Jesse and I first met when he just bought the UK's leading online superfood store, Detox Your World, from Shazzie. We've since collaborated on various projects, including the launch of my own Acid Alkaline Breakthrough program, over which time I've been able to experience Jesse's incredible work ethic, his dedication, wisdom and passion for wellness, first-hand. More importantly is that we've also become really great friends and got to hang out together with his wife, Marjolijn and my fiancé, Elliot, both in Amsterdam and in London. Jesse is no doubt a master of his work, whose career developed from personal training into being internationally recognised as the #1 health coach in the Netherlands, co-owning superfood web shops superfood.nl and detoxyourworld.com and authoring a bestselling book 'Forever Young', with another on its way. His popular newsletter is enjoyed by an astounding number of 125,000 fans! He is much too modest to ever call his subscribers 'fans' of course, but I am telling you- this wonderful human being, who is loving, kind, generous, and totally down-to-earth, good guy is also kind of a big deal in the wellness world! Meet our September's Master of the Month... Describe your typical day of eating and drinking. I start my day off with about half a liter of water, often followed with a fermented drink like Kombucha or Kefir. Then I make myself a smoothie. Because I work out a lot I always use a combination of fresh greens, fruits and a protein powder, together with other superfoods based on what I think my body needs. My intention is always to listen to my body. I believe our body is a very intelligent ‘system’.

"Research showed that good bacteria in your colon tell your brain (there’s a direct connection from your gut to your brain) what to eat and how much to eat. So the healthier your colon is, and the broader your reference for different foods, the more intuitive you are on what you should eat. "

Some of my favorite foods are spirulina, avocado, banana, so they’re included in my breakfast smoothie most of the time. I sometimes take up to 60 grams of spirulina per day! But please be aware that you really need to work your way up on your spirulina consumption. What I’m also always considering is what other superfoods or herbs my body needs to keep my hormones balanced. Our endocrine system is a very sensitive system, easily influenced by both internal factors and external factors. Like our thoughts and emotions (particularly stress), what we eat, and physical activity. All these can both influence our hormones positively and negatively, depending on what we do or not do, eat or not eat. Our hormones are also very much influenced by radiation (from WiFi and mobile phones), sleep, etc. I believe if we aren’t aware of this, our hormones slowly start to get out of balance which speeds up aging, fat storage, loss of libido and all those things we don’t want. Some of my favourite herbs are Ho Shou Wu, Mucuna Pruriens, Rhodiola Rosae. And some of my other favourite hormone balancers are Pine Pollen, Maca and Tribulus. During the day I eat things like Quinoa, I have a salad for lunch, I snack on raw protein bars (I like the Pulsin bars), some raw chocolate (LoveChoc is my favourite), avocado, etc. For dinner I like sweet potatoes with a salad or some steamed vegetables. We (me and my wife) also eat a lot of sea vegetables like Kelp Noodles or Wakame, and we also always have some Irish Moss in our fridge to throw in a smoothie. Often I eat dinner with a couple of eggs but I try to limit the amount of eggs I eat to about 7 a week. In the end most people become intolerant to any food that they eat too much of. I see that a lot in the people I coach...

"After a period of being addicted to a certain food, your body starts rejecting it. And when you do a food intolerance test for those foods, results are 'allergy positive'! The body always keeps itself in balance."

After a workout I always drink a protein smoothie. Before going to bed I take a vitamin B complex supplement (the one from PR Labs), I take OmegaZen for my omega 3’s and I take vitamin D3 during the winter. When drinking is concerned I don’t drink anything else but water and tea. I follow this formula to determine how much water I should drink: body weight in KG * 0.44 / 10. So when you’re a 100 kg that’s 4.4 litres water per day. What (or who) inspires you to eat well and stay healthy?  I think what inspires me most is to live as long as I can. I want to enjoy life and I also want to achieve a lot in my lifetime (I have a huge mission to help other people achieve amazing health!) but for example when I have to choose between working late to get something done or to do that the next day, I choose to go to bed, get my sleep, keep my body balanced and do the work later.

"I don’t sacrifice my health to do anything, because I want to live long and have great energy during that time. I’m inspired by being the best I can be."

What is your biggest weakness when it comes to food and how do you deal with that? I think my biggest weakness is eating too little. I exercise a lot and often when I start my days with a very nutritional smoothie, my body feels so fed and nourished that I'm not that hungry. And of course, if you don't eat, your metabolism slows down and you're not that hungry anymore at all. When it comes to wanting to live long, not eating a lot is an advantage. The less you eat, the longer you live (and the more you get to eat!). But if you want to gain a bit of muscle from your workouts, you need to EAT :) To me that feels like the biggest weakness. Complete these sentences: My top tip for... ...Improving your diet is: start to drink a green smoothie a day (keeps the doctor away!). Add greens, some fruits, an avocado, maybe some shelled hemp seeds, perhaps even some Spirulina. If you want to make it a real 'meal smoothie', add some protein powder from brown rice protein (Sunwarrior) or hemp protein powder. Keep adding the good stuff and you'll stop eating the bad stuff eventually! ...Staying healthy while traveling is: easy! Just mix some superfood powders together into a bag and bring that with you. I mix Sunwarrior protein with Spirulina, some Lucuma, some passion fruit extract (both for taste), some greens powders (like Tanya's pH booster!) and maybe even some super herbs like Chaga, together into one bag. I bring this with me and start every day with a smoothie. You just need to add water! ...Detoxing is: necessary for anyone. I believe in making sure you're exposed to toxins as little as possible (don't eat toxic foods!), but you're always exposed to them. So eat foods that cleanse your body. Like cilantro (coriander), parsley, Spriulina, Chlorella, and Zeolites. ...Immunising is: keeping your colon healthy. You need to 'invite' the good bacteria in your colon. Drink Kombucha (make it yourself!), and Kefir. Use a probiotic supplement once in a while. Ferment your own foods. All cultures, that throughout history have proven to live longer than other cultures, always had something fermented in their food pattern. What’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to you? Great question! I feel blessed every time I hear stories how my work (our programs, or the seminars we give) has changed someone's life. Not a week goes by without a story how someone has quit using their medication and how they completely changed their life by starting to heal their own bodies first. It touches me to hear that every time. How would you like to be remembered? As someone who cared for others and who made an impact in other people's lives. I believe that most people don't value their health enough. My mission is to show them that there's such a higher 'level' of health to experience: more energy, better skin, more satisfaction with your own body. And that it's such a big foundation for everything else in your life. If you got to keep only 3 of your belongings: 1 thing from your kitchen, 1 thing from your garden and 1 thing from your bookshelf- what would they be? Kitchen: Vitamix Garden: The kale that we're growing ourselves Bookshelf: "Mastery" by Robert Greene If you could host a dinner party for 3 guests (dead or alive)- who would they be and what would you serve?  I would invite Nelson Mandela, Tony Robbins and my wife Marjolijn, so she can learn from them as well. I would serve a raw salad with quinoa, home made basil, some sea vegetables (like Wakame) and Kombucha for drinks. Or something like that. I'm not the best chef haha :) Why do you believe that life is Better Raw? Because people who eat mostly raw foods and superfoods are so much happier! They're less stressed, more confident, more happy and more ALIVE! Women who eat mostly raw- radiate. Which makes men happier, and the world a better place ;) Our Master of the Month shares his favourite raw food recipe...   125 g of organic shelled hemp seeds 2 tablespoons of cacao powder Lucuma powder (add according to taste) 1 teaspoon of vanilla powder 1 banana ½ an avocado ½ litre of water -Simply place all of the ingredients into your blender, blitz for a few seconds or until smooth and it’s ready to serve. For more on Jesse, his best-selling books, his sought-after seminars, and the best online stores to purchase your superfoods in the Netherlands and UK, see www.jessevandervelde.com, www.superfood.nl and www.detoxyourworld.com.