When you are small and “thin” you get the looks and questions that everyone assumes you don’t eat or have an eating disorder. In fact one jealous fitness instructor in town told another client of mine that I had an eating disorder and threw up all the time. STRAIGHT lies from HELL! In high school I was obsessive about training for my running career goals which demanded I strictly control what I eat and I agree it got a bit out of hand when I was a sophomore in high school but I never struggled with throwing up. That was never my gig! It’s amazing what people will do when they are jealous! Nonetheless I get quit frequently as a role model representing health and fitness all things nutrition; what I eat, if I eat meat, if I eat a lot, if I eat sugar, if my kids like to eat healthy and it goes on and on. The truth is I am a foodie, I LOVE healthy food and I love getting the most flavorful experience out of less- usually 6 ingredients is my max. 

Honestly, call me blessed or abnormal, but there is not a single iota ounce of desire for disgusting fast food and packaged preserved poisons. I 100% would rather learn how to accept the feeling of hunger than be forced out of desperation to drive through a drive through and eat fast food- no I’m not starving myself and then calling it select eating disguised as a SNOB. I just like, love and live for healthy food- the way it tastes, how I feel, and the control I feel over my emotions and health. Humbly but proudly I say our kids have never eaten regular fast food chain restaurants with me! Even when they have a chance, or if they do they regret it moments later when they get diarrhea or feel ill because of the gut crash they just gave permission to happen and they know it! Modeling healthy eating rather than enforcing it has created lifestyle habits for my kids. When they crave avocados, sauerkraut on everything I appreciate the small wins!

Before you may want to call me every name out there and then give every reason why you don’t have time and I don’t understand your life, let me tell you I do! We have lived on the road for sports for over the last 10 years with 6 kids in tow! When I say on the road I mean in different states, thousands of miles between 2 cars and multiple kids playing every sport including baseball, hockey, horses, golf and soccer! All the while usually with a toddler in tow and a business at home to manage from afar. Our life has not made eating clean easy but it HAS reinforced the need for health when our energy cup demands to stay full considering the pace we run.

About 8 years ago I finally overcame a nearly 2 year battle with an auto-immune disease ( most likely due to high levels of stress) that literally left me almost dead and allergic to every food I ate; soy, dairy, gluten, wheat, corn, vitamin K, red meat – I think that just about covers everything on the food pyramid besides sugar! While, I will share more about how, what and why I did what I did to heal my body later, what I do have to say here is that FOOD IS YOUR MEDICINE! It is not about feeding you, it’s about fueling you and sustaining your health with food from the source of life and energy. Health starts with what you put in your body 3-5 times a day!

Most every day I start with fresh produce extracted juice. I may go through seasons of flavors similar to the physical seasons of eating including green juices, beets and carrots, citrus and mixes. Yet every season I experience more energy than you would ever believe. I also like to start my day with a bullet proof coffee with some fun extras including MCT/XCT oil, grass fed butter, collagen protein to name a few. At about 9-10am I enjoy my juice which then takes me to lunch when I get off work about 2-3pm. This includes a salad with sauerkraut, lots of olive oil,lemon and vinegar, some seeds and nuts, avocados, and then I add ethnci flavorful touches to give it a flare of mexican, mediteranean, fruity, etc. Salads in a jar have been my special sauce for healthy eating on the run for the last 6 years. Stay tuned for our Life A Jar- salad recipes- Coming Soon!

Dinner time is our family time and oftentimes it is later than I like just because of all the kids sports and evening commitments! That’s when that later lunch can really help hold me over till 7 when we most often eat our family meal. We have salad at every meal and keep the meals although simple in nature as close to nature as we can. A simply structured system of meal planning really helps with that.
Night time is a special time to unwind. I learned from watching my dad that a cup of sleepytime tea can help the body prepare for that bedtime restoration and has become a tradition I enjoy as a nurturing way to end the day and prepare me with some warmth and cozy care.
Rest well and eat clean to LIVE