For Nikki Watts, her journey into nutrition began with a desire to improve her own health and evolved through motherhood, personal challenges and years of study. Her work now centres around supporting women and families through sustainable nutrition and lifestyle strategies, helping them to feel healthier, clearer and more in tune with their bodies without adding more pressure to their already full lives. Her mission is to help others find simple, practical ways to nourish their body, support their gut, and feel good in their skin again. Here, she talks to The Natural Parent Magazine about the passion behind her business, the realities of balancing entrepreneurship and family life, and her hopes and dreams for the future.
The passion: What inspired you to set up your business?
My passion for nutrition didn’t start as a business idea; it started because I wanted to improve my own health.
In my early twenties, my health was heading in a direction I wasn’t happy with. Poor sleep, poor habits, toxic relationships and constantly running on empty. I began making changes through fitness, walking, teaching myself to run again and joining gym classes, but it didn’t take long to realise that fitness alone wasn’t enough. I needed to look at what I was eating too.
I started learning more about clean eating, wholefoods, learning about ingredients and noticing how food and lifestyle impacted how I felt each day. What began as fitness and “cleaner eating” slowly became something much deeper. I fell in love with experimenting in the kitchen, learning more about foods I was eating, gut health and supporting my energy levels. At the time, my understanding was still fairly surface level, but it was enough to spark a real desire to learn more.
This led me to study Clinical Holistic Nutrition, which I completed just before becoming a mum. Then motherhood changed everything again. I was learning about my body while it was changing and growing a baby. Like many women, I experienced the typical symptoms of pregnancy, but I was also fascinated by how much the body adapts during this time.
I went through pregnancy, postpartum, navigating food intolerances with my daughter, gut concerns and my own weight fluctuations – from feeling like I would never feel “normal” again to then losing a lot of weight very quickly. I found myself feeling thin, tired, stressed and not quite like myself anymore. The juggle of family life opened my eyes in a whole new way. I suddenly felt like I didn’t know anything at all.
That’s when I realised there was so much more to understand about the body. I started looking for ways to deepen my knowledge and was introduced to Functional Nutrition by a local dietitian at the time. When I looked into it, it felt like everything I had been searching for.
It wasn’t just about what we were eating; it was about everything being connected. Stress, sleep, movement, gut health, hormones, nervous system support and so much more – and understanding how nutrition fits into all of it.
I went on to complete my studies as a Functional Nutrition Counsellor when my daughter was 6 months old, and that’s when things really started to make sense. This was when I knew I didn’t just want to improve my own health anymore. I wanted to help other women and families feel supported, understood and empowered in theirs. I also later studied pregnancy-specific nutrition to continue expanding my knowledge and better support women through this stage of life.
This journey hasn’t been overnight. It has evolved through every season of life. My own experiences, alongside my professional training, shape how I support my clients today.
There are no rigid protocols or pressure to be “perfect” – just practical support that works with real life.
A whole-body approach, and simple, sustainable foundations that can grow with you over time.
The launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
I started out with working from home seeing clients 1:1 while on maternity leave. Even after returning to work, I continued supporting clients on the side because I felt so strongly about the impact it was having.
Over time, I realised this was where my passion truly sat. I made the decision to fully step into this work and focus on supporting women and families as they navigate their own health challenges and changes in life.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
Moving into the office space I am in now and working solely in and on my business has been a big breakthrough for me. Being fully committed has allowed me to invest more time into reaching and supporting more people, learning how to run and grow the business properly and developing packages with my clients in mind with stronger foundations
Yin and Yang: How do you balance work and family?
I’m not going to lie, it is challenging and I’m still navigating it. I’m constantly learning, adjusting and refining things as I go. It’s never stationary but neither is life.
At the moment, I have Wednesdays off with my son while he’s still in daycare, which gives us time together for swimming lessons and a day just for us. Next term we’re shifting that to Mondays to create a smoother flow to the week.
On the other days, I structure my client sessions in a way that allows flexibility around family life such as after-school activities. This gives me dedicated time to focus on the business while still being present for my children outside of work hours.
My husband has been incredibly supportive. There are times when things are busier with the business or when events are on, which can place extra pressure on family life. My husband works a shift roster so on his days off, it also gives me a little more flexibility. Communication is our biggest win here, making sure we are working together and still have the same goals in mind for our family.
