About
Why I do What I Do
My name is Ryan Groen, and I’m the founder of ELIMA. For as long as I can remember, health has been my greatest challenge and at the same time my greatest passion. After multiple surgeries, a year of being homebound due to illness, lifelong digestive issues, vomiting blood, extreme headaches, burnout, depression, and anxiety, the western healthcare system had few to no answers for me. I knew life could be different and that’s when I became obsessed with understanding how the body works and how to actually feed it what it needs to thrive.
Because of this, I’ve dedicated the past 10 years learning about health and spent countless hours diving into scientific research, books, learning from other professionals, experimenting with myself, and applying it all in practice. Along the way, I became a coach, licensed physical therapist, vitality lecturer, and trainer. Health, vitality, and longevity are at the core of everything I do.
The deeper you dive into the science of human biology and health, the clearer it becomes that our modern society stands in many ways opposed to our biological design. This disconnect keeps widening, and it is reflected in the declining health of our population and the way we think, feel and act every single day.
Having experienced both sides of health, light and dark, I understand as no other how fundamentally your health shapes your quality of life and your ability to live fully.
When you bring your biology back into balance and nourish your system in the way it was designed for through the five different foundations, your body becomes remarkably resilient. At the cellular level, you gain the “finances” to heal, grow, and live with purpose and vitality.
Although the blueprint of our biology is largely shared, every individual is unique, lives a different life and has different goals. That’s why I believe every person needs a tailored approach that builds the bridge between those two.
All of this led to the creation of ELIMA. The name means five in Hawaiian, symbolising the five foundations, and everything, from the first concept to the final design like the logo, the website, the coaching method and every written word, was created by me. I wanted it to be something entirely born from my vision and inseparable from my mission.
Creation of ELIMA
After running my own business in Haarlem, the Netherlands, where I worked as a physiotherapist, personal trainer, and coach, I began to see that something more fundamental was at play.
While I was making great progress in my own health and feeling increasingly better, I also witnessed, on a growing scale, how many others were struggling. Around me, more and more people were facing (serious) health issues, and the contrast became impossible to ignore. We are living in a time where humanity is struggling with its health more than ever before, despite having more knowledge and resources than any generation in history.
The more I witnessed it in everyday life, the clearer it became to me, and the stronger my inner fire grew to help people reconnect with their vitality. That conviction led me to let go of everything, including my business in the Netherlands, and for twelve months, I dedicated myself every single day to even more studying, researching, reading, and learning about the science of human biology. I went through countless books, studies, and courses, collecting and refining knowledge that eventually formed the foundation of what is now ELIMA.
My Mission
I know what it’s like to be sick, tired, restless, unfocused, not on top of your game and have gut issues. But I also know what it’s like to break free from that and experience true vitality.
I feel energised and focused, with a strong body and clear mind working in sync, supporting the life I want to live. All built from within.
My mission is simple: to help you do the same.