5 Rules to Eat Smart Like Bethenny Frankel

Aug 28, 2009

We got the pleasure of joining Bethenny Frankel, celebrity chef and star of The Real Housewives of New York City, and tennis champ Andy Roddick at the BNP Paribas Taste of Tennis event last night in New York City. To celebrate the start of the U.S. Open next week, tennis stars and some of the country’s most talented chefs gathered for a night of fun and amazing food.

What’s a NeverSayDiet girl to do with the endless array of culinary treats? We couldn’t say no to the lobster rolls, pulled-pork sandwiches and prime rib. And, why should we? We took a few tips from the star of the night herself.

From Bethenny’s book Naturally Thin: Unleash Your Skinny Girl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting, she sums up our motto rather nicely when she says, “Dieting is not helping you; it’s hurting you and subtly undermining your own personal power.” That’s our kind of girl—we knew she was the smartest housewife all along.

We follow these five tips from her book when we’re faced with endless indulgences at parties. Try it—you don’t have to be a hungry wallflower at your next party to eat right.

1. “You can have it all, just not all at once.” With this rule, you can eat anything you want—you just have to decide what you want more at that very moment. It starts with a plan. At your next party, do a lap and see what your food options are and decide on a few things that you would like to eat most. Next, step back and enjoy conversation. Then, go back and have a small portion of your favorite picks. Ah, now isn’t that heavenly.

2. Don’t go hungry. A simple trick is to have a snack before going to a party. Snacks with protein are your best bet for filling you up. This way, you won’t grab every hors d’oeuvre in sight and won’t overeat. You don’t want to be too stuffed to mingle.

3. Taste test. Sometimes everything just looks delicious and you want to try it all. Well, you can—depending on the size of the spread, of course. If you just take a bite to try it, you’ll be fine. Choose different snacks from your date and try each other’s. Sometimes a taste is just enough to satisfy those cravings.

4. Shop smart. Choose your food wisely. A party food like deviled eggs is high in protein and will fill you up faster, while fruits and veggies will give you some nutritional value. Don’t waste you taste buds on empty calories.

5. Watch liquid calories. Remember that drinks have calories, too. Enjoy your party with a cocktail or two, but don’t drink all of your calories. Bottled mixers, sodas and juice are high in sugar—dilute your drinks with soda water. As seen on the show, Bethenny invented the Skinny Girl Margarita and now we NSD gals can enjoy our low-cal margaritas anywhere.

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