My top 8 products from the Mind, Body, Soul & Yoga Show, Olympia

There’s always a panicked frenzy before any show you’re exhibiting at – with banners being hastily designed, business cards ordered and leaflets printed. However, once we’d set up the 30ish.me stand at Olympia for the Mind, Body, Soul exhibition (we really need to get a van next time…), the fun bit is noseying around all the other stands…

With stalls ranging from crystals, to bamboo yoga gear, to spirulina (surprisingly tasty), to Boxing Yoga and more, there was a lot that caught my eye.

A good indicator of my favourites products were what I bought, and believe me, I thought about each and every purchase a LOT before I parted with my cash…

Here are my top 8 products from the Mind, Body, Soul and Yoga Show

1. Unoco Coconut Water – unlike other coconut waters that I shall not mention, I believe 100% in Unoco. Not only are the founders passionate and knowledgeable about their product, Unoco tastes fresh and is also a beautiful pink colour, Made from only young coconuts, the pink colouring is due to phenolic-antioxidant compounds that occur naturally in these plants – and of course, they’re not at all harmful. Drink pink, people!
How much: From £2.39 for 250ml
Where to buy: Planet Organic, Wholefoods Portabello and many more coming later this year. For more information see the Unoco Where to Buy page >

2. Vegusto – this is all about vegan nut cheese. Now I’m not vegan (but will be doing a 30 day vegan challenge in November) but that doesn’t mean I’m not willing to try. These ‘No-Moo’ cheeses are all made from different nuts and are dairy-free, soya-free and gluten-free. They’re flavoured with things like fruit juice and nut butters to get their cheesy taste. If you’re expecting something that tastes exactly like cheese, you’ll be disappointed – but it does taste close enough for it to be a good alternative.
How much: £4.99 for 200g
Where to buy: Online from Vegusto or see their Store Locator

3. Aduna Baobab powder – ok, I’ll admit it, I was drawn in by their tropical-looking stall and packaging before I actually realized what I was looking at. Baobab powder on its own has a faintly sweet, caramel taste and almost 50% of it is fibre and a large proportion of it is packed with antioxidants. It’s being hailed as a ‘superfruit’ (I’m always wary of that expression) and they recommend that you put a spoonful or two in porridge or smoothies. The part that really swayed me was that if they get this right, they’ll create demand and therefore business for small-scale producers in Africa. Currently Baobab trees grow naturally in really dry conditions and what’s more, the fruit also dries on the tree – so none would need to be planted, it would be a case of harvesting.
How much: 170g loose powder is £17.99
Where to buy: Online here and at various health stores around the UK including Revital, Planet Organic and Wholefoods. See here for the full list of Baobab retailers >

4. Nut Shot – the stand at the exhibition was a little dismal, I must admit, but the guy behind it was funny and honest and I liked him. I also liked his peanut butter. And weirdly, the fact that there was nothing at the stand at all, apart from the product and brightly coloured panels meant that it invited questions and piqued people’s interest.  Nut Shot is his venture and one of only two brands that use 100% peanuts. It’s aimed for the younger audience and indeed, the startling packaging is a violation of the eyes but it works. It’s got nothing in it apart from peanuts and comes in two styles – smooth or chunk. Both are delicious and it was a testament of how long I hung out at the stand surreptitiously spooning in mouthful after mouthful as to how great both varieties were. Plus, for anyone that’s ever had a Personal Trainer, you’ll know that a good jar of unadulterated PB is a must-have.
How much: 6 x 400g jars for £18
Where to buy: Buy direct from Nut Shot

5. Coconoil – I’m already a fan of coconut oil, but I’d never had it on its own before. Coconoil was offering its organic and natural coconut oil to people on Jacob’s Crackers. The thought of eating coconut oil on its own quite frankly makes me feel a little sick but this was pretty tasty. I immediately had visions of me snacking on Rye Bread and coconut oil whilst hungry and at home… I had a jar of coconut oil at home so as soon as I’d finished on Friday, I went home and dug out a spoonful. It wasn’t as good which is why I’ve now got 4 jars of Coconoil in my cupboard…
How much: From £6 for a 460g tub
Where to buy: Online at Coconoil

6. Bee Mercy Raw honey– the boyfriend actually requested honey but I’m pretty sure I’d have come home with this regardless. Handily situated a couple of stalls across from 30ish.me, Bee Mercy has a range of raw honies (they have only been heated to 40’C so retains all natural properties) which are ‘live’ foods and contain a range of enxymes, minerals, vitamins, antioxidants and neutraceuticals (neutralceutical is a mash up of “nutrition” and “pharmaceutical” and describes food which has both health and medical benefits). I came back with the Eucalyptus (good for throat, lungs and respiratory health in general), Oak (good for digestion, stomach health and is full of antioxidants) and Citrus (good for high quantities of Vitamin C and antibacterial properties). All are runny and taste better than the thick Manuka honey that I’ve got in my cupboard.
How much: From £8.50 for a 500g jar
Where to buy: Buy online from Bee Mercy or take a look at their list of retailers

7. Nakd – these are one snack bar I don’t have any issues with at all. They are what they say on the tin – just nuts and fruit ‘smooshed’ together. And you should have seen the stall – it was total scrambles. Worse than the January sales, I had to really throw about my rugby shoulders to muscle in. Without a doubt, the best flavours are the Chocolate Orange and Cocoa.
How much: Individual bars cost from £1 or check out the Nakd website for their special case offers
Where to buy: Buy directly from Nakd online. They’re also sold in most supermarkets and newsagents.

8. Popband – these are hairbands that don’t hurt your hair. I’ve got a lot of hairbands flying around the place at home and with a set of about 12 costing around 30p each, I wasn’t sure why I’d want to spend £5 (show price) on a set of 5. Perhaps it was the fact that my Claire’s Accessories hairband had dented my wrist or perhaps I’m a sucker for candy-coloured accessories, but buy them I did. If the larger headband will stop me getting a dent in my hair, then I’ll consider it worth while.
How much: £6 for a set of 5
Where to buy: Online at Popband or check out their page of retailers

 The Mind, Body, Soul show took place at Olympia from 25th – 27th October with access to the Yoga Show. I bought all of these products because I liked them. There was no bribery, coercion or payment involved.