Meet the woman behind the popular foodie blog, 'Real and Vibrant'

Seattle based Sapana Chandra is a health coach, blogger and plant-based cook. With nearly 150,000 followers on Instagram, her recipes really resonate with people.

"I'm just endorsing - hey whatever you're eating, whatever your lifestyle, add more plants, add more whole foods to it," said Chandra.

Today, she's the picture of good health, but 15 years ago, Chandra has some serious problems.

"It was this one day in spring 2004 that I started feeling this pain I never felt. My eyes, my head, my jaws," said Chandra. "Everything in my head was just pounding."

What she was experiencing was her first migraine. Chandra called her doctor and what she didn't know was the this was the beginning of many years of looking for treatments.

"My migraines got worse. Then soon they were happening a few times a week," said Chandra.

Her diet didn't include many home-cooked meals.

"I was eating a lot of fast food, honestly. Eating a lot of takeout, I was traveling a lot. [I] didn't really know how to feed myself," said Chandra.

Then - a scare too close for comfort.

"I got the phone call that my dad had just had a heart attack. He had actually gone into cardiac arrest, and just flat-lined," said Chandra. "He was resuscitated and they rushed him to a hospital nearby. They were going to start performing emergency quadruple bypass surgery on him."

For Chandra, this moment was one of the most important parts of her journey.

"We had no idea, my dad didn't even know he had heart disease. That was definitely a life-changing moment for me."

From there, she started making adjustments, like cutting out sugar and noticed that almost immediately an affect on the migraines.

"I just started focusing on my food and started making food at home and my health just completely transformed," said Chandra. "During the same period of time I was starting to share what I was eating on Instagram. Just for my own self, my own accountability."

She didn't know at the time, but people started noticing and following her, building her a foodie audience.

Her passion for preparing healthful foods also inspired a blog, "Real and Vibrant," a place to teach other individuals how to make simple, real vibrant meals using whole foods.

Now she's written a new cookbook and her recipes are AMAZING.

"The cookbook is about what I do on my Instagram which is Plant Power Bowls," Chandra.

Chandra hopes that her personal story and recipes inspire others.

"I've always loved connecting with others and being able to maybe play a small part in someone else's journey, in their health journey, is why I do what I do today."