Let’s keep this our little secret, okay?

You already know I’m a Hot Girl. You probably wonder how I became so hot and how you can too, right?

Well, here’s a secret. I actually do … eat. I don’t starve myself like Nicole Ritchie and I sure don’t binge like Oprah.

Let me share my eating secrets with you and so you can sizzle too!

There are many things that go into the making of a Hot Girl, but probably the foundation of it all is what I eat, and, what I don’t eat (and when I eat and how much I eat) …  I do not follow any particular diet, but I have some guidelines that I work with each and every day.

Luckily I have developed a very healthy relationship with my food which basically means that I eat when I’m hungry and I stop when I’m full. But what does that really mean?  Specifically it means that I don’t eat for emotional reasons such as sadness or anxiety or boredom or anger.

Eating certain foods, especially food high in fat or sugar, can create a chemical reaction in our bodies that can temporarily seem to change the way we feel.  Many people eat for this reason.  They use food as a sort of drug.

This is an unhealthy relationship with food and can cause one to overeat and to eat the wrong foods.  This is a very difficult situation to address as food is necessary for our survival.  So, how do we change the “why” of eating so that we are eating for the right reasons?

Eat when you are hungry and only at specific meal times.  Generally I eat five times per day; three main means and 2 snacks in between.  Planning your meals and meal times is key to this.

Breakfast

Its important to eat breakfast – and I don’t mean eggs, hashbrowns and bacon.  Fruit is best in the morning on an empty stomach. Fruit, combined with older or newer food in the stomach can lead to fermintation and limit digestion efficiency.  Don’t allow fruit to ferment in the stomach; eat it alone and allow an hour or so to pass before eating other food.

So why not start out the morning with a fruit smoothie?  Or a cup of mixed fruit?  Another great way to start the day is with greeen juice or a green protein shake.  I start off most of my mornings this way.  I’ll be honest with you, I take the easy way out and use a powder form of green superfood called Greens First and I mix this with two scoops of ProFlex 20 vanilla protein powder and some water.

With this morning meal, my body is getting fifteen servings of organic fruits and vegetables along with 20 grams of protein and essential amino acids.  I absolutely love it and so does my body.  Yay!

Side note:  I do have coffee in the morning but I limit it to one cup per day and use almond milk instead of dairy and just a bit of natural Stevia sweetener instead of sugar.  Coffee is acidic (along with junk food, sugar, alcohol and cigarettes) and we want to promote alkalinity in our body (more on alkalinity and acidity next week).

Mid-Morning

Mid morning or about 11am I will have a protein bar or a hand full of organic raw almonds.  Lunch can be so many things!  Every Sunday I make a fresh batch of homemade hummus (see below).   I can have some hummus with veggies or flax seed tortilla chips.  I also love to make homemade guacamole and have that as a side with a half sandwhich (whole wheat bread, turkey, romaine and maybe some cheese used very sparingly).  I can make a quick raw tortilla soup in the Blentec.

Whatever I choose I try and make it at least 60% raw or non-processed.  This is a major guideline.  Think about it when you look at your plate at each meal.  Do you want a plate of processed, dead, nutrient difiencient food looking back at you and then slowly, painfully making its way through your digestive system?  NO you don’t!  Eating live, nutrient foods makes you alive and vibrant.

Afternoon

Afternoon snacks are a must to keep the body going and to avoid overeating at dinner.  This can be raw nuts, hummus, a nutrient food bar, some granola or healthy trail mix.  Dinner should always be planned around the veggies.

The biggest concern of the dinner meal should be what fresh veggies are you going to fill your plate with. Start with creating a fabulous salad of organic kale or arugula or romaine.  I have a rocking homemade vinagrette dressing that I love with arugula and romaine (see recipe below).

Then I choose a partner veggie such as zuchini or brussel sprouts and I flash cook them with a bit of olive oil and pepper.  Lastly I choose a bit of protein.  Personally I choose not to eat mammals.  I figure, I wouldn’t eat my dog so why would I eat a pig or a cow?  I tend to stick with a bit of fresh caught, sustainable fish or organic, humaely raised chicken.

By a “bit” I mean no more than 4 ounces.  Seriously you don’t need as much animal protein as you think.  Animal protein is acidic and frankly its dead.  Many times, I skip the animals all together and enter the animal-free zone by creating something like my almost-home-made quinoa pasta and organic pasta sauce.  Quinoa has 6 grams of protein in a one cup serving along with 102 mg of calcium.  Yum!

Eating healthy takes a bit of planning.  You can accidentally eat awesomely.  Each Sunday I plan out my main meals for the week and stock my kitchen and fridge with healthy foods and snacks that I will be able to access during the week.  I buy a few pieces of protein, a lot of fresh veggies, and very little dairy.

I buy enough to make about four meals during the week with enough for leftovers for yummy lunches.  I make sure I always have healthy protein bars in my purse so that I don’t miss my in-between meals and I often take my lunch with me to work.

When you don’t plan, life has a tendency to get in the way and Taco Bell starts to call our name from the freeway.  Do not heed the call!!

To summarize, here are the healthy guidelines I try to stick by:

1. Eat five times per day
2. Eat when I’m hungry and stop when I’m full
3. Meals should be at least 60% raw
4. Plan ahead

Next week, I will go into greater detail about alkalinity vs. acidity and why its an important factor in the creation of a hot chick.

Remember, let’s keep this our little secret now, okay?

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Hummus Recipe

5 oz dried chickpeas

½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 garlic clove

3 lemons

1/3  cup tahini

¼ cup olive oil

Preliminary:

The day before, rinse the chickpeas and discard any that are spoiled or crushed.  Soak them in plenty of water with the baking soda.  Refriderate overnight.

1. Drain and rinse the reconstituted chickpeas, then place them in a saucepan.  Cover with plenty of water and bring to a boil.
2. Cover and gently cook for 1 to 3 hours, depending on the type of chickpeas.  Check doneness to ensure the chickpeas are cooked through.  Season with salt and cook for an additional 5 minutes
3. Peel the garlic, remove and discard the germ an very finely chop the cove.  Juice the lemons.
4. Drain the chickpeas and reserve the water.  Place all ingredients, except the oil and chickpea cooking water in a food processor.
5. Blend until creamy. Add a little of the chickpea cooking water to thin the hummus if needed.
6. Serve the humus in a dish and with a drizzle of olive oil on top (optional)

Vinagrette Recipe

2 parts olive oil

1 part balsalmic vinegar

1 clove garlic

pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese – 1 tsb per person

Mince the garlic clove and add to oil and vinegar in a salad dressing mixer.  Add pepper to taste.  Shake to emulsify the dressing.  Toss dressing over fresh salad.  Add parmesan cheese while tossing.  Serve.