New club focuses on student health

Bear Nutrition is a Health club located on La Salle Avenue in Waco and was started by a Baylor alumnus, current student and a mother. Matthew McCarroll | Lariat Photographer
Bear Nutrition is a Health club located on La Salle Avenue in Waco and was started by a Baylor alumnus, current student and a mother.
Matthew McCarroll | Lariat Photographer

By Breanna Nichols
Reporter

Two Baylor students and a Baylor mom are fighting the freshman 15 with the founding of a new club, Bear Nutrition, to help students create a healthier environment.

Austin sophomore Kyler Lindsey and graduate student Jeff Bischoff partnered with Kyler’s mom, Diana Lindsey, over Parents’ Weekend in the fall to form the club and pick its location.

After yo-yo dieting for years, Diana began using Herbalife products and said she found the products helped to keep the weight off. She introduced Kyler to the products and he also said he had success in losing body fat. The mother and son began working as individual distributors and wellness coaches.

Kyler, who said he had a strong desire to form relationships with his clients and the people he was coaching, began to consider the idea of forming a club with his mother and Bischoff near the Baylor campus. Baylor Nutrition was the realization of Kyler’s dream.

In the club, each member is paired with a wellness coach who, during his or her first visit, introduces the clients to the Herbalife products, which come in various packages of drinks, which include a shake, energy tea and aloe shot. Those who want more tailored packages have options, like adding more protein to the shakes the club offers.

Brandon Firby, manager of TotalNutrition Waco, said customers should be aware of ingredients when choosing products for consumption. “The first ingredient is always the base of what is being used in the product,” Firby said. “Soy is the first ingredient on the [Herbalife] label, and soy protein can increase estrogen in men.” For this reason, customers may want to keep in mind what is going into their bodies, Firby said.

Diana said the Herbalife products could be used “as a snack or a meal replacement.”

Though the 20-ounce Formula 1 shake offered by the club contains 20 vitamins, minerals and essential nutrients, Firby recommends using the shake as a snack instead of a meal replacement, because “the carbs to protein ratio is really high.”

“There isn’t enough protein in a shake to make it a meal replacement,” Firby said. “In order to get enough protein, you would need to have double the amount of scoops used in one shake.”

Southlake senior Caroline Curtis, a nutrition major and wellness coach at Bear Nutrition, has been using the Formula 1 shake with added protein powder every day for years as a meal replacement.

“It’s convenient for students,” Curtis said. “Bear Nutrition is easy for students to get to, and it’s closer than other fast food restaurants in Waco.”

Diana said the club will begin to host social events throughout the month, including game nights where students can hang out and watch the Bears on a large-screen television.

“Our goal is to create another place near campus like Common Grounds or other popular social places students like to visit and hangout,” Diana said.

For more information on the nutrition club and products it uses, visit the Bear Nutrition page on Facebook, follow @BearNutrition on twitter or visit to the Herbalife website.