Fitlife Foods welcomes 9th location, plans home delivery
BY Mike Hamson
Special correspondent
TBO.com
Published: February 24, 2016
SOUTH TAMPA — When you are crazy busy and working, David Osterweil, the founder of Fitlife Foods, wants you to win. According to his philosophy, winning is about feeling energetic and fit.
“We want people to get addicted to the way they feel,” Osterweil said. “Time is our most precious commodity. It’s the quality of that time that is really most important. There are days you feel great and feel fit. You feel like you can accomplish anything. Those are the days you want to repeat in your life. We all know the days when you feel sluggish.”
Osterweil, of Davis Island, started the concept of fresh, calorie-controlled and pre-packed meals in 2011. He now has nine locations throughout Florida with plans to offer delivery service. Fitlife Foods started at 2946 Providence Lakes Blvd. in Brandon a year ago. Since then, he has opened other franchise locations on South Dale Mabry Highway in South Tampa and North Dale Mabry Highway in Carrollwood with the latest opening this month in Fort Lauderdale.
“It’s easy to go to the grocery store and get a ton of stuff, but so many people leave the grocery store wondering, ‘What am I going to have for dinner tonight?’ ” he said. “Going to the grocery store is not fast. You may have one or two meals you get from there, but the reality is you walk into our store and you can take care of one meal or 15 different meal occasions in five minutes. You walk into our store and you just grab the meals and they all have four to five days of shelf life.”
When it comes to home delivery, Osterweil looks forward to competing with other diet programs, but he has an edge by giving customers more choices.
“There has been a lot of delivery concepts,” he said. “They lock you into a large program and you have to do a certain number of meals and they pick the meals you are going to eat. We like to give the power to the customer.”
Perfecting their diet-friendly and microwavable meals was not easy, but he has a team of culinary experts who use 39 original sauces and 13 original spice blends.
As a runner, Osterweil decided to appoint a wellness coach to each one of his retail locations. The wellness coach will advise customers on their body fat percentage and how many calories they burn at rest.
Fitness trainers in Hillsborough County have been leaning on Fitlife foods for several years.
Tricia Marshall, a trainer for Camp Gladiator, a fitness boot camp program in Valrico, said she encourages her clients to swap junk food for healthier options provided by Fitlife foods. No matter how much a person works out, it is difficult to reach their weight loss and fitness goals without proper nutrition, she said.
“Many times when people pickup new health routines, they fall into the trap of going to the extreme,” Marshall said. “My goal for my clients is to take the gradual approach and have them fuel their body with real food. This is when I tell them to go experience Fitlife Foods. They have excellent wellness coaches who truly invest in seeing their clients succeed and feel great, through proper nutrition.”
She said part of her task as a trainer is to help her clients find success in a modern world.
“More importantly, it is a time saver for us and really eliminates the tired excuse of ‘I just don’t have time to cook healthy,’ ” Marshall said.
For information, visit eatfitlifefoods.com.
Special correspondent
TBO.com
Published: February 24, 2016
SOUTH TAMPA — When you are crazy busy and working, David Osterweil, the founder of Fitlife Foods, wants you to win. According to his philosophy, winning is about feeling energetic and fit.
“We want people to get addicted to the way they feel,” Osterweil said. “Time is our most precious commodity. It’s the quality of that time that is really most important. There are days you feel great and feel fit. You feel like you can accomplish anything. Those are the days you want to repeat in your life. We all know the days when you feel sluggish.”
Osterweil, of Davis Island, started the concept of fresh, calorie-controlled and pre-packed meals in 2011. He now has nine locations throughout Florida with plans to offer delivery service. Fitlife Foods started at 2946 Providence Lakes Blvd. in Brandon a year ago. Since then, he has opened other franchise locations on South Dale Mabry Highway in South Tampa and North Dale Mabry Highway in Carrollwood with the latest opening this month in Fort Lauderdale.
“It’s easy to go to the grocery store and get a ton of stuff, but so many people leave the grocery store wondering, ‘What am I going to have for dinner tonight?’ ” he said. “Going to the grocery store is not fast. You may have one or two meals you get from there, but the reality is you walk into our store and you can take care of one meal or 15 different meal occasions in five minutes. You walk into our store and you just grab the meals and they all have four to five days of shelf life.”
When it comes to home delivery, Osterweil looks forward to competing with other diet programs, but he has an edge by giving customers more choices.
“There has been a lot of delivery concepts,” he said. “They lock you into a large program and you have to do a certain number of meals and they pick the meals you are going to eat. We like to give the power to the customer.”
Perfecting their diet-friendly and microwavable meals was not easy, but he has a team of culinary experts who use 39 original sauces and 13 original spice blends.
As a runner, Osterweil decided to appoint a wellness coach to each one of his retail locations. The wellness coach will advise customers on their body fat percentage and how many calories they burn at rest.
Fitness trainers in Hillsborough County have been leaning on Fitlife foods for several years.
Tricia Marshall, a trainer for Camp Gladiator, a fitness boot camp program in Valrico, said she encourages her clients to swap junk food for healthier options provided by Fitlife foods. No matter how much a person works out, it is difficult to reach their weight loss and fitness goals without proper nutrition, she said.
“Many times when people pickup new health routines, they fall into the trap of going to the extreme,” Marshall said. “My goal for my clients is to take the gradual approach and have them fuel their body with real food. This is when I tell them to go experience Fitlife Foods. They have excellent wellness coaches who truly invest in seeing their clients succeed and feel great, through proper nutrition.”
She said part of her task as a trainer is to help her clients find success in a modern world.
“More importantly, it is a time saver for us and really eliminates the tired excuse of ‘I just don’t have time to cook healthy,’ ” Marshall said.
For information, visit eatfitlifefoods.com.
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