Slim in 9 sentences (just for busy women)

Actually, Jet should be writing this piece because she is from the happy and healthy counter, but I am a hard-working woman who has to wear a runway Gucci dress.

Diets are for the foolish. There, I said it. Everyone I see constantly fiddling with shakes and powders and 8 eggs a day might lose weight, but it comes right back on. Being slim is a way of life, and this helps you achieve it. Yes, even when you're busy.

Breakfast

I know, you'd rather stay in bed for an extra fifteen minutes than have breakfast. That saves you a few calories, you think. Grab an apple and off you go. But that's not how it works. A good breakfast is the ignition block of your metabolism. Otherwise, around eleven o'clock, you'll hit an energy dip, which also leads to less concentration, and hardworking women really don't like that. So, have breakfast. Yogurt with fruit and granola is a great start to the day, and no one gets fat from that.

Skip carbs, choose protein

A lunch with carbohydrates makes you sluggish. Or are you bouncing with energy after four sandwiches with ham and cheese? No, right? If you choose a protein-rich lunch, you'll see that you have a lot of drive and energy. Go for a salad with lean meat or a salad with eggs. A small piece of bread is fine.

Drink

And I don't mean coffee because too much coffee makes you irritable, stressed, and you sleep less well. Keep that coffee to a maximum of three cups a day. More is also not good for your teeth. Ensure hydration. If you don't like water, drink boiled water with ginger and lemon. Or put a jug of mint water on your desk and make sure you drink at least two of them.

Cook large portions

If you're already cooking that soup light chili con carne or that curry, make extra. Freeze it so that when you come home from a long day full of meetings and really don't feel like cooking, you can whip up a healthy meal in two minutes instead of hitting the snack bar.

Write it down

I know, you really don't have time for this, but it helps you gain insight into your eating habits. After my delivery, I was always carrying around two extra kilos that apparently really enjoyed being on my hips. I didn't eat much, or so I thought. But when I kept a little food diary, I suddenly saw the culprit. That mega-latte I always bought in the morning at the office. It was made with whole milk and was good for 200 calories each. Sometimes I had two. Latte out the window, kilos off the hips.

 Mix it up

You shouldn't eat monotonously. That's boring and also not healthy. Make sure that a third of your plate consists of vegetables or fruit, a third of carbohydrates, and a third of meat or fish.

Bring on the fat

You need good fat. It keeps your energy up and produces a hormone that helps you cope with stress. So let's, hardworking women, have lunch with avocados, salmon, olives, and eggs.

Smart snacking

Make sure there's always something in your bag in case you get the snack attack munchies. I'm a fan of the Go Green bar that Jet put in our goodiebags bags tonight. It satisfies my sugar cravings, but after half a bar, I'm actually good. Jet also has very nice bags of nuts, called ‘Bites we love’. They look great and curb those snack cravings.

Magnesiummonster

This mineral helps your body cope with a hectic lifestyle. There are, of course, foods that are high in magnesium, such as pumpkins and sesame seeds, almonds, and spinach. You can also really buy a magnesium supplement at a good health store if you don't like these things.

Can I have another bite of bike chain?

After my delivery, I was prescribed Floradix. An iron-rich drink that tastes like melted bike chain. Just tough it out (although my kids love it), but it works so well. Because nature has decided that we have to bleed every month, women really need extra iron. It also makes you look better, you know. Those dark circles will be gone.