The Kitchen Gadget and De-Stressing Practices a Yogi Mom of Twins Swears By

It’s not surprising that when we asked Heidi Kristoffer which healthy habit she wished she had more time for, she said, “SLEEP!!!” Kristoffer is the creator of popular strength training-infused yoga class CrossFlowX, which she teaches at NEOU and YG Studios in New York City. She’s also a mother to twin girls and has a third child on the way. In other words, her life is about as go-go-go as it can get. “Yoga can be practiced anywhere, any time, so no gym necessary,” she says. “And running after and picking up my twin two year olds keeps me active all day every day. ‘Mommy, UP!’ is their favorite phrase right now.” RELATED: A 30-Minute Yoga Routine to Build Strength and Fight Stress Kristoffer does it all while literally radiating warmth and positivity 24-7, so we asked her to spill her secrets. Here are the diet, kitchen, and de-stressing practices that help her—and her family—thrive. How Does Heidi Kristoffer Live a Nutritious Life? If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? Plant-Based Mom Fueling. What’s your go-to breakfast? Overnight oats with flax seeds and nut butter. RELATED: 3 Creative Ways to Make Delicious Overnight Oats Your go-to workday lunch? Tofu salad on whole wheat pita and air-fryer sweet potato fries. Your go-to workday dinner? Kale salad massaged with avocado or a nut or seed butter dressing, with plant-based protein. What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Sugar snap peas. The one food you’d never buy? Meat. Your favorite food indulgence? Dark chocolate. RELATED: 5 Healthy Reasons to Eat Chocolate (as if You Needed Them) Other than water, what do you sip regularly? SOS Rehydrate!! It’s the first organic hydration formula, which mimics getting an IV hydration drip, and it makes me feel SO much more clear headed. It makes every workout feel easier, AND it’s delicious. I love it! How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? Every day. CrossFlowX, yoga, or SoulCycle. Which workout would you NEVER do? Barre class. It bores me to tears. What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Japa Mala meditation. No thinking involved, and it zones me in every time. RELATED: Try This Two-Minute Calming Meditation How do you pamper yourself when you need it? Deep tissue massage or a bath with essential oils when I’m not pregnant. In pregnancy (like now), I just aim to get sleep at night and make my bi-monthly mani-pedi with foot and shoulder 10-minute massage. Do you have a favorite health gadget? Does my Vitamix count?! I make EVERYTHING in it: smoothies, soups, dressings, even carrot cake! How do you express and spread love? I tell my daughters I love them probably 100 times a day and hug and kiss them every chance I get. With my non-family members, I try to take the most kind action every time, compliment people whenever I can, and I smile at everyone I make eye contact with. I also try to express love in all of my teachings, in person or on the interwebs. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Massage! You can meditate while you’re getting one! A hot shower or a soothing bath? BATH! Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond. Coffee or tea? Non-pregnancy: COFFEE. Pregnancy: tea. A long run outside or a dark spin class? SoulCycle every time.

Cooking Pro Pamela Salzman Shares Her Healthy Kitchen Habits

Pamela Salzman made a career out of teaching people in the Los Angeles area how to cook their own wholesome, delicious meals. Now, Salzman’s bringing her tips and tricks to the masses, with her first book, Kitchen Matters. Kitchen Matters is filled with more than 100 innovative, nutritious recipes (healthy Greek nachos!), and the photography is so vibrant you can practically taste the fresh flavors. But where it’s even more unique is in the practical resources Salzman provides to set you up for success. Think charts that explain how to roast every vegetable you can think of, instructions on how to stock your pantry, and meal plans and tutorials that suddenly make you feel like a total pro. (It’s kind of like she’s standing next to you helping you chop and measure…) RELATED: How To Do Sunday Kitchen Prep for a Productive, Stress-Free Week We caught up with Salzman during her book launch week to get an even closer look at how she eats—and lives—well. How Does Pamela Salzman Live a Nutritious Life? If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? Anti-Inflammatory flexitarian, because I don’t really avoid any food group, but I do strive to make most of my food choices anti-inflammatory ones. RELATED: 7 Delicious Anti-Inflammatory Foods to Eat Daily What’s your go-to breakfast? Smoothie bowl. Your go-to workday dinner? Wild salmon, roasted sweet potato, sautéed greens. What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Homemade salad dressing. The snack you always have with you when traveling? Homemade trail mix. Your favorite food indulgence? Ice cream. Other than water, what do you sip regularly? Green tea. How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? 6 days a week, barre class. How do you stay active outside the gym? Walking on the beach. What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Meditation. How do you pamper yourself when you need it? I get a mani/pedi. Do you have a favorite health gadget? Nope, unless you consider a Vitamix a health gadget. Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Hot yoga. Most of the classes are 90 minutes, and I can’t get away with not washing my hair afterwards! Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Meditation. A hot shower or a soothing bath? Bath. Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond butter. Coffee or tea? Tea. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Run outside.

The Snacks, Workout Rules, and Stress-Relief Practices Chris and Heidi Powell Swear By

You’ve probably seen celebrity trainers Chris and Heidi Powell helping people drop pounds on ABC’s Extreme Weight Loss. The duo gives new meaning to the term power couple—training clients on TV, writing books, and raising four children together—all while staying super fit and healthy. And their app, TRANSFORM with Chris & Heidi, brings their expert approach to weight-loss to anyone with an iPhone. “We guide you (and ourselves) through whatever transformation journey you want to take on,” Heidi says. RELATED: How to Overcome a Weight Loss Plateau While you wait for it to download, find out more about their many healthy habits, below. Unsurprisingly, the pair is pretty in sync when it comes to wellness. How Do Chris and Heidi Powell Live a Nutritious Life? If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? Chris: We call it Carb Cycling. It’s a patterned way of alternating between a high carb/low fat diet some days (to optimize metabolism and muscle development) and a low carb/higher fat diet other days (to maximize fat loss). Beyond the physiological benefits, it also allows a wide variety of meal combinations, to create a lifestyle around foods that you truly enjoy. Heidi: Yes, we carb cycle…but with a very flexible and sustainable twist. Deprivation diets do not work for me or for anyone else that I know. We can lose weight on them for a period of time, but after too long the dam will break and binges can happen. This is how we’ve fallen into that yo-yo dieting pattern repetitively for years. By adding in treats or reward foods to our meal plan occasionally—that still fit within the calorie and macro budget—we finally have freedom with food! What’s your go-to breakfast? Chris: Typically, it’s a protein shake and some high-fiber starch like bran cereal with almond milk or a whole grain bagel. Heidi: My reward food comes at breakfast every day! I do a protein shake (because it’s easy) along with a Starbucks Marshmallow Dream Bar (i.e. a rice crispy treat!). RELATED: Why Fitness Pro Adam Rosante is All About Smoothies (and Cocktails) Your go-to workday dinner? Chris and Heidi: Scrambled egg whites with sea salt and whole grain waffles. Yes, we are one of those breakfast-for-dinner families! What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Chris: Lean ground turkey. It can be used with a ton of meal combinations from broccoli and cheese to mashed potatoes and gravy, to rice and marinara sauce. Heidi: EXTRA lean ground turkey for me. Same idea, just less fat so I can eat more peanut butter to fulfill my fat requirements each day. Also, unsweetened vanilla almond milk. It tastes so good, and is so low in calories. I cook with it, bake with it, use it in cereal, shakes, etc. The one food you’d never buy? Chris: Soda. Heidi: Whatever your trigger food is. Trigger foods are foods that we cannot eat even once without it triggering bad food behaviors. For some it might be chips, for others this might be chocolate. Know your trigger food and avoid it at all costs! The snack you always have with you when traveling? Chris and Heidi: We never travel anywhere without these 4 items: Protein bars, protein powder, low-fat granola bars, and almonds. RELATED: The 5 Healthiest Protein Bars, Found Your favorite conscious food indulgence? Chris: Homemade chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, and oatmeal raisin cookies. Heidi: Red velvet cupcakes and homemade apple pie. How often do you exercise? Chris: I typically train five to six days a week. My workouts are predominantly powerlifting/bodybuilding style, with a short cross-training style ‘metcon’ at the end of one or two of the workouts. Heidi: I also train five to six days a week. Five days a week of strength and hypertrophy training (iron gym style to sculpt) and one day a week of HIIT with metabolic conditioning circuits. Which workout would you NEVER do? Chris: The Shake Weight. Heidi: Ha! I don’t know of one that I would never try unless it put me in danger. I believe in dating all forms of fitness, even the ones you don’t want to try, to find out what you actually like. You might be surprised! How do you stay active outside the gym? Chris: If there is any activity we do outside the gym, it’s running. Heidi: Are you kidding me? The most active thing I do in LIFE is run around after our four kids. That’s a workout in and of itself! What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Chris: Without beating a dead horse, it’s working out! For me, sometimes I need to put the boxing gloves on and just hit the heck out of a heavy bag for a while. It helps put my mind back in the right place, and helps me keep my priorities straight. Heidi: A massage! I don’t indulge in very many things in life, but once every couple of months I do a 90-minute massage and just zone out. In fact, I’m overdue for one now. What’s your weirdest healthy habit? Heidi: I like to combine peanut butter with rice and extra lean ground turkey. Sometimes I add a little Sriracha for spice! It sounds weird, but it ends up tasting like a Thai peanut sauce and helps me get in all my macros for the day. Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Heidi and Chris: Stretching! We have neglected flexibility training, and now our muscles are insanely tight. Time for some more yoga. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Chris: Massage! Heidi: Massage. A hot shower or a soothing bath? Chris: Hot Shower! Heidi: Hot shower. Almond butter or peanut butter? Chris: Peanut Butter! Heidi: Peanut Butter. Coffee or tea? Chris: Coffee! Heidi: Grande iced coffee, with one pump of mocha. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Chris: Long run outside! Heidi: Same…we are made for each other!

SoulCycle Superstar Stacey Griffith’s Spiritual Spin on Healthy Living

Stacey Griffith is a SoulCycle superstar, but her first book, Two Turns From Zero, is not about spinning. Fitness is a theme, of course. But her many fans (and there are many) wouldn’t be surprised by the fact that she gets the most excited when talking about what motivates her—and how she then uses that supercharged stamina to motivate others. “I care about every person’s experience in every situation,” she says. “I watch out for people as a general rule. It’s who I am.” Griffith’s book is no fairy tale, either. It gets gritty about her past personal struggles—from drug problems to career stumbles—while painting a picture of how each failure drove her to succeed, both on and off the bike. RELATED: 3 Goal-Setting Tips to Succeed at Anything Here’s how the celebrity Soul instructor lives well—from spirituality to Skinny Pop. How Does Stacey Griffith Live a Nutritious Life? What’s your go-to breakfast? Oatmeal with chia seeds. Your go-to workday lunch? Sweet potato, avocado, baby greens, one sunny side egg on top. RELATED: Amazing Avocado-Egg Recipes to Make Now What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Blueberries and Bai Bubbles. The one food you’d never buy? Liver, ew. The snack you always have with you when traveling? Skinny Pop popcorn, plain flavor. Your favorite food indulgence? Too many to list: PIZZA, Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding, Bill’s Birthday Cakes. How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? I teach 18 classes a week. After running around the floor, I have little energy for myself on the weekends to ride at SoulCycle, but I also love cross-training and doing Michelle Brugal’s studio workouts. Rumble is super fun, XPT training when I can get to it. And surfing now that summer is here and my ocean fear has passed…and lot’s of SUP boarding! What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Listening to Deepak Chopra and Eckhart Tolle’s Youtube’s. They’re the best. RELATED: A 2-Minute Calming Meditation to Manage Stress How do you pamper yourself when you need it? Facials at Tracy Martin, massages with Makaila and Lisa Hoffman, and baths with my spiritual bath salts SBbySG…coming soon in June!! Do you have a favorite health gadget? I’m a gadget girl but not for health. I find them to sometimes to be disappointing. When you think you killed it and it says, “eh… you only burned 200.” I think we’ve gotten to the age where you rely on a gadget to gauge your performance, and sometimes it’s more rewarding to just know in your gut you really had a fantastic training session. It’s crazy how many people are addicted to that little thing. I personally think they get in the way and can be very distracting in a dark room. Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Working out. I’m so tired from my job, I don’t have the energy for myself. I give it to all of my students every day, 900 classes a year. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Massage. A hot shower or a soothing bath? Bath. Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond. Coffee or tea? Coffee. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Spin class. Photos: Instagram/staceygnyc

Celebrity Trainer Holly Rilinger Shares Her Healthy Secrets

Here’s a fun fact about celebrity trainer Holly Rilinger: She’s not a fan of road biking. That’s despite the fact that she built a crazy-loyal following of fans while on a bike…albeit, the indoor kind. Rilinger is currently the creative director (and a top instructor) at growing indoor cycling brand Cyc Fitness. She’s also a Nike master trainer (and you may have seen her on Bravo’s Work Out New York last year). And while she’s a pro at motivating people to pedal faster, she also knows the benefit of slowing down and getting centered. Evidence: She’s also the creator of LIFTED, a workout that pairs high-intensity interval training with meditation. RELATED: Try This 2-Minute Calming Meditation Turns out meditation is just one of the ways Rilinger takes care of herself while pushing her body—and clients—to the limit. Find out more, below. How Does Holly Rilinger Live a Nutritious Life? What’s your go-to workday dinner? Either sushi—my go-tos are sashimi and non-rice rolls—or RARE Steak and veggies. What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Avocado. It’s my quick fix! The one food you’d never buy? Processed meats. The snack you always have with you when traveling? There’s a great new bar on the market called Nutshell. Fantastic ingredients and made in small batches. What do you eat before and after a workout? Before, it depends on the time of day and how much time I have before the workout. I like fruit in the morning before my workouts. Midday, I can eat protein, like slices of chicken or eggs. Post workout: I love a good smoothie with protein and greens. My favorite proteins right now are pea and collagen. RELATED: 3 Foods That Boost Collagen That Aren’t Bone Broth Your favorite conscious indulgence? Corn Cookies and Cereal Milk Ice Cream from Momofuko! (I just got excited.) Other than water, what do you sip regularly? Ginger Fireballs from Juice Press. How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? 6 days per week! I teach indoor cycling at Cyc and it’s my PASSION. How do you stay active outside the gym? I’m a big surfer. If I could surf every day, I would. It’s HEAVEN. What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Meditation. I meditate every morning for at least 10 minutes. Do you have a favorite health gadget? Lacrosse ball. It’s my portable foam roller and helps me work out the knots. RELATED: How Your Lymphatic System Can Help You Lose Weight How do you express and spread love? I share my journey through my work. People love to hear where I’ve fallen along the way. They love honesty. I’m such a work in progress. We all are. I don’t eat perfectly or feel great every day. I like to share these sides of myself so that other people feel like it’s okay to be less than perfect. What’s your weirdest healthy habit? I don’t know that it’s weird, but I like to sleep A LOT. I also need a lot of alone time. I need to recharge by being alone. I give a lot to others during my regular day, so partying and socializing is not a huge part of my life. Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Yoga. I need to make time for it. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Massage. A hot shower or a soothing bath? Hot shower. Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond butter. Coffee or tea? Coffee. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Dark spin class.

What Healthy Frozen Dessert Entrepreneur Chloe Epstein Eats at Home

Chloe Epstein was an assistant district attorney in Manhattan before a new role—motherhood—inspired her to change her path. As her focus shifted to making better eating decisions for herself and her future children, she honed in on finding a healthier alternative to one of her favorite foods: froyo. (Remember when froyo was everyone’s favorite food?!) Chloe’s Fruit—serving up delicious soft serve made with just fruit, water, and a hint of organic cane sugar (seriously, have you tried it?!)—is now seven years old. The company originally focused on individual stores and then created pops. Its products are now available nationwide. Meanwhile, Epstein is now a mother of three. How does she manage it all while still taking care of herself (she exercises six to seven days a week, people!) and her family? “I so believe that success is all mind over matter,” she says. “If you have a positive mantra, you can accomplish anything.” Here’s how she applies that to her own diet and wellness habits, so you can follow her lead (or at least follow her to one of her stores to experience Dark Chocolate Soft Serve Fruit). How Does Chloe Epstein Live a Nutritious Life? What’s your go-to breakfast? A green smoothie with collagen and other fun stuff. Your go-to workday lunch? Palm Beach salad with chicken from Chop’t. What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Chloe’s Pops and avocados. RELATED: What You Need to Know About Omega-3s The snack you always have with you when traveling? A green apple. Your favorite food indulgence? A warm soft pretzel or Swedish Fish. How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? 6–7 days a week. It’s an addiction. I love mixing it up with a cocktail of different classes—spin, SLT, Tracy Anderson, Core Fusion Cardio classes at Exhale, etc. Which workout would you NEVER do? An all rowing workout. Not my thing. How do you stay active outside the gym? Keeping up with three kids’ absurd schedules and running around the city all day. RELATED: How to Create a Mindful Morning Routine for You and Your Kids What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Still searching for that. Does TV count? I’m also trying to plan one-on-one simple activities with each of my children. Time alone with each one really relaxes and grounds me and reminds me of how truly lucky I am. Do you have a favorite health gadget? Old-school headphones from the 80s. They are the only ones that fit me right. What’s your weirdest healthy habit? Replacing mustard with almost every other condiment. Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Yoga. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Massage. Is that really a question? A hot shower or a soothing bath? Hot shower. I’m not sure I know how to work the bath. It’s been a while. Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond. Coffee or tea? Coffee. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Dark spin. My running days are over due to injury. 🙁

Chocolate Chip Protein Cake Fuels Holly Perkins’ Fit Lifestyle

Wellness star Holly Perkins is a highly credentialed fitness expert, but she also just really, really loves to exercise. “If it were up to me, I’d work out twice every day, because I love it and it makes me me,” she says. “But because I focus on strength training, I have to allow for a bit more recovery some days.” Instead, the author of Lift to Get Lean and leader of Women’s Strength Nation sticks to six to eight sweat sessions per week (!), with at least one full rest day. How does she fuel that active of a lifestyle? Find out about her signature chocolate chip protein cakes, plus her many other healthy habits, below. How Holly Perkins Lives a Nutritious Life If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? I’ve been following my own eating methodology based on genetic testing that respects a macronutrient approach with some blood-typing elements. Sounds really sexy, huh? What’s your go-to breakfast? I created a chocolate chip protein cake that I’m obsessed with! I feel so stable all day when I start my day with it. Its base is egg whites, rolled oats, and banana. Most importantly, it includes chocolate chips. Your go-to workday lunch? Grilled turkey breast or Vital Choice wild salmon, sweet potato, and a green blended drink with kale, spinach, grapefruit, and fresh turmeric root. Your go-to workday dinner? I eat so well all day long that often I’m not hungry at dinner. Sometimes I just do a protein shake, and sometimes it’s another piece of my breakfast cake, lol. A snack you always have with you when traveling? Protein in any form—often organic turkey jerky. What do you eat before and after a workout? Oh gosh, now I’m really going to sound boring; I eat my protein breakfast cake before every workout! It’s just amazing because it fuels me perfectly, tastes amazing, and is so easy to digest. I don’t ever have to worry about an upset stomach or bloating during my workout. I also feel so fueled and strong. Your favorite food indulgence? Donuts!!!!!! Other than water, what do you sip regularly? Super strong Japanese sencha. Which workout would you NEVER do? I don’t think one exists! I love every single form of workout and activity. How do you stay active outside the gym? I LOVE to hike the mountains in the Los Angeles area and go for walks almost every day. I have to spend time outside every day for mental health and general well being. What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Yoga and sleep! Do you have a favorite health gadget? I have so many! I’m almost permanently attached to my heart rate monitor for workouts. Once you get your intensity levels right, you can change your body is so many ways. I also really love My Fitness Pal for diet tracking. I strategize my macronutrients based on my day, goals, and workouts. Things really changed for me once I understood how much protein and carbohydrates to eat each day. I also really love any device that accurately tracks sleep. I loved my Jawbone Up for sleep tracking so much that I wore it out! Now I need to get a new one. How do you express and spread love? I’m an “acts of kindness” kind of person. I love to show my love by giving, showing up, and supporting people. I am very conscious about sending the energy of love, acceptance, and community at every moment possible. I always tip well and demonstrate my appreciation during all little interactions throughout the day, like a visit to Starbucks or the grocery store. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Foot massage please! A hot shower or a soothing bath? Bath with good sniffy oils! Almond butter or peanut butter? In dreams I choose peanut butter with sugar, but in reality I choose natural almond butter. Sigh. Coffee or tea? Both please, super hot. A long run outside or a dark spin class? Long run outside on the beach. “How Do You Live a Nutritious Life?” is a recurring column. Featured guests complete a questionnaire and select answers are then chosen and edited to share, here. Are you a wellness pro interested in sharing how you live a Nutritious Life? Email lisa@nutritiouslife.com to be considered.

How Staying Organized Helps A Busy Nutritionist (and Mom) Eat Well

Registered Dietitian Lara Metz is a wellness superstar. Trust me, we worked together for 10 years and she’s like family to me. She was also the very first person to be Nutritious Life Certified. (That’s history!) Now, she runs her own nutrition practice in bustling New York City while also raising two adorable daughters (who double as recipe taste-testers, naturally). But Metz is not one to subsist on protein bars eaten between meetings with clients and school pick-up. “I have to eat three meals per day,” she says. “I can’t graze at a cocktail party and call it dinner. My day feels incomplete if I don’t sit at a table and eat my meal.” (I can vouch for this. She does NOT miss a meal.) One practice that allows her to do that? Staying organized. RELATED: 10 Surprising Healthy Habits Wellness Experts Trust Metz’s latest project, Curated Kitchen, is a collaboration with professional organizer Barbara Reich. To show you how a streamlined kitchen can lead to a more balanced life (and meals), the duo edits your kitchen, eliminating unhealthy food and clutter and leaving a stocked, organized space behind. RELATED: How to Do Sunday Prep for a Productive, Stress-Free Week Keep reading to find out more about the habits that keep Metz healthy and happy daily, AKA her Nutritious Life. How Lara Metz Lives a Nutritious Life What’s your go-to breakfast? 2 farm-fresh eggs with 1/2 avocado and 1 slice Ezekiel bread. Your go-to workday lunch? I love a hot lunch like lentil soup with spinach or a kale salad with salmon and avocado. Your go-to workday dinner? I feed a family of four so it varies. If it’s a quick-fix dinner, I throw shrimp, white beans, tomatoes, and a couple of garlic cloves in a casserole dish with olive oil and bake. Everyone is happy with this meal. What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Eggs. The snack you always have with you when traveling? Wonderful Pistachios or Elemental Superfood Bars. What do you eat before and after a workout? Depends on the workout and time of day. If I’m playing tennis, which is my favorite workout, I eat oatmeal with blueberries, banana, and hemp seeds before and a handful of walnuts and a clementine after. Your favorite food indulgence? Cupcakes! How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? It varies week to week. Tennis is my absolute favorite. It’s a great cardio workout and is social at the same time. How do you stay active outside the gym? I’m constantly on the go when I’m not with clients. Two kids keep me very busy. Do you have a favorite health gadget? I love my Simply Being app on my iPhone. What does it mean to you to “live consciously”? I’m very mindful of myself and my surroundings. I think about every decision I make and how it impacts me and everyone around me. Lightning Round Meditation or massage? Massage A hot shower or a soothing bath? Bath Almond butter or peanut butter? Peanut butter Coffee or tea? Don’t talk to me before I’ve had coffee! A long run outside or a dark spin class? Spin. “How Do You Live a Nutritious Life?” is a recurring column. Featured guests complete a questionnaire and select answers are then chosen and edited to share, here. Are you a wellness pro interested in sharing how you live a Nutritious Life? Email lisa@nutritiouslife.com to be considered.

The One Food 305 Fitness Founder Sadie Kurzban Can’t Live Without

It’s no surprise that the woman who created one of the most happiness-boosting workouts ever also knows the secret to eating for joy. Find out what it is, plus more fun facts like the workout she’d never try.

Why Fitness Pro Adam Rosante Is All About Smoothies (and Cocktails)

The personal trainer to celebrities, creator of The People’s Bootcamp and author of The 30-Second Body reveals his personal secrets to living a balanced (but busy) life.

How Does Mandy Ingber Live a Nutritious Life?

Mandy Ingber, may be famous for being the “it” yoga guru among A-listers (her clients include hotties such as Jennifer Aniston, Kate Beckinsale and Jennifer Lawrence) but lucky for you, this fellow Capricorn (we bond over Cap traits) whom I’m lucky enough to call my friend, just released her latest book Yogalosophy for Inner Strength: 12 Weeks to Heal Your Heart and Embrace Joy (Seal Press) so you too can learn and  benefit from yoga directly from this yoga star. Mandy is also The New York Times best-selling author of Yogalosophy: 28 Days to the Ultimate Mind-Body Makeover and is the creator of the yoga-hybrid DVD Yogalosophy. Mandy’s class has been awarded “Best of LA” in LA Weekly and Los Angeles Magazine. For more about this beauty, learn how she lives her most Nutritious Life: How do you DRINK UP? I love Mountain Valley Water in glass bottles. I drink at least 2 liters a day. If I workout or drink tea/coffee (I have coffee 2-3 times a week), I add 8 ounces of water per each treat beverage or 30 min work out. I also love probiotic beverages as a treat. How do you EAT EMPOWERED? I stay away from processed foods. I begin my day with a protein shake that includes my multivitamins. I alternate the base—sometimes almond milk, sometimes coconut water, or just plain water—then I add greens like kale or spinach, plus frozen mango. I also add Omega 3 fish oil. Lunch is my largest meal. I usually have a large salad with clean protein, or something like chili or soup with tons of veggies. I snack on nuts and apples with cinnamon and pink salt. Dinner is flex. Sometimes a piece of salmon and a simple vegetables. Sometimes I will do breakfast for dinner and snack on greek yogurt, fruit and nuts or scrambled eggs with rice and vegetables. It depends on how the rest of the day went down. How do you LIVE CONSCIOUSLY? Each day I meditate in the morning. I find that centering myself and clearing my mind makes the difference in my day and my ability to handle myself in a way that I can be proud of. I also write a list of things I did well, things I am grateful for and things I have no control over. How do you LOVE MORE? I try to be present with the people I encounter on a daily basis. The people at my tea place, the people on the street as I walk by. The best way that I can be in love is to be completely present. That means breathing and staying in my body. How do you NURTURE YOURSELF? I love to take a walk on the bluff near my house and watch the sunset over the ocean as often as I possibly can. I soak in a hot bath daily. I allow myself to fully feel my feelings. If I am having a bad day, I allow that. If I am not feeling up to speed, I take something off my plate. I try to be my own mom. How do you SLEEP DEEP? I turn off my electronics at least an hour prior to bedtime. I take magnesium and melatonin. I have found that I need 8 hours for sure. No exceptions. When I have trouble sleeping I listen to serene meditation music to lull me. My very favorite unwinding song is Storm of Prayers by Shaman’s Dream. How do you STRESS LESS? The phrase “How important is it?” reminds me that there are no big deals. When my behavior and actions are aligned with my own moral compass, I can handle life’s twists and turns. Although a learned skill, relaxing into what comes is the discipline I practice. Everything is as it should be, and I can trust that my life is unfolding before me in perfect order. All I need to do is stay out of the way. How do you SWEAT OFTEN? Every since I was a girl, I loved to be physical. It gets me into my body and is my dedication of gratitude for my most amazing instrument, my body! I love to spin. I actually made my mark as the original spinning teacher to sold out classes in Los Angeles, back in 1996 and through 2008. I love intensity and bringing myself through, finding my edge and getting intimate with that process. I love me some hot yoga or barre class. I go into the infrared sauna several times a week. I also love to take a fun dance class. Sweating is my life. I will trade out good hair days for sweating my a$$ off any time.  

How Does McKel Hill Live a Nutritious Life?

McKel Hill, MS, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Founder of Nutrition Stripped, a healthy living website dedicated to optimizing the wellbeing of women over the globe through recipes, nutrition advice, fitness and much more. It’s not hard to understand why the first time I chatted with McKel we could have talked for HOURS! And, by now we have! McKel is crushing it in the world of nutrition and as someone who’s been doing my nutrition thing for a long time, I love seeing this happen. McKel recently launched The Nutrition Stripped Society  an exclusive meal planning membership site with reset/detox guides aimed to take your health to the next level, grocery shopping lists, cooking how-to’s, batch cooking guide, cooking videos, fitness videos, workout tips, tips on wellbeing and ongoing support. Check it out and keep an eye out for the The Nutrition Stripped Cookbook which will be published in the fall 2016 with William Morrow. For a peak into this healthy girl’s life, check out here how McKel lives her most Nutritious Life:   How do you DRINK UP? Plenty of water with lemon and lime first thing in the morning, followed by my Matcha Tea Latte or Coffee, Elevated if I need a little pre-workout boost. Also I’m a huge tea drinking all day long whether it’s green tea, liver supportive tea, peppermint, or ginger. #gimmiealltheteas   How do you EAT EMPOWERED? Whole foods as much as possible, but I’m all about flexibility! I try to listen to my body and focus on nourishing from the inside out to be able to carry out my work and passions in life- it’s an added bonus that it gives me energy, clearer skin, stronger hair, and weight maintenance.   How do you LIVE CONSCIOUSLY? Meditation. Meditating each morning and setting up a morning ritual that is non-negotiable is, well, non-negotiable! It keeps me feeling energetic and spiritually centered which is a driving force during my days. If I don’t meditate I feel I have less space for clarity and focus.     How do you LOVE MORE? This is something I’m learning more, especially this past year finding balance in my professional and personal life, going through a break up, you know- life. Loving more in the present moment means self-love, love and support with friends, family, and the beautiful NS community that makes my heart smile.     How do you NURTURE YOURSELF? Meditation, taking the time to find balance and set boundaries with work, getting a monthly massage, routine acupuncture, taking a walk outside (daily), talking to friends and family on the phone, girls nights, alone time reading a book and drinking tea, helping others, eating well, and sleeping at least 8 hours.     How do you SLEEP DEEP? I’m routine about it and make sleep a priority- I always try to get 8 hours a sleep a night and do pretty well at that, but it takes discipline! 98% of the time I wake up around 4:30-5am each morning so going to bed early enough to match that takes willpower but also knowing when to let loose and pull those 2am bedtimes after a night out in the city. I share my favorite tips on sleep for a nighttime routine on the Nutrition Stripped Blog.   How do you STRESS LESS? Acupuncture, meditation, and journaling are my favorite ways to stress less and manage stress- acupuncture has really changed my life and wellbeing this past year. It’s been another tool to use in my “toolkit” for stress management and I’m a huge advocate for finding those tools so you can rule stress and not let it rule you.   How do you SWEAT OFTEN? I workout about 6 days a week in the gym, a combination of heavy weight lifting, sprinting, running, walking, swimming, all the things. I love working out and have since high school—it’s my happy place and part of my morning routine that’s non-negotiable! Other than that I love doing anything outdoors where I can both get in some exercise, breathe in fresh air and be in nature. I also started to incorporate more yoga for balance and posture, both of these things I cover and share with the members of the Nutrition Stripped Society because EVERYONE can do it- no yogi-skill needed. Learn more about McKel at nutritionstripped.com.