Between being a mom to her two toddlers and running iGnite, a holistic health and fitness program in Austin, that boasts an impressive lineup of sometimes as many as nine classes in a day, life is busy for Neissa Brown Springmann (photo by Nicole Mlakar). We asked this fit mama if she would keep a food journal for a week, sharing how she stay fueled for each long day and what she did for exercise because we are always curious to hear how real women find balance and a healthy lifestyle on a day-to-day basis. Her journal is below:
Since becoming a mom three years ago, my diet and exercise routine is far from perfect. You’d think that by owning my own health and fitness business, it would be a breeze to make my health and fitness a priority…but it’s not! Everyday comes with its own set of unique circumstances and distractions, and it definitely doesn’t fit in a nice box like it did pre-children. There are certainly days when I am unable to workout and my only exercise is pretending to be fire woman or bad guy while running around the house with my three-year-old, jumping on our trampoline with him or bending down to pick up my one-year-old and all of the ridiculous toys we have scattered around the house. As for my diet, there are days when scurrying through the pantry for rice crackers and peanut butter is as good as it gets. It’s definitely never perfect, is pretty much always chaotic and indefinitely includes some dark chocolate at the end of the day. But, I always try to have a few staples available like 100% cranberry juice from concentrate (see cranberry water recipe below), lemon, eggs, Ezekiel bread, peanut butter, avocado and frozen fruit for a smoothie.
Monday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; Lara bar
Lunch: turkey & veggie sandwich on Ezekiel bread
Pre-workout snack: boiled egg
Workout: 1-hour cross training class
Dinner: tofu spring rolls, 1/2 avocado & a bite (or two) of dark chocolate
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Lunch: turkey & veggie sandwich on Ezekiel bread
Pre-workout snack: boiled egg
Workout: 1-hour cross training class
Dinner: tofu spring rolls, 1/2 avocado & a bite (or two) of dark chocolate
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Tuesday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; 2 boiled eggs
Lunch: 1 cup of tortilla soup (no cheese) + spinach salmon salad
Pre-workout snack: 1 slice of Ezekiel bread with peanut butter
Workout: 1-hour swim class
Dinner: Caesar salad w/ turkey patty and 1 cup of quinoa
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Wednesday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; Ezekiel toast w/ 1/2 avocado
Lunch: shrimp chop salad
Pre-workout snack: watermelon
Workout: 1-hour cardio combination class
Dinner: Buddha Bowl (brown rice, black beans, avacado, tomato)
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Thursday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; 2 scrambled eggs
Pre-workout snack: 1/2 Lara bar
Workout: 1-hour hip hop yoga class
Dinner: baked salmon, wild rice, 1/2 avocado
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Friday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; KIND bar
Lunch: turkey & veggie sandwich on Ezekiel bread
Pre-workout snack: apple with scoop of peanut butter
Workout: 1-hour cross training playdate class
Dinner: gluten free turkey burger (loaded with veggies) & sweet potato fries
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Saturday
Breakfast: 8 oz hot water with 1/2 lemon; 2 scrambled eggs & 1/2 avocado
Lunch: hummus, rice crackers and turkey
Pre-workout snack: watermelon
Workout: 1-hour cardio core class
Dinner: turkey hotdog, my homemade pinto beans and potato salad
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
Sunday
Breakfast: a couple of slices of baked bacon & two scrambled eggs
Lunch: watermelon, turkey hotdog, my homemade pinto beans and potato salad (leftovers)
Workout: chasing my three-year-old around, pulling my three-year-old and one-year-old around the neighborhood in our wagon, jumping on our trampoline with my three-year-old
Dinner: grilled chicken breast with grilled veggies
Hydration: at least 64 oz of cranberry water
Before bedtime: 8 oz cup of hot water with 1/2 lemon
