Will the new year mean a new you? Source: Supplied
IF your resolution is to be the healthiest and happiest you can be in 2015, a trio of new diet plans aim to help you succeed.
All based on healthy eating principles, these food philosophies have been adopted by Hollywood’s hottest stars.
From Drew Barrymore’s stay-slim secret to the cookbook Victoria Beckham swears by, we take a look at the wholesome new eating regimes you should consider this January:
THE BEAUTY DETOX SOLUTION
Try a taste: Kimberly Snyder’s holistic approach to eating promises great skin and hair, as well as a slimmer body and bags of energy. Her meals — made up of whole, natural, unprocessed ingredients (and lots of salad) — improve digestion and build a beautiful body from the inside out.
Who’s a fan: It seems like half of Hollywood has backed Snyder’s method, with Barrymore and Fergie among them, along with Dita von Teese, Hilary Duff and Reese Witherspoon.
Get your teeth into it: Snyder’s approach isn’t for the faint-hearted. She advocates a mainly plant-based plan (think lots of fruit, vegies, nuts, sprouts and seeds). There’s no calorie counting, but with a wholesome diet full of greens, that’s not really an issue.
Tips from the top: Start your lunches and dinners with a green salad — it helps to boost your body’s alkaline levels. Oh, and dump the diet sodas — they’re one big acidic overload.
Try it yourself: Snyder’s Glowing Green Smoothie: Blend a glass-and-a-half of water with a head of organic romaine lettuce, add 3-4 stalks of organic celery, half a large bunch of spinach, an organic apple and pear, and whiz in an organic banana, and the juice of half a lemon.
Drew Barrymore is a fan of the Snyder approach. Source: AP
HONESTLY HEALTHY
Try a taste: Better digestion, clearer skin, improved concentration and even increased happiness are just some of the benefits promised by this alkalising eating plan, developed by chef Natasha Corrett and her godmother, nutritionist Vicki Edgson. The Honestly Healthy food philosophy is based on eating plenty of alkaline foods, like green vegetables, almonds, garlic, olive oil and lemons, and avoiding acidic foods like sugar, dairy products and meat for 70 per cent of the time.
Who’s a fan: Beckham tweeted a picture of Corrett and Edgson’s book, Honestly Healthy: Eat With Your Body In Mind, The Alkaline Way, with the caption “Love this healthy eating cookbook X”, and Corrett, who’s Sienna Miller’s stepsister, has also delivered her home-cooked alkaline meals to celebrities including Natalie Imbruglia.
Get your teeth into it: On the menu is lots of oily fish, wholegrains, grapefruits, lemons and limes, almonds and green tea plus plenty of vegetables: among the most alkalising are fennel, broccoli, artichoke, asparagus, beetroot, kale, spinach, watercress and cauliflower. You should avoid gluten, sugar, meat and dairy but the remaining 30 per cent of the time, you can eat what you like — including all those forbidden goodies.
Tips from the top: Refined sugar is a no-no, but that doesn’t mean you can’t indulge your sweet tooth. Corrett recommends making up a batch of pureed apple (quite high on the alkaline scale) and using that in place of sugar to tackle any cravings.
Try it yourself: Pumpkin smoothie is just one of the unusual recipes created by Corrett. Blend 150g of cooked squash or pumpkin with a quarter of a teaspoon of cinnamon, two tablespoons of coconut yoghurt, a tablespoon of lucuma powder, a cup of water, a tablespoon of coconut oil and a frozen banana.
Victoria Beckham loves Vicki Edgson’s book. Source: Getty Images
SAKARA LIFE
Try a taste: This organic vegan eating plan is more of a nutritious meal delivery service, which is getting supermodels and stars excited — and looking great. Founded in 2011 by Whitney Tingle and Danielle DuBoise, the Sakara regimen is “a weight loss and healthy living program based on a wholefood, plant-rich diet”, which is full of greens and healthy fats.
Who’s a fan: This New York-based regimen has caught the eye of Gwyneth Paltrow, who recommends their “signature superfood salad dressings”. Supermodel Iman is also a fan, and it’s loved by Victoria’s Secrets models Lily Aldridge, Erin Heatherton and Karolina Kurkova.
Get your teeth into it: The Sakara meals are colourful and almost too beautiful to eat, from morning oats with yellow pear and rose petals to lemon-scented quinoa with grilled artichokes and farm-fresh asparagus. But it’s only available in the US — and the plan doesn’t come cheap (prices start at $99 for a one-day trial). Unlike other diets, there are no juices on the menu — just lots of vegies.
Tips from the top: There’s no need to worry about lacking protein in the plan. Did you know that 50 per cent of calories in green vegetables are actually derived from protein? And that four cups of kale packs in 12g of protein?
Try it yourself: To make Sakara’s superfood kale salad, peel and cube a butternut squash, then coat with olive oil and bake for 30 minutes.
Combine the roasted squash with five cups of chopped baby kale and five cups of red kale, half a cup of pecans, half a cup of pumpkin seeds and half a cup of pomegranate seeds. Toss in a cup of blueberries, a cup of golden raspberries, a chopped persimmon and some goji berries.
Sprinkle with four tablespoons of hemp seeds.
Gwyneth Paltrow recommends the Sakara regimen. Source: Getty Images
NEW EXERCISE TRENDS
The TRX suspension training system is a favourite of Gisele Bundchen and expected to be huge in 2015. It’s a resistance-based full body workout created by the US Navy SEALs.
Lagree Fitness is a method developed to “encourage maximum exertion while allowing for low risk of injury”; the Megaformer workout, as used by Sofia Vergara, tones and elongates muscles as well as burning fat and boosting postural alignment. Dubbed “Pilates on steroids”, it’s essentially a machine to help you stretch and feel the burn more easily.
How the stars will stay slim in 2015 - NEWS.com.au
