This blog post has been requested a lot lately, what I eat in a day. After I shared pictures from Hawaii in our swimsuits you wanted to know not only what I eat but what two other women ate who were in a picture I shared! My mother-in-law is close t0 60 and her sister, Aunt Velda is 60. They both have amazing bodies. Yes, they have good genes, BUT they both work really hard and eat very smart and thoughtful. That is the key. Be thoughtful about what you eat. I know this has helped me. I have taken time to think about how I want to approach food. A big part of my WHY with food, I want to be an example to my kids in how I fuel and treat my body with love.
Before I share what we all eat on an average day. I want to remind you that- We are not nutritionists and everyone is different. Everyone needs different things to fuel them. BUT it might give you an idea. I can remember reading a book about Lance Armstrong (I was obsessed with him). And really the only thing that I remember from that book was what he said about tortilla chips, in an interview he did. haha! Isn’t that just weird? I remember that?? I was impressed with his discipline. He was talking about how he needs to maintain a certain weight, so he lives on a strict diet. He also said he won’t touch a tortilla chip, he can’t just eat one. I never felt more like Lance Armstrong. I loved that idea. To just not even eat it! I have the self control to not start, but harder to not stop. Anyone else? He THOUGHT about how he was going to eat before he was confronted with the food.
I love to see and read what others eat in a day. It is the one thing we ALL have in common- we all EAT!! Not everyone works out. So what we eat can connect us to each other. And did you know that what you eat makes more of an impact to your body than working out EVER will? The key to loosing weight is actually 80% DIET and 20% working out! Can you believe that?
So here you go!
What three mamas EAT in a day!
Just putting ON the swimsuit makes you swimsuit ready! But there were so many questions about what we eat on a daily basis after I shared the photo of us in our swimsuits (below). The goal is being confident in your body.
Below- Me on the left (I am 37), Aunt Velda is 60 and Karen is 57. Photo taken a couple weeks ago in Hawaii!
What 37 year old Nesting with Grace Eats in a Day-
I don’t count calories, I just don’t have the time OR rather I don’t choose to spend my time on that. But I DO practice portion control and am aware of how much I should eat to maintain my weight or lose weight. I don’t do macros, I tried, it didn’t feel good to me to weigh and get so caught up in my food. I do try to eat a balanced diet, high in protein.
I did a paleo challenge at my local crossfit about 8 years ago. That is when I started to see muscle definition (combined with crossfit workouts) I got down to 6% body fat.
I still try to stick to a 90% Paleo Diet. I find it easiest for me and it just makes sense to me as a way to eat. I eat a “caveman diet”. Our family meals are mostly Paleo. We do eat-out once in awhile and they are not always paleo. My kids and Kevin do not eat Paleo, but like I said our dinners are Paleo or there is a paleo option for me and anyone else who wants it! I don’t drink alcohol, soda or coffee.
My biggest tip- portion control, if you want to loose weight, cut down on how much you eat! Drink more water. Eat more vegetables. Find an inspiration picture of YOURSELF, when you felt the best and hang it on your fridge. It will remind you, that you can reach your goals, you have before!
- Morning- Every morning before I eat any food I have a large glass of water. Lately I have been adding two drops of Lemon Essential Oils to it. Good to rid toxins and for your gut. Next, it depends on the day. But if I workout at 9:30 am, I don’t eat anything until after I workout around 11:00. Same if I workout at 6:30 am, I don’t eat before. I typically do Intermittent Fasting everyday, you can read about that HERE. If I am starving and didn’t eat a lot the day before, I might cook a couple egg whites. On this particular day, I took Finn to a play place right after I worked out at about 11:00. I had grabbed a Perfect Bar before I ran out the door and ate that. (I LOVE those but not Paleo). If I would have went home after the gym I would have made some eggs with veggies or a Green Protein Smoothie.
- Lunch- I love leftovers for lunch or a salad with some leftover protein from dinner. Today I had leftover Paleo Turkey Tacos (Recipe HERE). I had a couple plantain chips with some salsa.
- Snack- Sliced mini cucumbers with some Himalayan Salt.
- Drink- Important to mention that I try to drink a lot of water thru the day. Never soda or juice. I did have a drink of THESE BCA’s, which I find to really help me with recovery from working out.
- Dinner- Kevin made a Frittata (find recipe HERE). We make that about once a week for dinner or breakfast and we make extra for leftovers. Our typical dinner meals can be found HERE.
- Evening- We don’t do dessert much, maybe one night on the weekend. If I am craving something sweet or I am a little hungry, I will have a cup of Crio Bru (read about it HERE). The warm drink fills me right up with hardly any calories or sugar! Or I might have one Honey Pot Mint from Trader Joe’s. But typically after dinner I am done eating.
You can see what a typical workout looks like for me HERE
What 60 year old Aunt Velda Eats in a Day-
Aunt Velda (is on the left) is Kevin’s Aunt (who I LOVE) is a babe. She did a fitness competition about 5 years ago. She also works out religiously (I will share more about that on a different post). She does track her calories and macros, she tracks it all in My Fitness Pal (free app). She weighs about 120 lbs and is about 5 feet tall. She eats around 1200 calories. She eats the same things most days so it’s pretty easy for her to stay on target. She said that she does fall away from this on vacations and special events. She will have alcohol every now and then, but not on a regular basis.
Velda’s biggest tip- Alcohol is the main deterrent to anyone getting their goal. The sugar metabolizes much worse than any sweet you can put in your mouth.
- Morning– 4 egg whites, two slices of turkey bacon and 1/3 cup oatmeal sweetened with a teaspoon of local honey
- Snack– Protein Shake or yogurt with blueberries
- Lunch– Turkey Sandwich with some veggies and mustard as the spread (no mayo or cheese). Or she will have a salad with balsamic dressing.
- Snack– Protein Shake or yogurt with blueberries
- Dinner– Lean meat with broccoli or asparagus (she has carbs more around when she works out)
- (She will allow a cheat meal once a week earlier in the day)
What 57 year old Karen Eats in a Day-
Karen (with Kevin) is my lovely mother-in-law who is exactly to the day, 20 years older than me. But you would think we were the same age, she is active and fun. She works full-time as a manager for Provo City, and can almost retire! Her work days start super early and end late. She is a busy working lady. She has always been smart about what she eats, even with eating out. Kevin and her actually have similar ways of eating. I have never seen Karen get a second helping of anything and she always leaves a little on her plate. Kevin never gets a second helping either, I always ask him if he wants more and he declines, even for dessert! Karen’s biggest tip- cut down on the carbs! She lost about 10 lbs before Hawaii by doing this. That always helps her lean-up before her vacations to Hawaii! She does have carbs, but she tries to balance it out thru the day.
- Morning- Coffee (about three cups) with some Vital Proteins- Collagen Creamer and a little creamer. McDonald’s two breakfast sandwiches, without the bread.
- Snack- Beef Jerky (while at her desk at work)
- Lunch– Habit Burger- Cheeseburger with no bun and a side of tempura green beans
- Dinner- They ate out that night and had a small steak and spinach salad
I hope this was a helpful post! I will be back next week to share what I do for workouts (as you can see above it involves weights) along with the ladies above and Kevin. **Update- see my Workout HERE.
I just want to say that these are just a fun “day in the life of eating”. I am not suggesting you start eating like us, there is not a one size fits all.
And I am not saying that getting swimsuit ready is what is MOST important. The most important thing is how you FEEL about yourself, feeling confident in your skin. Eating this way helps us to feel confident in our skin.
For me eating the way I do gives me energy to get done what I need and want to in a day. That is what food is, our FUEL, a gift to help us accomplish our goals.
I hope this was a helpful post! I will be back next week to share what I do for workout along with the ladies above and Kevin.
You can find more of my healthy recipes HERE
And click on some of my favorite cook books below for more healthy eating ideas!
Clare Dean says
Love this post! Thank you for sharing! I’ve been on my fitness journey for five years now, with having 2 kids in there, and I have my weights & workouts down! I love weights so much. It’s just so hard to dial in that nutrition! So thank you for the tips and ideas! And for sharing strong women!
My 2019 mantas are “discipline over motivation ” & “no excuses”
Thank you again! Love your blog & family & personality!
[email protected] says
Thank you!!
And I love your phrase of the year!!
Jenna says
Thanks for sharing! All you ladies look great and I’m amazed at how varied your diets are. So neat to catch as glimpse of your real lives.
[email protected] says
Thanks for your kind comment!
Tammie Price says
Love this! I started my “get healthy journey just over a year ago. (Although fitness is not new to me) at 45 I found that I had stopped paying attention and let myself go a bit. I got myself on track by following Paleo and started working out 5 times a week. I have lost 20 pounds and have so much more energy and just feel over all better. It truly feels like a lifestyle change. It’s been a slow go, not a quick fix and I hope to never look back.
[email protected] says
ahhhhhh congrats!!! I love reading this! You rock!
Leslie says
Thank you for this post. Seeing your pictures from Hawaii has really helped me stay on track when I most needed it. The week before Christmas I decided to start working out. To be honest, exercising has never been fun to me or enjoyable. I just made up my mind that I needed to be healthy, which was really my motivation. This year I’ve told my family that my word for the year was going to be strong, and my motto was going to be “do hard things.” I’ve now worked out for 21 days and have seen my body change, lost weight, but most importantly felt better. We are now doing family workouts (which your family encouraged this). I desire to live by example and intentionally do hard things and model that before my girls. Exercise is hard, but if you stick with it in becomes easier. That’s really how everything is in life. I want my kids to do hard things and be strong women physically, emotionally, and most of all spiritually. I believe that my body was given to me by God and I should be a good steward of what He has given me. I haven’t always done a good job, but I am now and hope it will encourage my sweet girls to do the same. Thanks again for your encouragement!
Susan says
Hi Brooke! Love seeing what these gorgeous ladies eat on any given day. Food really is fuel and it becomes even more important the older one gets. I’ll be 50 next year and haven’t really been taking care of myself the last few years. I’ve recently started eating a more Whole30 type of diet. I just need to get moving and exercise! Thank you for the motivation.
Nicolle says
Love this post! All 3 of you are beautiful and such an inspiration! I felt my best when I did keto. Not only did I lose weight and feel better about myself, but after years of hormonal imbalances and infertility, my husband and I conceived naturally. But I truly do believe above all else, everything in moderation.
[email protected] says
Yes! That is basically what my mother-in-law did, the Keto. Yes- 100% moderation!!
J says
Thanks ladies for sharing such wonderful information! Can’t wait to read about your exercise regime. You look awesome!
[email protected] says
Thank you!!
Pamela says
Well I am 67 and I found this a great read. Thanks for this post.
My daughter son in law and grandbabies live in Utah.
About 8 years ago Hubby and I both had Lasik Eye Surgery and after wearing glasses for 50 years this was the best thing we ever did for ourselves. 20 20 vision now.
patty messner says
3 beauties that are healthy & inspiring!
thanks for sharing what works for you.
xo.
Bonnie says
I love this post & love that you all have different methods! Pick what works for you & stay consistent & confident! Love it!
[email protected] says
Thanks Bonnie!!!
Cam says
What kind of yogurt does Velda typically eat, if she doesn’t mind sharing? I love yogurt and fruit, but worry about the amount of sugar in many yogurts. Thanks! Loved this post!
Maureen says
Thanks Brooke for this post- I love so much that you included the ladies so we get a glimpse of 3 different ages and body types. At the end of the day, we all just want to be happy and feel better. Can we see more posts like this one? I love how you share the diet of each of you.
[email protected] says
Thank you!! Yes! I was thinking of doing it again!
Lindsarray says
One tip I learned awhile back for sandwiches and I love is instead of mayo, use hummus! Added protein and flavor!
Angela says
LOVE this post! My 37 year-old body is long gone (and never looked as great as yours). However, since the beginning of the year I have been on a 1200 calorie diet to lose the 10 to 15 lbs. I have gained during perimenopause and a thyroid condition my Dr. discovered. So far so good, I’m down 9.5. What is great is how wonderful everyone looks and Velda and Karen are older than me. How inspiring! My next step is to incorporate some yoga I think. I need some tone and flexibility. Thanks again!