Opti Eats & Optibods Nutrition co

10/03/2026

🥓🥦 Recipe Share – Bacon & Broccoli Soup

This one has been a crowd favourite for a long time and I’ve had quite a few people asking for the recipe lately… so here it is.

Bacon and broccoli might sound like a strange combination to some people, but trust me — the flavour combo is incredible.
The saltiness of the bacon with the sweetness of the broccoli just works.

It’s also one of those meals that is:
✔ quick
✔ simple
✔ high protein
✔ filling

And perfect when you want something warm, comforting and easy.

Per serve:
147 calories
18g protein
5g fat
12g carbs

So it fits nicely into a structured nutrition plan while still tasting like real food — not “diet food”.

Give it a go and let me know what you think!
If you make it, drop a photo in the comments 👇 I love seeing what you’re all cooking.

— Jo

09/03/2026

How many calories are in 1kg of body fat?

Approximately 7,700 calories.

So if someone gains 1kg of body fat in a week, it means they’ve consumed roughly 1,100 calories per day more than their body used during that week.

Let’s put that into a real-life example.

If someone has a metabolic rate of around 2000 calories per day, and their meal plan is set at 1500 calories to create a deficit… but they are gaining 1kg per week, the math tells us something important.

It suggests their actual intake is sitting somewhere around 3100 calories per day.

This isn’t fat shaming.
It’s simply how human biology works.

When a client genuinely doesn’t understand how weight gain is happening, that’s when we go back and dissect the diet together — looking at portion sizes, hidden calories, drinks, snacks, cooking fats, and foods that may be creating an overflow.

Because you can’t change what you don’t understand.

And that’s what I’m here for — to teach you how your body works so you can succeed long term.

— Jo

08/03/2026

Boron, Arthritis & Inflammation

The Mineral Nobody Talks AboutWhen people talk about joint pain or arthritis, the usual conversation goes straight to things like glucosamine, fish oil, anti-inflammatories, or cartilage wear and tear.But there’s a trace mineral that has been quietly sitting in the background of arthritis research...

04/03/2026

Trying to build muscle in the gym but also want body fat gone?

Then stop smashing the carbs.

If your goal is fat loss while training, your body already has stored fuel sitting there waiting to be used. That stored fuel is body fat.

When you keep adding starchy carbs like potato, rice and pasta on top of that, your body simply burns those first instead of tapping into the fat you’re trying to lose.

The old myth that you can’t build muscle and lose fat at the same time has been well and truly debunked.

You can absolutely do both.

But it requires giving your body the right signals.

Protein builds the muscle.
Training stimulates the muscle.
Your stored body fat becomes the fuel.

Keep the protein high, keep lifting weights, and stop feeding the system more carbs than it actually needs.

Let your body use what it has already stored.

03/03/2026

Struggling to lose weight even though you’re “doing all the right things”?

Ever wondered if it’s not your willpower… but your metabolism?

Most weight loss plans are templates.
Set calories. Hit macros. Hope for the best.

But bodies aren’t templates.

At Optibods Nutrition Co, I work with your specific metabolism for fat loss.
Your history.
Your hormones.
Your patterns.
Your real life.

You choose the foods you actually like eating.
I balance them properly.

We adjust as your body responds.
We work on habits.
We address emotional eating.
We educate so you understand what’s happening — not just follow instructions blindly.

This isn’t a fad.
It’s structured, personalised nutrition with weekly coaching and counselling support.

12 weeks.
Clear plan.
Real accountability.
No extremes.

Weight loss, made easy.

If you’re ready to stop guessing and start working with your body instead of fighting it, message me.

Jo 💚

OptiBods Female-specific weightloss nutrition plans and counselling services

26/02/2026

Some of you may already know, others may be wondering, so I wanted to share this properly.

The cooking side of Opti Eats (the café and meal service) is now permanently closed.

That chapter taught me more than I ever expected.
Cooking thousands of meals and adapting recipes into healthier, lower-calorie versions showed me how much can be changed without sacrificing enjoyment.
It gave me a depth of practical knowledge that no textbook ever could and allowed me to refine my nutrition plan recipes beautifully.

But at my core, my passion has always been working with people.

I’ve moved back to where my heart truly sits, 1:1 nutrition coaching and addiction counselling. Sitting with someone, understanding their relationship with food, their patterns, their history, and helping them rebuild trust with their body is where I do my best work.

This page will slowly evolve with me.
You’ll still see food, recipes and education, but also more insight into nutrition, behaviour, and the real-life side of change.

Thank you to everyone who supported Opti Eats in all its forms.
That chapter mattered.
Now it’s time for the next one.

Jo 🤍

13/02/2026

A sad memory came up today of a year ago, and I thought it fit to share.
Look at how the politicians used my story but none of them came to the rescue when I really needed it. No one cared when the voting was over!

Publicity for all of them to boost their careers but no real substance to their words.

My little business is proof of that.

Very sad memory 😭

10/02/2026

To our Opti Eats & Build-a-Bowl community 🤍

This is one of the hardest messages I’ve ever had to write.

After surviving the floods and then facing setback after setback beyond my control, I’ve made the incredibly difficult decision to close Opti Eats and Build-a-Bowl Eatery until further notice.

Following the flood and rain event last year, I did everything possible to recover and rebuild. I relocated the business entirely, took on a new lease, navigated council permits, trades, removalists, and rebuilt from the ground up — even expanding the vision by launching Build-a-Bowl alongside Opti Eats. I truly believed that the recovery grant designed to support businesses affected by the floods would help reimburse some of those unavoidable costs.

Unfortunately, despite multiple applications and exhausting every avenue available to me — including escalation through the Premier’s Office — the grant was ultimately denied. The reason was not a lack of impact or eligibility, but timing. The final event that forced closure occurred in March, after further damage to the building, and that event fell outside the date range covered by the grant guidelines.

By that point, all available resources had already been invested into simply trying to recover, relocate, and keep the business alive.

I pushed on anyway.

Severe staffing shortages meant I was often running the business myself, which reduced opening hours as I tried to juggle my other commitments. When financial pressure began to mount, I made the decision to sell the café to someone with the time, energy, and resources to take it to where it truly deserved to go — breakfast service, dinner trade, and the full potential I’d always envisioned.

Unfortunately, ongoing building issues made that impossible. Without those issues being resolved, no prospective buyer could move forward. Combined with safety concerns and the challenges of the location, I reached the point where continuing to fight simply wasn’t sustainable — emotionally, physically, or financially.

So, with a very heavy heart, I’ve chosen to stop.

This decision was not made lightly. It comes after months of resilience, advocacy, long days, longer nights, and doing absolutely everything I could with what I had.

To every single person who supported us — ordered meals, popped in for a bowl, sent messages of encouragement, shared our posts, or believed in what we were building — thank you. Truly. You kept us going longer than you’ll ever know.

My hope is still to pass this business on to someone who has the right space and opportunity to give it the future it deserves. If that happens, I’ll be the first to celebrate it.

For now, all I can say is thank you for walking this journey with me.

With gratitude,
Jo 🤍