In this episode of the Dietitian Success Podcast, I sit down with Sandra Kilmartin, RD and founder of No Sweat Nutrition in Squamish, BC – to unpack how she went from “I never pictured myself as an entrepreneur” to full-time private practice owner and now team lead. Sandra shares how her niche found her (trail + ultrarunning), what finally gave her the confidence to leave her hospital role, and how she’s growing a local, athlete-focused business the smart way.
Inside, we cover:
- The moment Sandra decided to bet on her practice (and why no decision has to be permanent)
- Choosing and deepening a niche: endurance athletes to trail/ultrarunning, without excluding other sports
- What’s working for local marketing: an SEO heavy website, community talks, running store partnerships, and referrals with coaches/physios/MDs
- How she’s building ED-informed competency (training & weekly supervision) to better serve athlete clients
- Her move from solo to team: hiring contractors, mentoring RDs, and keeping care consistent while she travels
- Time + ops: CEO Mondays, client days Tues–Fri, and simple systems that prevent weekend overwhelm
- Ideas in the pipeline: an ultra race-day nutrition planner, webinars, and future cohort programs (think “Vancouver Marathon prep”)
Whether you’re running a province/state-based practice or dreaming up a sports niche, this convo is packed with practical, repeatable strategies to grow – without burning out.
Links:
- Check out the *NEW* Entrepreneurship Tier of Dietitian Success Center https://www.dietitiansuccesscenter.com/entrepreneurshipfordietitians
- Follow Sandra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nosweatnutrition/
- Check out Sandra’s website: https://nosweatnutrition.ca/
- Follow @dietitiansuccesscenter on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dietitiansuccesscenter/
- Connect with @kristako.rd on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristako.rd/
Transcript:
Hey there, and welcome to a new episode of the Dietitian Success Podcast, the entrepreneurship and marketing podcast for registered dietitians. I’m your host, Krista, founder of Dietitian Success Center. In today’s episode, I sit down with Sandra Kilmartin from No Sweat Nutrition. We talk about her journey from someone who never pictured herself as an entrepreneur to becoming a full-time private practice owner and now the leader of a growing team of dietitians.
Sandra shares how she got started while working a traditional nine-to-five role that she was actually quite happy in. She wasn’t desperately trying to escape her job and she wasn’t burned out. Instead, opportunities started presenting themselves. Demand began growing, and eventually she found herself facing a decision about whether to take the leap into private practice full-time.
In this conversation, we walk through how and when she made that leap, what the hiring process has looked like as her practice has grown, and what’s currently working for her when it comes to marketing. That’s a topic I know everyone listening always wants to learn more about—especially if you operate a local, referral-based business.
If you run a practice that serves a specific city, province, or state, you’re going to love this conversation.
Before we dive in, I also want to share something exciting. If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while, you know that over the years we’ve offered different forms of business mentorship and coaching depending on what we were building inside Dietitian Success Center at the time.
This month, we are officially launching the Entrepreneurship Tier inside Dietitian Success Center. We now have three membership tiers: Learner, Practitioner, and Entrepreneur. The goal is to ensure there is a clear pathway for every type of dietitian.
The Entrepreneurship Tier is especially exciting because it was built based directly on feedback from dietitians in 2025. Many of you shared what you were looking for when it comes to business programming and what you felt you needed most when starting or growing your dietitian business.
When you join the Entrepreneurship Tier, you’ll receive a focused one-on-one coaching session with me. During this session, our goal is to clarify your next two or three steps so you can move forward with direction and momentum. No matter where you are in your business, we all reach points where we feel stuck, and sometimes it’s incredibly helpful to have someone provide guidance on the next move.
After that initial coaching call, you’ll also have access to our on-demand business coaching feature. This allows you to submit a video or audio question to our team and receive personalized feedback within 48 hours. Whether you’re navigating a hiring decision, refining your offer, planning a launch, or troubleshooting your marketing, you won’t have to sit on those questions. You’ll be able to get thoughtful feedback when you need it most.
In addition to that, we’ll be hosting bi-weekly office hours with experts covering topics like business strategy, Instagram growth, legal and bookkeeping topics, course creation, and more. I’ll be hosting the strategy sessions myself—something I genuinely love talking about. Our content manager Olivia will be leading sessions on Instagram growth, sharing the strategies she’s used to help scale the @dietitiansuccesscenter account.
All of these sessions will be recorded and added to the library so you can learn not only from your own questions but also from the conversations happening with other dietitians.
If you previously joined DSC at the Business Tier, you’ll automatically receive access to these office hours as a thank-you for your long-term commitment, as long as your membership remains active.
This episode with Sandra is a great example of what can happen when strong clinical skills are paired with clear strategy and support. If you want experienced eyes on your business and practical implementation guidance, the Entrepreneurship Tier is designed exactly for that.
You can find all the details about this offer in the description of this episode or by visiting the pricing page on dietitiansuccesscenter.com.
With that, let’s dive into Sandra’s story.
Krista
All right, Sandra, welcome to the podcast. Thanks for joining me.
Sandra
Thanks so much for having me. I’m so happy to chat with you.
Krista
For anyone who hasn’t met you yet, can you give a little introduction to yourself and tell us a bit about what you do with No Sweat Nutrition?
Sandra
Yes. I’m a registered dietitian based in Squamish, British Columbia, and I run a private practice called No Sweat Nutrition. We help athletes stress less about food and thrive in their sport. I have a special interest in working with endurance athletes, and somehow I’ve become known as an ultrarunner dietitian, which has been such a fun and unexpected journey. I’ve also become an ultrarunner myself, so I definitely talk the talk and walk the walk.
Krista
That’s so cool. When did you launch your practice?
Sandra
I started it in January 2024, so it’s been almost two years now.
Krista
And your clients are mostly athletes in British Columbia?
Sandra
Yes, mostly athletes in BC. When it comes to choosing my niche, it almost felt like the niche chose me. Before I even thought about starting a private practice, people in the running community would approach me asking if they could work with me. At the time I was working in the hospital and I’d have to say no.
People would also refer athletes to me simply because they knew I was a dietitian. Eventually it made me think maybe I should actually start a private practice. I already knew that if I did, it would focus on sports nutrition, particularly endurance athletes like runners and triathletes.
The ultrarunning niche really happened naturally when I moved from Vancouver to Squamish. A local running store invited me to give a talk on sports nutrition, and because Squamish has such a strong trail running culture, many of the people attending were ultrarunners. From there, more and more of those clients began finding me.
Krista
You don’t exclusively market yourself as an ultrarunning dietitian though, right?
Sandra
No, not exclusively. My marketing is generally sports nutrition focused, but because of my involvement in the trail running community and the content I share, a lot of ultrarunners naturally find me. I still work with other athletes too, which I really enjoy because it brings variety.
Krista
When we talked before recording, you mentioned you never pictured yourself as an entrepreneur. Tell me about that.
Sandra
I really didn’t. I always assumed I would work for someone else, likely in a hospital setting, and just keep my work separate from my personal life. Owning a business seemed like a lot of work and responsibility.
What changed was the steady stream of people asking to work with me. That made me start thinking about private practice. Listening to other dietitians talk about their businesses—especially through podcasts like yours—also helped make entrepreneurship feel more tangible.
We also have a great community of dietitians in British Columbia with Facebook groups and shared resources that made it easier to figure out how to get started.
Even when I did start my practice, I thought of it as just a side project or extra income. But once I started working with athletes, I realized how much I loved it. I felt so much more fulfilled than I did in my hospital role.
Another turning point happened with my partner. He’s Australian and sometimes gets homesick. He mentioned wanting to spend more time visiting Australia, and I realized that private practice could give us the flexibility to design our lives in a way that allowed for that kind of travel.
That was the moment where I really thought, why not try this?
Krista
You recently transitioned to full-time private practice. What did that process look like?
Sandra
It happened gradually. At first I dropped my extra casual hospital shifts so I could dedicate two days a week to my business. I kept my permanent part-time position for a while.
Eventually I realized the commute between Squamish and Vancouver was exhausting, and my practice was growing steadily. One of the biggest mindset shifts for me came during one of our coaching sessions when you reminded me that dietitian jobs are always available. If private practice didn’t work out, I could always return to clinical work.
Once I realized the decision wasn’t permanent, it made leaving my hospital role much easier.
Krista
Sports nutrition often intersects with disordered eating. How do you navigate that in private practice?
Sandra
That’s a really important question. I didn’t initially plan to work with eating disorders. In fact, I tried not to advertise that I worked in that space.
But I quickly realized how common disordered eating is among athletes. Many athletes wanted to work with someone who understood both sports performance and eating disorders.
So I decided I needed to become more competent in that area. I completed a year-long training program and started working with a colleague who specializes in eating disorders for supervision.
It’s been a huge investment of time and money, but it’s incredibly important. Even if sports dietitians don’t want to specialize in eating disorders, it’s still crucial to recognize the signs and know how to refer clients appropriately.
Krista
I’m really glad you shared that because many dietitians worry about being isolated in private practice or encountering situations they’re unsure how to handle.
Sandra
Absolutely. Building a network and seeking mentorship has been key. You’re never truly alone if you’re willing to reach out and collaborate with other professionals.
Krista
Now that you’re full-time, what does your schedule look like?
Sandra
Mondays are my “CEO day.” I use that time for marketing, professional development, supervision sessions, and business tasks.
Tuesday through Friday I see clients. Having that dedicated business day has helped a lot with organization and prevents the feeling of constantly working.
Krista
Let’s talk about marketing. What has worked best for you?
Sandra
Two main things: my website and word of mouth.
I invested in a professionally built website early on, which helped with search engine optimization. For the first year, many clients found me simply through Google searches.
More recently, word of mouth has become my biggest referral source. Clients tell friends, coaches refer athletes, and sports medicine professionals send people my way.
I’ve also started proactively reaching out to coaches, physiotherapists, and sports doctors to introduce myself and build referral relationships.
Krista
Has Instagram been helpful for attracting clients?
Sandra
Not directly. Most clients don’t say they found me through Instagram.
But it does serve as a credibility platform. People might discover me through Google, then check my Instagram to learn more about my approach and personality.
Krista
Your practice is growing and you’re starting to hire dietitians. What prompted that?
Sandra
Travel was the initial motivation. My partner and I want to spend about five months traveling before settling down and starting a family.
Instead of closing my practice while traveling, I decided to hire dietitians who could continue seeing clients.
Through our coaching sessions, my mindset shifted from simply covering the travel period to actually building a team and growing the business long-term.
Krista
What will your role look like while you’re traveling?
Sandra
I won’t be seeing clients one-on-one. Instead, I’ll focus on supporting my team, answering questions, and doing some marketing.
I also plan to offer a messaging subscription for existing clients who want quick advice without scheduling a full session.
Krista
Looking back on the past year, what are you most proud of?
Sandra
Leaving my hospital job and committing fully to private practice was huge.
But I’m also really proud of investing in education around eating disorders. It was intimidating at first, but it’s been incredibly meaningful work.
Krista
What have been your biggest “aha” moments during this journey?
Sandra
Hearing other dietitians share their stories helped me realize that everyone starts somewhere. Even successful private practice owners once felt nervous about their first clients.
Another big realization has been seeing clients return for follow-up sessions or refer their friends. That’s when it really sinks in that your work is making a difference.
Krista
What’s next for No Sweat Nutrition?
Sandra
After traveling, I hope to continue growing the team and expanding marketing efforts.
I’d also love to develop group programs, especially for athletes preparing for big races like marathons or ultramarathons.
Another project I’m working on is a race nutrition planning tool for ultrarunners. There are so many ideas—recipes, education resources, and programs to support athletes.
I’m also planning to take on students from the University of British Columbia as a preceptor, which I’m really excited about.
Krista
Where can people find you online?
Sandra
My website is nosweatnutrition.ca, and you can find me on Instagram at @nosweatnutrition or on my personal account @sandrakilmartin.
Krista
Amazing. Thanks so much for joining me today, Sandra.
Sandra
Thank you so much for having me.
