When Mariela Vazquez was a college student at Stan State, she was often under a lot of stress, pressed for time, and was continuously eating on the go. While vigorously searching for healthier options, she began to realize that nothing was nourishing or health-fixated near the campus.

Soon enough, this planted the seed for taking initiative in her lifestyle which inevitably led to her becoming an entrepreneur and bringing a healthier cafe to her community. “Nutrition Vibes is located at 334 N Center St. Suite C, in Turlock.

“After graduating high school I had packed on some weight, I felt lethargic, low in energy. My nutrition was awful and it was showing through my mood,” said Vasquez. 

Poor health, whether it be emotionally or physically, can weaken an individual’s immune system. Students are constantly burning the midnight oil, endlessly fixating on papers and assignments aimed at proficiency. It can be a lot, and oftentimes college students find themselves feeling stressed, anxious, or upset, ultimately distracting from prioritizing their health and wellness.

Vasquez began exercising, eating thoroughly and implementing daily activities that allowed her to alleviate chronic stress. She started taking products that contained fiber, aloe vera, collagen, protein, as well as creatine which allowed her body to be satisfied in a more self-sufficient manner.

“When I got onto this journey, and introduced this nutrition to my lifestyle, it was so life-changing,” she said. “It would be selfish of me to not share how incredible these products can help people feel.”

When Vasquez began taking initiative, her healthy habits began to attract praise and words of encouragement from others. 

“I was inspired to do the business so that I could also help others pretty much do the same thing. I started doing fit camps,” she said. “Fit camps were for everyone.” 

She said anyone was welcome and she started getting asked by people if we were to open a location, a place to offer the drinks. 

“That was something that I envisioned to be an amazing journey, and it began to be what pretty much my husband and I were looking forward to,” she said. “To introduce the drinks, sample the nutrition and bring it to the local communities here.” 

Vasquez offers a variety of cleaner food and drink options for members of the Stan State community and the Turlock community at large, who are continuously on the move. On the weekdays, Nutrition Vibes opens from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sundays are a rest day for her team. A variety of lifted teas, protein shakes, warm oatmeal, post-workout shots along with pre-workout to even protein waffles and power bowls are all featured on the menu. 

“Our sole focus here at Nutrition Vibes is making it as clean and as healthy as possible but still yet very enjoyable,” Vazquez said. “So people know that being healthy doesn’t mean you have to always sacrifice having something taste good.” 

Nicole Iniguez, a busy high school senior who frequents Nutrition Vibes often, said she loves the teas they offer. 

“I’m always in need of a quick pick me up and the variety of drinks that Mariela offers here is definitely the way to go,” she said. “My favorite would have to be the cucumber lime.

Iniquez added that she also loves adding a boost to her teas, because it doesn’t give her a nasty crash. 

“I’m always running errands, completing homework, or out doing sports…so making a quick stop here is part of my routine,” she said. 

She said her favorite lifted tea is made with lemon tea which is formulated to boost metabolism. In addition, the cucumber lime has mango aloe vera which cleans the digestive system, and a lime liftoff tablet which contains the energy. 

“Oftentimes in the media, there’s this fear of food. It’s an absolute abyss of comparison, but when you’re surrounded by empowering people- people who want to help, it makes all the difference,” Iniquez said. “I really like how this is a cafe that has clean food, healthy food, and on top of that, I love supporting small businesses.” 

As a college student, it’s easy to default toward unhealthy and highly processed energy drinks. What makes Nutrition Vibes energizing tea different from an average red bull is that it fulfills the same craving for energy but in a much more replenishing way. 

“Our lifted teas are great, healthy energy drinks that don’t have all the crazy sugars that your average drink has. It’s packed with antioxidants and the taste is absolutely delicious! It helps you feel good,” Vasquez said. “It’s loaded with a bunch of B vitamins which are natural energy boosters and on top of that, it also helps with mental focus and clarity.” 

Another popular menu item are her protein shakes which range from post-workout to pre-workout, to an average shake loaded with protein. 

“Each shake is packed with optimal nutrition,” Vasquez explained.. “It’s loaded with vitamins, minerals, nutrients, fiber, potassium, calcium, soy protein-each shake is packed with so much which is why it is actually the number one healthy meal replacement shake in the world.” 

She added that students are always so on the go, so these two menu items are perfect because they are getting a healthy meal and something to help boost their energy, get their homework done, and study.

What makes her business different from others is that it goes beyond the average marketing gain. Her cafe flourishes with friendships, words of encouragement, exercise courses, educational learning opportunities about health and so much more. It’s become a haven for those who feel intimidated by the media stereotypes. 

“Here we don’t just sell and say, bye have a great day. It’s a little more personal than that. All the baristas behind the bar are coaches so we work on helping others achieve their goals. It’s more than just selling our menu items. It goes deeper than that. We will work closely with those who truly are interested in working towards their health.” 

Belen Dominguez, a coach and barista behind the bar of the cafe said, “My favorite part of working here is customer interactions and being able to educate them when they’re looking for some sort of guidance. Being comfortable and happy within your body is my perfect definition of what it means to be healthy. You have to be content physically and mentally.” 

The door to becoming educated on becoming healthier is not too far from Stan State, with Vasquez’s cafe about a ten-minute commute from campus. And as overwhelming as the nutrition world may be, having a trustworthy person guiding you on where to start is essential in feeling safe and well supported.

“It’s been really cool, seeing our dream come to life,” Vasquez’s husband, Marcus added. “Who would’ve thought that working out and eating well would have led us to open up a platform that delivers nutrition for everyone!”