I receive a lot of the same questions through direct messenger on Instagram so I thought I would compile my most popular questions in one place and share all the answers. So, let’s get into it!
Q. How do you find the motivation to always eat healthy?
My motivation is driven by my passion to be my healthiest self and my strong belief in the benefits of a plantbased lifestyle. I am a very all of nothing personality so when I am sold on something it isn’t hard for me to stay on course. I also want to look my best and age well, so one could say I am driven a little by vanity lol, and also the fear of being unhealthy when I am older. My mom’s bad health drives me to be as healthy as possible. Also, just being out and seeing so many unhealthy people, having friends with sick loved ones, all of it fuels me to not have these issues later in life and I believe the key to prolonged health is being plantbased.
That being said, I follow my #plantbasednotperfect tag and don’t aim for perfection, I try to make the healthiest decisions I can 95% of the time, but the other 5% if I have chocolate that’s not vegan, something with cheese in it or alcohol, I don’t beat myself up over it because it is such a minor part of my life. I think striving for perfection is the quickest way to fail at this lifestyle.
Another tip that keeps me motivated to always eat healthy is to surround myself by like minded individuals on social media, read their blogs, and to research studies and articles related to the benefits of a plantbased lifestyle. I also will watch Youtube videos made by plantbased vloggers to stay educated and to gain ideas, as well as read books related to the lifestyle. By surrounding myself by it constantly I stay in my bubble and do not veer off course; other people also motivate me and inspire me with new recipes and ideas daily through Instagram. I usually will screen capture their insta stories and revert back to them when I am meal planning for the week.
At work I make sure to pack my food each day and always have snacks on hand, which makes it easy for me to turn down unhealthy options lurking in the kitchen. If you follow my Insta you see how much unhealthy food we have in our office on the regular. Preparation is key. If you are starving and have nothing to eat you are more likely to make an unhealthy decision.
Q. How do you find the motivation to work out?
I wouldn’t say I am the most motivated person to work out. I focus more on my diet because I don’t love working out actually and I believe diet is 80% and workouts are like 20%, maybe even less for some. I think finding a workout that speaks to you is the key to staying motivated. I really love the Melissa Wood Health workouts so I have stuck with them and I love that they are at home because honestly, I am pretty lazy. I do have a gym membership but I might go once a week if my husband has me go with him, otherwise it isn’t something I even think about. I am a very bare minimum effort for maximum effect person so if I can just eat super clean and workout at home a few times a week I prefer that over killing myself at the gym. That is just me though.
Find your workout that speaks to you and I think you will find your motivation, you will actually look forward to working out. What I love about the MWH workouts is that they are almost like a meditation to me and I look forward to them at the end of my work day, they make me happier and they tone at the same time. It is the longest I have followed a workout and I have tried them all – from Tone It Up, to BBG, Alexa Jean and others. Not to say I don’t recommend those, but for me they didn’t fit long term.
Q. Workout Routine? How much and do you do anything in addition to Melissa Wood Health (MWH) workouts?
I broke down my weekly workout schedule in this post – My Weekly Workout Schedule.
I do the MWH workouts 3 – 4 times a week, go on a long walk with my MIL maybe once a week and then on the weekends I might go to the gym with my husband one day. At the gym I’ll do the rotating stairs and some abs. That is it. I feel like people ask me this question a lot because they are looking for a magic answer to lose weight and – SURPRISE – the answer isn’t in your workout, it is in your fridge. You need to do the work with what you put in your body first. If you are going to the gym every day and seeing no changes, you need to visit what you are eating. Use a journal and track everything you are eating for at least a week to see if you can identify anything that could be derailing your weight loss.
If you are honestly telling me you work out and eat perfectly clean, plantbased and aren’t losing weight then you may have another internal issue that needs to be addressed and in that case, I would recommend visiting a holistic doctor to run blood work and an allergy test.
When you are fueling yourself with whole, plantbased foods you will stay naturally lean, then you can do lighter workouts to tone yourself. You don’t need to kill yourself in the gym to look lean. If there is a magic answer it is plants.
Q. How long have you been plantbased?
I have been plantbased for about four years and can’t imagine living another way! You can read my entire journey here – My Plantbased Journey.
Q. What do you Eat in a Day?
I have tons of posts on the blog around What I Eat in a Day, as well as a Grocery Shopping List and what to make with each item from the list. Visit my EATS section to check them all out.
I try to switch things up each week for lunches and get my meal inspiration from Instagram. This week I am doing the Earthy Andy #Eatyorainbow Challenge so Im pretty much eating RT4 (Raw Till 4) and then having cooked dinners at night. For dinners I feel like we eat pretty much the same things every week with some new ideas added in from time to time. Keeping things simple is the best way to thrive on this lifestyle, don’t overcomplicate things. Once in awhile I try new vegan recipes, but I find that a lot of them have many ingredients and aren’t necessarily “healthy” just because they are vegan. Try to aim for as few ingredients as possible in everything you eat and you will keep your body happy!
Some typical meals we eat on the regular are: salads with roasted potatoes, black bean tacos, veggie sandwiches, acai bowls, smoothies, avocado toast, tofu with rice & broccoli, roasted cauliflower with sweet potatoes, oatmeal and homemade soups. These are very basic meals with not many ingredients and we eat them every week.
Q. Do you eat fruit at any time of the day?
Ahh the fruit question. No it doesn’t make you fat. Yes I eat it whenever I want. That being said, I do not suffer from digestive issues so if I eat fruit at 2pm or 6pm it doesn’t matter vs having it only in the morning. The rules of food combing and eating fruit in the morning because it digests quickly are really for those who struggle with bloating and digestive issues. If you are this person then yes I would try to make fruit the first meal of your day and eat lighter to heavier as you go towards dinner. However, you should really focus on the reason you have these issues and healing them to begin with so you can enjoy fruit at all times as it is incredibly healing and could help many of your issues. I would recommend reading Medical Medium to learn more on this topic.
If fruit made you fat I would be overweight. If fruit made you diabetic I would have diabetes. I eat SO much fruit. Yet, I have no health issues. Shift your perspective on fruit and stop fearing it, it is non processed and natural so it is not going to do you harm. The processed shit you eat will. It is that simple.
If you have any other questions feel free to ask them in the comments below and I will do my best to answer them!
xx, Beth
