markus. Everyday I get to work with inspiring people who care about their health journey. They want to own their future and are willing to put in the effort to educate themselves and do not seek a magic pill to make everything better.
But it hasn't always been that way.
Following a car accident in 2004 I suffered severe chronic headaches. Over the course of the next 7 years I saw in excess of 50 health practitioners, took more than 10,000 pain killers and invested over $100,000 in treatments. I was examined by doctors from head to toe but they couldn't help me. Instead I was prescribed multiple drugs including anti-depressants which caused nightmares over several months and left me tired and numb.
Today: Kris having fun on the beach
This was the darkest time of my life.
One day a simple visit to the theme park ignited a flame of joy inside my heart and I realised that happy, energetic Kris was still there, I just had to fight for my own health - take bold actions in order to receive massive changes. So I left my corporate job to travel to Australia in February 2008. It felt like a positive step towards finding my passion and living in alignment. Even though externally I appeared to be successful, having excelled in university and landing an excellent job, I wasn't happy and I knew it.
I wasn't performing to my full potential.
Following my return to Germany in May 2008, I tested positive to lactose intolerance and hyperthyroidism. I though going dairy-free might be the cure for my headaches but doctors didn't agree with me, thinking that would be detrimental to my calcium levels. Instead, I was recommended a high-dairy, low lactose diet and was prescribed tablets for the thyroid condition which I was doomed to take for the rest of my life.
I felt frustrated and disempowered. However, I didn't give up.
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My own research led me to a clinic that specialized in chronic headaches and I learned that I needed to integrate more relaxation into my life, so I started meditating and listening to motivational audio books. I also worked with a physiotherapist and chiropractor to correct the alignment of my back which was damaged in the car accident.
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I further empowered myself by pursuing a career in Management Consulting where before long I was promoted to Senior Consultant, the youngest in the team. I really enjoyed the freedom this job gave me. I was able to travel a lot, was challenged and had the required spare time to focus on my research in topics like mindfulness, diet and happiness. In addition, I worked with a coach and spiritual healer who guided me along my way. She gave me clarity about my situation by looking at it from different perspectives which gave me confidence and empowered me to take the next steps.
Before: Kris 2006
Kris and Don Tolman 2017
In 2011 we had the opportunity to move to Sydney where I could finally own my life.
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I enrolled in a Marketing Masters degree which led to a leading consulting role at a telco company. The seed was planted for the entrepreneurial journey to begin. Markus and I hired a personal trainer to boost our health and changed to a wholefoods diet. Between us we lost 45kg.
We were happier and felt we could conquer the world.
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In just 3 months we went from barely surviving a 2km jog to finishing our first 10km trail race in 60 minutes. Another dream came true when I married Markus in 2013 on a beautiful beach in Sydney surrounded by our closest friends and family from all over the world.
Kris and Dr. Klaper 2018
Everything went well until the universe decided to throw me another curveball. A major hip injury saw me incapacitated for weeks and I found myself back in doctors’ offices, on pain killers and being told the only option was surgery. They said I would never run 10km in my life again. I learned that inflammation in my body was hindering my recovery so the health warrior inside me sprang into action again. Through research and using frameworks from my corporate job,
I structured the roadmap to health.
This gave me clarity on where I needed more knowledge, what experts I needed to work with and more importantly I had a clear vision of how my life would look when I was fully healed. The biggest transformation came from my dietary changes. I finally listened to my body and quit dairy for good. Within days I felt my natural energy and positive mindset returning, my skin cleared up and my stomach cramps were cured.
Gut Health Workshop
I became certified as a health coach
and learned about the healing power of a plant-based diet. I could feel how this new way of eating flushed out accumulated toxins from the high amount of pain-killers and medication I had taken over the past 10 years. It dramatically boosted the healing process of my hip and everyone commented on my glowing skin and positivity. I easily maintained my body weight and felt amazing. My research helped me understand that
70% of our immune system is located in the gut.
which also influences our emotions so having a strong gut is the key to health and happiness.
I progressively shifted my focus from my corporate career towards my passion for health and well being. In 2015 we created an ethical company that helps people transform their health and pursue their ideal life. With all the allergies, food intolerance and different diets people had, I saw a gap in the market on educating people about how to prepare meals that supported their own health, and that of their friends and family - foods that everybody would love. This was the catalyst for my first cookbook “How Not to Kill your Friends – the allergy-friendly cookbook”.
My own food journey continued with the completion of the I Quit Sugar program which inspired me to create the I Quit Dairy online program in September 2017. Two things about this program really excite me:
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1. There is now a tool which gives people the confidence and empowerment to go dairy-free and realise it’s a lot easier than they thought.
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2. Health Professionals love the program and are building it into their toolbox of resources to help their clients achieve health goals faster.
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In August 2017 I finished the City 2 Surf, a 14km race!
I stopped taking painkillers 4 years ago and avoided surgery.
This was my next-to-last milestone towards the full recovery of my hip. The final one will be to climb to the basecamp of Mount Everest.
By fully taking responsibility for my health and ultimately my whole life, I not only healed myself of chronic headaches, successfully recovered from a severe hip injury and lost 15kg of body fat, I am now reversing an auto-immune disease (I am medication & symptom free for 1.5 years now). This health transformation has opened the doors for me to realise the life of my dreams.
I am filled with gratitude for everything I’ve learned, for every detour I had to take, for every lesson my diseases or injuries taught me and the tools I learned in my corporate career. After all these years, I finally understand where life always wanted to lead me.