Daina Trout is the CEO and Founder of Health-Ade, the best-selling, organic kombucha brand that you see sitting on basically all of your co-workers’ desks. Launched at the Brentwood Farmers’ Market in 2012, Daina started her brand to “build a career and company” on her own terms, and also as a way to increase accessibility to the gut-boosting beverage. Though you’ve likely seen their bottles in retailers across the country, it was a long road to nationwide success, with several rounds of financing, starting with just a $2,000 personal investment. Then, in 2017, the company experienced three times growth, then doubled that the following year. We asked this successful wellness founder to share her best tips for making personal health a priority when running a growing business. She shares her self-care rituals below.

Bad habits you’ve cut from your routine?
1. Multi-tasking during conference calls.
2. Going to bed without washing my face.
3. Skipping flossing.

Good habits you’ve added?
1. Scheduling 10 mins between meetings.
2. Blocking 1 hour a day for emails.
3. Exercising before the rest of the family wakes up. 

How do you take care of yourself throughout the day?
It’s a challenge that always needs revisiting, and it’s been particularly hard this year as my business has taken on a ton of change and I am pregnant with child #2. The key for me lately has been viewing “balance” as something to achieve in a week, not in a day. I have identified that there are 5 roles important to me – wife, mother, CEO, self, and social. To feel balanced, in one week I have to be GREAT at all of those things at least once. This may not get me feeling perfect each day, but with all that’s on my plate, this offers a more realistic expectation for the extraordinary goal of balance. I have found that setting a more realistic expectation has made a LOT of difference in my happiness because I really can’t do it all! But this change kind of makes me feel like I can ☺

Are there any activities or hobbies you do to help you de-stress?
Hot baths are always there and in only 15 minutes can really change the tone for the rest of the night, so I rely on those a lot. If I’m SUPER stressed, I’ll take a bath and listen to a 15-minute Mindspace meditation at the same time. Also, massages—I get a lot out of hard pressure massages, but they do require advance planning so it’s not always a possible solution. I also find that starting my day with exercise sets a better stage. 

How many hours of sleep do you get a night? Is there anything you’d improve about your sleep schedule?
I know myself well – compromising on my sleep is a sure way to make me crabby and ineffective the next day. I make sure to get 8 hours, period. One thing I’m trying to be better at is not to look at my phone as soon as I wake up…still not there. 

Do you have a favorite wellness trend? 
I love the trend toward real instead of engineered food, and the trend toward health as a means to happiness (instead of perfection). 

What is your favorite healthy food? How do you incorporate it into your diet?
Kombucha of course! I drink it every day, around 3pm—I almost always hit a “slump” at 3pm and that gets me through to dinner. I also eat sauerkraut about 1-2X a week with dinner.