blog
02/13/2013
With Valentine's Day coming up (TOMORROW!) and having just celebrating my 4 year anniversary with Slade this past weekend, OK Magazine invited me to chat about love and life - you can
see that interview here. Maybe I was hungry, but while we were at it, we talked about food (Jack in the Box haha!), health and fitness! See a snippet of our chat below or read the full article
here.
OK! How do you stay in such great shape?
Gretchen Rossi: It truly is about moderation. It took me literally 30 years to get that concept. I am very in tune with my body now and I know when I need to watch what I’m eating or when I can allow myself to indulge. In the last five years I’ve been in the best shape of my life and I haven’t dieted and that’s the first time that I’ve ever been in good shape. I’ve learned to just allow myself to just be. I’ve learned that my body has these patterns now. When it’s right before my period I just feel really gross and bloated and I get so hungry. I eat anything and everything for the entire week and I’ve just allowed myself to not feel guilty about those things anymore because I know as soon as my period is over I’m going to feel great again. So you have to get in tune with your body and learn to just be in those different stages of that month of whatever stages your body is going through. Being in shape and being healthy is mind, body and spirit.
OK! What's a standard breakfast, lunch and dinner for you?
GR: For breakfast I'll usually have yogurt and granola or turkey bacon or I’ll have hard-boiled eggs or I’ll have over easy eggs. I don’t do the egg whites because I feel like the yolk is really good for your body. I feel like when I eat the yolk it helps keep my hair shiny. For lunch, I typically just make a sandwich here at home with turkey and lettuce. If I feel crazy I will put other meats in there. I love mustard so I’ll add that and that’s a normal lunch for me if I’m home. If I’m out I’ll have a salad or salmon. The same thing goes for dinner. I rotate through my food, which sounds funny, but one night a week I’ll have fish. Another night I’ll have chicken, another night I’ll have meat and then every couple of weeks I’ll have more of a starchy dinner like pasta or I’ll eat pizza. I'll always try to have some sort of a vegetable with dinner. I love red and green squash with olive and salt and pepper.
OK! Do you ever eat fast food?
GR: It's so funny because I get all these tweets about when people see me on the show and they're like, 'You're always driving through Jack in the Box!' I laugh because most of the time we're driving through Jack in the Box it's because we're filming so much and we haven't eaten that day and it's like, 'We have to eat some food!' So we go through a drive through and it always happens to be Jack in the Box! It's not like I'm eating there every day. It's maybe once a month at the most.
OK! What would you like to say to your fans?
GR: I want to make sure people know they need to just give themselves a break. In time they will get to a great place. I think people get so skewed by Hollywood and they see all of us in these magazines and we're PhotoShopped or whatever and people think, 'Oh gosh if only I could look like that,' and the truth of the matter is I am the same as they are. I wake up every day and I struggle. I feel fat some days and it's just really having a healthy lifestyle and giving yourself a break.
Read the full article
here.
xoxoxo Gretchen Christine
08/14/2012
Hey Guys! Here are some great tips from my Personal Trainer Ken Rawlins! It really has helped me when eating out, so wanted to share it with you too! Hope these great tips help!
1. Portion sizes in American restaurants are huge! Before you start your meal you should make a pact with yourself to eat half and take half to go. If you don’t think you have the willpower to stick to your pact, you should ask that the wait staff wrap half of the meal in advance.
2. Know your menu. Some restaurants take the time and effort to add a “heart healthy” icon to low-cholesterol, low-fat, and low-sodium meals. Other restaurants add a “healthy choices” section. I always look for those first.
3. Be cautious with those appetizers – they are usually fried and loaded with fat and calories. Some exceptions are edamame, low-sodium soups, shrimp cocktails, and vegetables, as long as they’re not fried.
4. Don’t torture yourself with that bowl of chips or basket of bread – just ask that it be removed from the table!
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for what you want. If it’s not on the menu, then tell them you have an “off the menu request”.
6. When you have a choice for a side dish, choose vegetables every time. Tip: It helps to not even look at the other options, just say, “Vegetables.”
7. When you are asked how you want your meat cooked, choose one of these options: steamed, grilled, or baked.
8. Salad dressings and sodium-rich sauces are not your friend. Avoid all salad dressings, anything creamy, like hollandaise sauce. The same goes for “Cream of Broccoli” soup – it sounds healthy because it has broccoli in it, but it’s not! Creams are laden with fat and calories. Tip: If you really need a salad dressing, you can go with olive oil and vinegar on the side.
9. Limit yourself to one glass of wine. Alcohol loosens your inhibitions and sometimes this results in overeating.
10. Eat slowly, savor each bite, enjoy your company and turn off your cell phone. Don’t forget that living in the moment is part of your healthy lifestyle!
A little goes a long way! For more info about Ken, or to train with Ken go to
www.kenrawlins.com
xoxoxo Gretchen
12/28/2011
If you’re like me, I’m sure health and fitness is at the top of your new year’s resolution list. It’s important to stay in shape, eat healthy, and feel good so I have lots of energy to grow my businesses, film the show, and do everything else I need to do on a daily basis. Since we often have good intentions, but all too often lose steam to keep this goal going, I thought I’d share a few of my tips to make sure you stay on track:
Have a realistic and attainable goal. Throw out any resolutions to look like a Victoria’s Secret runway model. God has made each one of us different, with our own specific body type and shape. We need to learn to be content with who we are, and pray for that strength as we take on any new workout or when trying to change eating habits. Honestly, resolving to look like Miranda Kerr is not realistic for most of us. But, pursuing daily physical activity, looking food and feeling good in our lives is very possible.
Craft a plan. Write a comprehensive plan on how you plan to achieve your fitness goals. Just like all successful businesses start with a business plan that describes a mission and specifics on how they will achieve it, detailing the specifics on your own personal plan will likely help you achieve them more, too.
Break down your goals so you’re not overwhelmed. Set several smaller goals to achieve throughout the year that will get you to the one big goal you have in mind. For example, if your goal is to run a half-marathon, make it less intimidating. Start with running a mile, or a 5K, then lead up to a 10K, and so forth. That way, if you aren't able to reach your final goal, you will have made many smaller, but still very significant, achievements along the way.
Give it time. Don’t expect overnight results! Most experts agree that it takes about 21 days to create a habit and six months for it to actually become a part of your daily life.
Be accountable. Friends and family are the best support system, so ask them to help you so they can encourage you throughout the year, as well as be people you’re accountable to.
Finally, take the pressure off yourself! Know that no matter what, if you are happy on the inside it will reflect on the outside, no matter how big, small or fit you are. You have to be comfortable in your own skin; no one can decide what is best for your body but you. Don't try to be another person's size! That will never happen.
What are your other NYE resolutions?
Happy 2012 to everyone!
xoxoxo Gretchen Christine
07/25/2011
Did you know that a cosmopolitan can contain over 300 calories? If you're counting your calories everyday, this is a pretty big portion of your meals. Instead of filling your daily intake by drinking empty calories, try my favorite cocktail, the Voli Pink Lemonade, only 95 calories!
I like to use Voli Light Vodkas because it has 25%-40% fewer calories than other vodkas. Also, their flavored vodkas are made with natural ingredients. To make Pink Lemonade, I use Voli lemon vodka. Here's the receipe:
Pink Lemonade
2 oz. Voli Lemon
1 oz. lemon juice
3/4 oz. simple syrup or 1 sweetner
Splash of club soda
Splash of diet or regular cranberry juice
Method: Add all ingredients except club soda.
Shake and strain over ice. Top with club soda.
Glass: Highball
This is my favorite cocktail at the moment, but Voli has a bunch of other yummy low calorie mixes on their website, like the cucumber martini, sympathy for the devil, blushing berry, the flirt and the creamsicle. Check out
more low calorie recipes here.
What's your signature drink?
xoxoxo Gretchen Christine
04/18/2011
Hi Everyone! I am constantly receiving a lot of questions in regards to my workout and diet tips and how I stay in shape. So here I will offer some easy tips of how I stay "healthy and fit" and look good without a lot of time or money!
Top Four Tips and Tricks:
1. Moderate Exercise- weaving a little bit into your everyday lifestyle
2. Healthy Eating without denying yourself of anything
3. A great Supplement – Like Thermogenic Push for Female-available at your local GNC. I have been using this product the last 3 months and feel in love with it and the results! For more info on this great product go here…..
www.revolutionlifestyle.com/thermogenic-push-female4. A Great Tan! There are a lot of products to choose from on the market, but try my Gretchen Christine Formula if you haven’t found one you love yet! Smells great and gets you a great California Glow
First things first take the pressure off yourself! Know that no matter what if you are happy on the inside it will reflect on the outside, no matter how big, small or fit you are. You have to be comfortable in your own skin; no one can decide what is best for your body but you. Don't try to be another person's size, that will never happen. God has made each one of us different, teach yourself to be content with whom you are, pray for that strength as you take on any new work-out or when trying to change your eating habits. My faith and my relationship with God is what helped me beat my eating disorder and get back to a place of being healthy. Believe it or not I use to be overweight for my body and height (just see some of my before pictures that people like to plaster all over the internet) People want to say I have had a lot of surgery done to my face, and the fact is no surgery was involved. It is called losing weight, getting healthy, and honestly probably due to better make-up.
I didn't know how to control my appetite and I constantly yo-yo dieted. My second season of Housewives I even spoke openly to the press in regards to the eating disorder I developed in high school because of my poor body image. When I hit my lowest point I realized I needed to get help or I was going to kill myself both emotionally and physically. I also decided to get educated and I got my personal trainer license and a certification in Nutrition. I learned what it takes to keep the body full of energy, but how to not overeat, and most importantly how to give myself a break. It has been years to get to this point, it didn't just happen overnight, but I did it and I am proud to say now I live a very healthy and happy lifestyle.
I don't go to the gym anymore, not because I don't think it is important but because I just don't have the time to take 2 hours anymore to go. Between growing two companies, filming, and the extensive traveling I do for work, I have had to compensate in other ways. I have learned to never make excuses but rather find other ways to incorporate working out and "health" into my lifestyle. We will always try to find an excuse for why we can't do something, but don't allow yourself to get away with that. If you want it bad enough you will always find a way to take care of yourself.
A simple solution for me is to have weights everywhere in the house and do reps throughout the day (I use 5-10lbs weights) If I’m watching TV, I don’t just sit on the couch and watch it I am on the floor doing my push-ups or my sit-ups. I use the stairs in my home, my exercise ball and my own body weight to exercise. Honestly sometimes Slade will come down stairs and as I am stirring the meat sauce with one hand and the other arm has a weight in it and I am doing a set of bicep curls. Slade always looks at me like I am crazy, but eventually caught on and now is doing the same thing throughout the day, which has helped him loose about 15lbs! When I travel I take my rubber bands with me (http://www.livestrong.com/article/72831-resistance-band-workout-routine/) and work out with those, I always do my floor exercises and use my own body weight. You can do a lot without a gym you just have to get creative. I have taken water bottles before and done bicep curls, triceps or shoulder presses with them in each hand. It works! A little bit of something is better than nothing. I am also very active I ride bicycles, run, roller blade, hike, anything that gets me outside for some cardio during the week.
Now to my eating habits; I eat all day long, literally almost every 2-3 hours! Not a full meal but little bits of everything, mostly healthy, but I don't deprive myself of Anything! I just have learned how to control my portions and how to eat till I am full…. not stuffed! Now like I said this has taken a lot of trial and error and some years to retrain my body and my mind to recognize when I am satisfied. So don't beat yourself up if you screw up (by the way I still screw up days) don't worry, you have the next day to make it right! The stress alone we put on ourselves is very detrimental to our overall health goal.
I will have some turkey slices, or apples and peanut butter, raw vegetables with some dressing, nuts, baked chips, fruit, cheese, and little bit of sweets too all day long! I have sandwiches or salads for lunch most of time and fish, chicken or lean meat for dinner with some side portions of half a potato, small amount of rice, salad, or vegetables. I have a couple bites of deserts always! If I feel like pizza or ice cream I have some, but I just have a piece or a couple of scoops, not sit down and eat the whole carton! I have learned that when I deprive myself of things my body just wants it even more! Listen to your body, but control in your mind how much you eat of something. Don't look at a day of overeating as a failure, look at it as an opportunity to do better the next day!
Take baby steps, you will feel rewarded in just taking a little time a day to do some squats, push-ups, sit-ups or arm strengthening exercises. Remember don't be so hard on yourself, take it one day at a time and you will start to see the weight come off. Hope some of these tips and tricks help you guys!
Xoxo
Gretchen Christine
Please note that everyone’s workout routine and daily food intake is different so be sure to consult your doctor about what is best for you before taking anyone else’s advice.
