Ballerina Farm’s Hannah Neeleman Details Daily Ritual with 8 Kids (Exclusive)
To say Hannah Neeleman is busy is a massive understatement. The content creator, who goes by Ballerina Farm, helps maintain the 328-acre Utah property where she lives, raises her brood of eight kids, and has cultivated an online community of nearly 20 million followers across major social media platforms.
So it’s vital that Neeleman, 34, finds time to prioritize her own wellbeing.
“The beginning of my day is very important,” the Instagram and TikTok creator tells PEOPLE. “I try to work out in the morning before anything else.” She also ritualistically drinks a glass of water enhanced with drops of chlorophyll, lemon and French salt, which is sold in a number of flavors on her Ballerina Farm website.
“If I do that, then I am more disciplined on what I eat throughout the day. I feel like if I start out crappy, then it’s just like, Oh, I’ve already screwed up,” says Neeleman, winner of the 2023 Mrs. American pageant. “I feel like I’ve taken care of myself then we can get going.”
Exercise is a key piece of her life. Her dance training at Juilliard didn’t just inspire the name of the company she runs with her husband, Daniel Neeleman. She says ballet gave her an appreciation for physical discipline that extends beyond the realm of performance.
“As I’ve transitioned into motherhood and business owner, that’s like my ‘me time’ when I can work out and have that time to get the endorphins running,” says Hannah, whose eight kids range from ages 12 to 8 months old.
Her latest product launch — Farmer Protein Powder — was a natural extension of her brand. The supplement taps both animal- and plant-based ingredients, like bovine colostrum and hemp protein, for their “rich benefits,” says Hannah.
After her workouts, she looks to Farmer Protein Powder for energy and a delicious treat. She’s thought up several creative ways to use the product — which comes in three flavors: creamy chocolate, vanilla bean and maple cinnamon — but her go-to recipe is surprisingly simple.
She likes to add a scoop of the maple cinnamon powder to her husband’s homemade yogurt, which he prepares in a “custardy” European style every other night in two-gallon batches to feed their whole family.
“It’s literally a dessert,” she says of the combination. “So good.”
Hannah and Daniel first dreamed up Farmer Protein Powder together three years ago. Like many of their other Ballerina Farm-branded goods, it was inspired by a shared passion — staying active.
“I feel like all of our products come from things that either we love and we’re missing, or we love and we feel like maybe we can add a different angle and elevate it a little bit,” says the former dancer.
Between their booming business, wealth of farm animals roaming around the property and soaring online presence, the couple is proud to watch Ballerina Farm take off in the way they never expected.
“It’s crazy to think of what I had envisioned our social media becoming as a new farmer. I started the Instagram when we got our first three pigs,” Hannah recalls. “Our goal was to make an Instagram so that restaurants around Utah could buy direct from farmers. We’re like, we’ll just sell to restaurants in Salt Lake and Park City.”
Sharing their story with followers came naturally. “I think that part of storytelling and sharing comes from my dance background,” she says. “I love that part of it.” Then viewers outside of Utah started paying attention too, and Hannah realized Ballerina Farm had vast potential for a wider reach.
She remembers how people started commenting with questions like, “How can I buy this pork?” and “How can I try this steak?” Their inquiries sparked some reflection and in turn, ignited a new mindset.
“‘Okay, maybe our audience isn’t the restaurants around us. Maybe it’s the followers that we’re gaining online,'” Hannah recalls thinking.
“I would’ve never thought that we would be to 10 million followers,” she adds. “But here we are, and it’s fun — it’s crazy and fun.”