Jasmine Miller (Azpiri) ’04 Transformed Passion for Running into a Thriving Business

 Editors Note: This is an Op-Ed piece written by SAAS Alumna Jasmine Azpiri, ’04.

I recently launched my own sports nutrition and triathlon coaching business, Sendoa Nutrition & Coaching. I can confidently credit my time at SAAS for helping me discover a love for endurance sports.

Many of my classmates can probably recall that when I first started high school, I wasn’t necessarily the athletic type. However, with the desire to attend the summer Alaska outdoor trip before I graduated, I began my journey with fitness.

Knowing that I would have to run around Green Lake in under 30 minutes, I started with a run and walk program several months before I’d have to complete the “Green Lake Run.”

Little did I know that that experience would take me from a non-runner to being the third fastest student that day to complete the run.

That experience then led me to being recruited for the cross country team where my love for running continued to grow. I recall my peers admiring my determination and in the 2004 yearbook dubbed me as “Most likely to do an IRONMAN.” At the time, I had no idea what an IRONMAN was. But 11 years later, I found myself toeing the line of an IRONMAN—a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run.

I graduated from the University of Western States in 2016 with a Master's Degree in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine. Since graduation, I have worked at The Polyclinic (just blocks from SAAS) where I co-founded the Lifestyle and Metabolic Medicine Department. My clinical area of expertise has been in weight management and metabolic disorders such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, PCOS and other similar conditions.

After my son was born in 2020, I knew I wanted to be at home with him more. While my clinical job did allow me to work from home part-time, it still did not provide the level of flexibility I was looking for. I knew the only way I’d be able to have the flexibility to be a mom and work would be to become my own boss.

As sports nutrition and triathlons had become passions of mine over the years, I wanted to share those things with others—so that was the route I took. Earlier this year, I got my USAT (USA Triathlon) coaching certification and my sports nutritionist certification through the National Academy of Sports Medicine.

[Read: Journalist and Alumnus Ben Bergman ’00 Attributes Adventerous Spirit to SAAS]

I had never considered myself to be an athlete, but was inspired and motivated by my teachers, coaches, and teammates to dig deeper. In addition to offering personalized sports nutrition, a part of my business plan is to offer triathlon coaching, and I am aiming to support junior and collegiate athletes as they discover the world of triathlon.

While it has been nearly 20 years since I graduated from SAAS, I do not think I would be a business owner, especially not a sports nutrition business owner, if it hadn’t been for my “breakthrough” run at Green Lake and joining the cross country team in 2003. 

It was the Alaska trip that pushed me to begin my journey–if I hadn’t had that opportunity, who knows where I would be today?