I am so excited to share Negin Mirsalehi’s diet and workout routine with you. Negin is an AMAZING woman.
She was on Forbes’ 30 under 30 List in 2018 for being a major Instagram influence and an entrepreneur. Her family includes 6 generations of beekeepers, and she used this knowledge to start a honey-based hair company, Gisou.
THE NEGIN MIRSALEHI DIET
Negin’s general approach to her diet is nutritious but balanced. She focuses on making sure that the food she is eating is full of healthy ingredients. For example, Negin eats a lot of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats.
She doesn’t believe in depriving herself, though. She finds that her body is happiest when she treats it well, so she tries to listen to what her body is needing and wanting.
Negin feels that her diet is best when she enjoys treats in moderation.
BECOMING A VEGAN
In 2017, Negin told her YouTube followers that she is a 90 percent vegan. She made the change to mostly veganism after watching several documentaries on the topic.
Now, she will have the occasional fish or an egg, but she keeps her diet mostly free of animal products.
WEIGHT LOSS AND DEALING WITH IBS
Between the years 2009 and 2016, Negin lost 9 kilos or 20 pounds.
After struggling with stomach pain, being bloated, and lethargy, Negin discovered that she suffered from Irritable Bowel Syndrome. To treat her IBS, she had to change her diet.
Different people have different food triggers when it comes to IBS. However, most doctors recommend adjusting your diet to:
- Avoid foods that make your symptoms worse. For many people, this includes gluten and dairy products.
- Eat a high-fiber diet.
- Drink lots of water.
Changing and improving her diet is what led to Negin’s weight loss over all the years. She says that she now feels much more confident in her own skin but most importantly that she finally feels much healthier.
If you struggle to lose weight, you might be dealing with your own gut health problems or even hormonal disbalance. This was certainly true for me, so I wrote a couple of blog post about my own struggles with gut health and hormone issues. I hope it helps at least some of you!
WHAT NEGIN EATS FOR BREAKFAST
As soon as Negin wakes up, she reaches for a glass of water. She said she learned to do this from her father, who says it is like an internal shower for your body.
After spending some time browsing her favourite social media accounts and checking in on her Instagram feed, Negin eats breakfast. She likes drinking a cup of tea in the morning with honey grown from her father’s bee garden.
Negin’s breakfasts depend on how much time she has in the morning. Here what she usally eats:
- Oatmeal with fruit, nuts, almond milk, and a scoop of nut butter if she is extra hungry.
- Homemade granola with fresh fruits and nuts
- A quick shake that she can bring out the door with her. This isn’t very filling for her, so she normally ends up eating a snack bagel with avocado and hummus or a piece of fruit like a banana before lunch.
- A Dutch rice cracker with a banana and peanut butter if she’s in a rush.
- An acai bowl if she has the time. She also likes these if she works out in the morning before breakfast.
She drinks a lot of water with her breakfast too.
NEGINS’S FAVOURITE PROTEIN SHAKE
She blends the following together to make a perfect pre-workout shake.
- Banana
- Frozen cherries
- Almond milk
- Water
- Raw cacao powder
- Protein powder
NEGIN’S FAVORITE LUNCH MEALS
Negin doesn’t eat the same meals all the time for lunch. She’s very busy, so she tries to be flexible with her lunch options. Some of her favourite lunches include:
- Quinoa or rice bowls
- Avocado toast with greens and chickpeas
- Or if she’s in a hurry – green smoothie + rice
crakcers with banana and nut butter
She makes sure to drink lots of water with lunch too!
And after lunch, Negin likes to grab an apple or another piece of fruit for an afternoon snack.
NEGIN’S GO-TO DINNER
Negin prefers to cook dinner at home. She loves the recipes that her mom made when she was a child, and she cooks them too!
One of her
SALAD BOWL #1
- Lots of greens, like lettuce and spinach
- Cucumber
- Falafel balls
- Broccoli and cauliflower
- Tortilla chips (to add some crunch!)
- Sweet potato
- Tomatoes
- Pickles
- Roasted chickpeas with paprika
Her dressing is a mixture of:
- Hummus
- Hot sauce
- Tahini
- Lemon
SALAD BOWL #2
Other times she’ll use:
- Baked potato
- Boiled cauliflower
- Lettuce
- Tortilla chips
- Avocado
- Cherry tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Chickpeas rolled in paprika powder
- Pumpkin seeds
- Pickles
And for dressing she uses:
- Hummus
- Nutritional yeast
- Garlic powder
- Lemon
To see how she prepares it, watch her latest What I eat in a day video :)
HER GROCERY LIST
Negin clearly tries to eat well! Here’s what she purchases on a regular basis:
- Watermelon
- Organic apples
- Organic strawberries
- Lettuce
- Frozen cherries and mangoes
- Bananas
- Oranges
- Cucumbers
- Avocados
- Cauliflower and broccoli
- Celery
- Sweet potato
- Lemons and limes
- Ginger and other spices
- Tahini
- Chickpeas
- Chips
- Oats
- Almonds and walnuts
- Almond milk
NEGIN’S WORKOUT ROUTINE
Negin likes to experiment when it comes to working out. Her schedule is constantly changing, so she has to be flexible with when she gets a workout in.
She prefers to workout in the morning before breakfast, but she also admits that she isn’t a morning person.
As a frequent traveler, she values her sleep, so she typically picks sleeping in over a morning workout. She’s willing to squeeze in an exercise in the afternoon or evening if she needs. :)
CARDIO: WALKS, TENNIS, AND RUNS!
Negin takes her pup Moosey on a walk every morning. She doesn’t really think of this as exercise, but it is still an easy way to get some low intensity cardio in.
I love going for walks (they’re great for slimming down your legs!), and a dog just makes it even more fun. :)
Negin also loves playing tennis, and she says that the results she’s seen from playing the sport help motivate her. If you enjoy any sports, don’t be afraid to play them! Workouts are always best when you have fun doing them!
Running is Negin’s go-to cardio workout. She typically runs for 30 minutes, which she says is a great way to reduce bloat and give her energy.
RELATED POST: IS WALKING OR RUNNING BETTER FOR FAT LOSS
HOME WORKOUTS
Working out at home makes fitting in exercise so much easier. You can do it when you want, and you don’t need to pack up for the gym.
Negin often does ab or lower body circuit exercises at home (or in a hotel when she’s traveling). These are the favourite ab moves:
- crunches
- bicycle crunches
- lying oblique crunches
- side plank dips
She makes sure to do lots of yoga-inspired stretches too, and she regularly attends yoga and pilates classes.
All of these workouts help Negin keep her body looking toned and tight. Negin eats very healthily and is already slim. By doing resistance exercises, she makes sure her body doesn’t get a skinny fat look. :)
USING EXERCISE TO RELAX
Negin says that her workouts also help her to relax. She’s very busy, so yoga, pilates, and boxing classes help her to take some time for herself.
I love that Negin doesn’t let fitness become just another box to check off her long to-do list. She really values her workouts because of how they make her feel!
ALL ABOUT BALANCE
I know that many of you are super busy just like Negin. Maybe you’re a student, trying to excel in your career, or are taking care of the little ones. I understand that fitness can be hard to manage with all of this.
That’s part of what I appreciated about Negin. She makes her diet and workout routine work for her and her lifestyle. Negin eats food that makes her body feel good and she chooses fitness routines that fit with her schedule. She works hard, and doesn’t give up!
DO YOU WANT TO TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE AND GET THE BODY OF YOUR DREAMS?
If you feel inspired by Negin, you may consider starting a new workout routine or changing your diet. But that can be tricky sometimes. You may not know where to start or you might feel like you still don’t have enough time. I’m here to help! :)
If you need help with both workouts and diet, I have a complete 8-weeks exercise and nutrition program called 3 Steps to Lean Legs. I designed it to help you reduce body fat, slim down your legs and get that lean and toned look all over. There are 3 versions of my Program, one for each of the 3 main body types. We’re all different and what might work for your friend’s body type might not work for yours. So make sure to take your body type into consideration when choosing a fitness plan. if you don’t know your body type, here’s a free Body Type Quiz that will help you :)
And if you already have a great diet but you’re missing an awesome workout routine, I also have an 8-week Lean Legs Video Course. It consists of FULL-LENGTH videos that you can follow from warm-up to cool down and the best part is that it can be done from home. You don’t need to worry about an expensive gym membership or time-management. My course can be easily fit even into the busiest lifestyle :)
Love Rachael xx
Featured Image credit: Sam Aronov / Shutterstock.com
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