103. Healthy Systems for Your Home and Business

Welcome to the Connected For Real podcast. I'm Rebbetzin Bat-Chen Grossman, a marriage coach for women in business. And my mission is to bring God's presence into your life, into your marriage and into your business. Let's get started. 

 And we are live.  Welcome everyone to the connected for real podcast. I'm Rebbetzin Bat-Chen Grossman. And today with me Dalia and she's going to talk about all the foods and the ideas and the systems we need in order to take care of ourselves and our businesses. So you guys know that I have my four pillars, God, marriage, business, and you, and  we're talking about food this month.

and specifically food and business. How does having the right foods and creating the right atmosphere for yourself to thrive so that your business can thrive. So welcome Dahlia, introduce yourself and then tell us all why we should care.  Hello, so nice to be here again with you here today. So thanks for having me. 

I'm Dalia Brunschwig. I'm a nutrition health coach, and I help Jewish women identify their unique blind spots, preventing them from losing weight, but most importantly, feeling great in their body. And how do I do that? I do that by tuning into your body signals, because we know the body is like a constant miracle from Hashem, sending us all those messages that we need to tune into it and not ignore them in order to thrive, to feel good, and to be the best we can.

As mothers as business owners and as a person because we need to take care of this body, right? And that's where food comes in  Yes food is definitely one of the highest things that is on the list of taking care of your body  Absolutely. I mean we need the food To function. We need the food to have energy and Baal Hashem.

We have this food everywhere. We are surrounded by food. There's a lot of food noise out there and a lot of marketing, social media, and you can be very tempted to, you know,  ignore your body signals just because of all the noise going out there. And as mothers and as business women, we need to eat the right way in order to function and in order to make the best out of our productivity.

Right.  And I think it's an important conversation this one because we need to be able to have the right tools like you were telling me before in a business. You have the tools you have your like calendar, you have your email, you have your, you know, platform where you whatever you're doing as a business.

So the same thing,  you know, you need to have tools. Right. In order to eat right in order to function, right? We need to have like an evening routine also in order to sleep better and to be more energized in the morning so Some of the tips I usually give is to plan plan in advance I'm very strong at planning if you plan  like in every business if you plan the chances of failing are much lower than You know if you don't plan. 

Oh, there's a great quote that I love And it's If you fail to plan. Fail to plan. You plan to fail to fail. I know. I love that one, too. And Good because it's just like That is it people that is it and I used to think i'm not organized and i'm not able to plan ahead And i'm just like artsy and I go with the flow and I just can't think about what's gonna be But I found that creating systems both in my business and in my home, especially with food are so crucial for me to be able to be in flow and to be able to be spontaneous because I don't have to think about.

All these other things that, you know, would come up and stop me from having that ability to just go with it. So, absolutely, it was a real big, it was a real big mindset shift, you know, thinking, oh, you know, plans and routines. They stop me from being myself to plans and routines, allow me to be myself. 

That's a crazy, you know, crazy mind blown  shift.  And a lot of people believe that just actually having a plan, it's going to be also time consuming. And so like you're saying, you know, it's this mindset shift. You think, Oh, I need to spend money on these to plan. And you know, I need new Tupperwares. I need new containers.

No, make it. Simple. Make it with whatever you have at home, whatever, the same way we plan to make a Shabbat meal or a, or, or a hot meal, you know, like when you have a marathon or a few days of chag, you plan so much in advance, or if you're going on holidays, you plan same thing when you're having a working week or,  you know, a week, even if you're not working as a family member, you need to plan  your week. And if you actually just taking piece of paper and plan, what ingredients do I have available? What ingredients do I want to get? What ingredients can I cook and batch cook? And what kind of foods can I freeze? What can I make spontaneously? What can I batch cook and have in my fridge?

Just to grab and go. So, for example, some things I like to have are chickpeas or lentils or quinoa. You can just kind of cook them, put them in your fridge, and you come home, you have like another few vegetables that you cut up, and you have a delicious salad. You don't need much more than that. Olive oil, lemon juice,  you don't need a container, you don't need specific appliances.

Just simple good food,  right? Yes, I'm totally, I totally am guilty of charge. I am waiting for the day that I will have matching Tupperwares and they will all look so nice and pretty in my fridge so that I can plan better, okay? So I'm totally, totally guilty of doing this and it's normal because it's my brain's way of protecting me and be like, we don't have the things we need so I guess we're not going to do it this time.

Maybe one day. And that one day never comes if you don't actually choose to make it happen. So I'm totally here with you. Anybody who's listening and thinking, Oh, that's me. Yes. So that's me, too. Keep going.  So I hear that a lot. And actually, it's just like there are excuses and it's like, Oh

I can't plan because I don't like this and I don't like that. There's something you like, you know, don't make excuses, whether it's the containers that you don't have or whether it's the type of foods you don't like. start small and build it up. So whatever you like, make it simple, but plan. And I'm not talking about healthy food now.

I'm just talking about planning and being organized with tools. We can talk about like, why is important to eat healthy and not to skip meals and not to, you know, but here I'm just, we're talking about the tools. So the tools is like. Just plan, go shopping, batch cook, freeze,  and do it.  Yeah, and I'm thinking, you know, we are talking about business, and I think it's really nice to parallel  and compare the business to the way that you treat food.

Because, for example, in my business, I know that I'm expecting a baby, and I'm batching A lot of my podcasts. Like if you guys looked at my papers right now, there is a page for each month and a sticky note for note for each podcast, and there is going to be a podcast every single Monday dropping in the podcast app, even when I am on maternity leave, even when I'm giving birth, even when whatever happens in life.

You know, I don't have to think about it because I thought it through. I planned ahead and  I am batching all the recordings as soon as I can. So that I could prepare myself for that situation. So I feel like we could take tools and skills from that and really copy paste into our lives.

I like systems and simplicity. a lot when creating these systems, you know, almost like uniformity. If I know that, the whole winter I'm just making soups and stews. So I don't have to think like, Oh, what should I do? Should I do this? Should I do that? I know that I'm going to be using one pot, throwing everything in, closing the lid and hoping for the best every single day for lunch, right?

Like the kids are going to come home. There's gonna be something on the fire and it's going to have some sort of either lentil or bean or whatever,  legume and vegetables and maybe onions or, you know, carrots or whatever, you know, and I'm just going to throw it all in and hope for the best.

And usually it works out really well because the uniformity of that helps me. And in the summer, it's actually, you know, like you said, salads and fresh things. So if I know that every day I'm going to be. serving a big gigantic salad, then I also know that I need to prepare whatever toppings or vegetables or, you know, even just like the black lentils and the quinoa, that could really be a good bed for a salad.

And it's so much easier if you think ahead and actually  Now I'm talking like ideal world. I just want you guys to know I'm so imperfect. So imperfect. Like out of seven days, maybe I have three or four days that I actually make the food. And then the other days that I'm hoping that there's something in the freezer leftover that I can just pull out quickly.

But even the fact that I over make and then freeze is helping myself. Know that I have what you mean. So I, I love  my stuff and yeah, you're planning now all your podcasts, which I think is amazing. You have the tools, you have the systems, you, you are really. Amazing. Are you also planning what happens when you give birth with at home?

Like, you probably also have a system, right? With the cooking and with the  Yeah. So I'll be very honest. I love my husband very much and I appreciate my husband's brain and the way that he thinks.  I told you I'm very go with the flow, spontaneous. He is a computer. He is a planner. He is a routine person.

He does the same thing every single day. He eats the same thing every single, like he is so,  so structured. So  the fact that, he's my partner and it used to make me crazy. By the way, this used to be the biggest thing that would get between us. It's like, you're such a square,  you know? But when I finally did some work on myself and realized, Oh, this could be to my advantage, like God put us together and made us so different so that we can lean on each other.

Then we started having completely different conversations of like being that you have such skills that can help out so much. let's see how we can make this work. And actually it was,  it was fascinating to see that. When I did communicate properly, he was so happy to help and take over.

So my husband loves to shop and he loves to plan. And for the most part, he's the one who is in charge of supper, which is like the big meal that we all eat together. And that's like,  so it allows me to not have to stress. Cause those were the worst hours for me between four and six. Not only did I have all the kids home and I wanted to give them attention.

I also had to You know, put some food on the fire. I would burn the food. Cause I wasn't thinking about all the things and the food was the last priority. I would always come late, never have the food ready. It would make me so frustrated. And I felt broken. I really felt like there was something wrong with me.

as a mother, why can't I get it all together? And when I communicated with my husband, I said, I just, I don't think I can do the food on it separate. Like, I don't think I can do this anymore. And he said, Oh, that's the problem. So I'll just do it. And I was like, what? Yeah.  I don't expect  God to send you the answer so easily.

You're like, God, it must have been a little more complicated than that. Like all I had to do was ask.  And yes, sometimes all you have to do is ask because the people are already there. They want to be of assistance. They want to be a part of the family. They want to belong. Why am I pushing him out and having, you know, faking that I have to do it all.

Right? It's not true.  Especially since I work, you know, so I am, he's, he appreciates what I do and what I bring to the table. And he's willing to do whatever he can do. So I, I totally won the jackpot of all husbands. I'm very well aware of that. If you asked me something like 10 years ago, I would tell you what I can't believe I married this guy.

I got, you know, the worst end of the deal and whatever. So I definitely have a lot of my experience. Behind me in order to help other people with their marriages. And I think this is one really good example that illustrates how when you lean into the gifts and you start to really focus on what is available, it's amazing.

God's abundance is just amazing.  So I can say the opposite in a way. Now, Baruch Hashem, I have also the best husband. I wouldn't change him for anything in the world. He's very easygoing and very comprehensive. And he can also hands on if he, if I need to in the kitchen. But he used to cook before we got married, and then when we got married, that changed, especially when we started having children.

So he can cook, he can help, he can shop, he can, but I'm much faster.  And  yeah, so by me, what happens is that I can start preparing dinner only at 5. 30, knowing that everybody gets hungry by 6, 6. 30.  But I have a system, right? And I'm planning. I don't cook in advance, but I do plan. First of all, I know what to take out of the freezer, what to shop, what to have in my fridge,  but whether it's going to be lentil soup or fish in the oven with vegetables or whatever, I'm very fast.

I use my pressure cooker for everything and anything for soups. It takes 20 minutes to make a lentil soup. It takes 20 minutes to cook my lentil soup. chickpeas. It takes 20 minutes to make  the most amazing  protein dishes that the family loves, especially in winter.  And also I just put also a lot of things in the oven, which are like either whether it's chicken or fish with vegetables and within half an hour, I would have my supper ready.

So I, I think that just like as a ding, anybody taking notes, make sure you do this.  Get yourself a pressure cooker. It is a lifesaver.  A lifesaver. Yes. And I have a Pesach one also, by the way, although I don't eat kitniyot out on Pesach since I married my husband, but it still helps a lot to have those, you know, like a pressure cooker for Pesach.

A pressure cooker is such, is such a gift. It's such a gift and you don't realize, but it cuts the time. It cuts the stress. It just. Works and it makes everything taste so good because you're over like you have like a mush like a yummy. Yeah, just be careful not to burn it.  Yes, I'll burn your food.  Yeah, but definitely a reminder that  so and those days that I don't have things ready because I had a very busy working day or I just I always pull out of the freezer because I think in advance what, you know, what can I pull out of the freezer?

So these things those days happen. We all get busy. But instead of just getting fast food, I rather try to make something faster on the pressure cooker or grab something out of the freezer and warm it up. Right. And you know what? If you have the ingredients on hand, it makes it so much easier. I think the problem when I was making You know, when I was in charge of the food, I didn't have any systems, and I didn't have any awareness, and I was beating myself up because I just never had the ingredients on hand.

Like, oh, I want to make, you know, Majadara. It's like rice and lentils. Okay, well, oh, we ran out of rice. Okay, so maybe I'll make, you know, and then you start having to get creative on the spot when there's already pressure when you're already feeling it, you know, and like, Oh, I can't believe I don't have the ingredients I need to me last week.

Actually, I was planning to make a lentil soup and suddenly I realized I have no lentils and I already cut all the vegetables and I made the base for the lentil soup. And I know You know, like my kids like it with these vegetables. One son likes it with with potatoes. So everything ready, no lentils and it's five 30, quarter to six.

I'm not going out. You know, this is like my last minute. I found a package of split peas. So I did a split pea soup with the same, like never made really split pea with potatoes before,  but it was actually delicious and everybody liked it. So it was spontaneous and creative. So I, you know, I  think that. If the past me would have had the right tools and the right mindset, I think I wouldn't have felt as broken and as failure as I did.

And I think that's really the reason why I go live and I talk about these things because, you know, that past me could be listening right now in someone else's form and think to herself. Oh, I don't do meal plan. I can't figure it out or I i'm not planned enough or I it's too hard for me Or i'm just a failure at this whatever it is that you're telling yourself and I want you to hear That actually there are certain systems and certain tools and certain ideas that can help you succeed not only in feeling better about yourself, but also in feeding yourself better and thriving in a way that is much simpler than you think.

So let's get into some practical ideas.  So first of all, actually meal planning can save money because you're not eating out all the time. You're also more in control of what you're putting into your body. You know what you are, you know,  you're planning a balanced meal rather than just eating anything and everything. 

And you also can have the diversity of having seasonal food. Like we're talking about soups and stews now in winter, whereas in summer is more salads and fresh things, right? So it gives you also this creativity. And the more you get into meal planning, the easier it gets. Of course, the first time when I have clients, the first time it's like meal planning is so hard for me.

I feel like I need to cook for myself and I need to cook for my family, different things, because I'm on a diet and they are not and this and that. And you know what? Doesn't have to be complicated. You can make actually the same food, just making sure that you have enough selection and enough priority for everybody to have something at the table.

So you make rice and potatoes and you don't want to eat it because you're looking after your weight or whatever. Although I am for eating all food types with moderation, but that's a different topic. So you make like a batch of rice, vegetables and protein, and you just grab what you want. So it's actually. 

the mindset also. It's not like meal planning or eating healthy means  cooking more because your family is not going to eat it. It's actually introducing it into your family, making them aware, making them curious. Trying different things. Also, maybe use different spices. You know, I'm spartan Moroccan from home, so I am all with all these like delicious spices that a lot of Ashkenazi don't even know and they get to discover when they start working with me.

So  it's actually trying and being creative. And if you are a businesswoman or you are working and you're also having a family, it can be,  it can feel challenging, but it shouldn't be. Okay, because also if you plan your meals. If you're eating healthy, if you really make sure you have your blood sugar balanced by eating every three hours, a small snack, a healthy snack, yeah, and having your meal and staying hydrated, you will feel so much better, you will feel so much more energized, you will feel more in control  than actually just drinking coffee and eating carbs or fast food all the time. 

Right. You know, I want to just say if you're listening to this and you want one takeaway, because you're like, Oh my gosh, this is overwhelming. Start drinking water. Yeah. And like, I always say that first step, first step, just drink water. And if you don't like water, drink a little bit at a time and see if you like it warm, or if you like it cold, or if you like it from a bottle, or if you like it from a cup, by the way, I used to not like water.

And then it turns out I didn't like the plastic cups. That's what bothered me, you know, drinking from plastic cups together. It was, you know, and also those kid plastic cups, like the hard plastic that anyway, I realized I just need a glass cup. Like as soon as I put it in a glass cup, I can, I can drink it all up.

And, you know, if in the summer, if it's cold.  I will drink more. So I actually make myself baggies of ice, like ice, you know, I make the cubes and then when they're ready, I put them in a baggie and I create more cubes and I just have like a ton of little baggies of ice ready to go straight into my cup or water, whatever, you know, bottle. 

And then I fill it up with water and I could fill it up a couple of times until the ice is finished and get a lot of hydration that way. And I'm not drinking it all at once, like gozzling it down. I'm, I'm, you know, slowly sipping throughout the day, but it is such a life changer when you are hydrated versus when you're not. 

Absolutely. And also, if you're not used to drinking, don't overdo it and say, Oh, I need to drink eight cups by tomorrow, build it up slowly. So if you are not used to drinking, start by You know, celebrate that you can drink one cup, then go up to two cups, three cups and build it up. Okay. So don't just try to do it all at once because you won't get there. 

Right. I remember I read somewhere that if you're not into drinking water, then just start the day with one, one cup of water, just like the first thing you drink before you do anything else is one cup. So it could be the first three hours of your day. It doesn't matter. It's just, as long as you take one cup and walk around with it and.

sip it throughout the morning while, you know, helping your kids get ready or whatever you're doing that is going to set the mood for your entire day.  Yeah, and you will get into it slowly and you will love it. You won't go back. You will just carry on drinking once you feel the benefits. So definitely, first thing for productivity, for staying on top of your healthy eating habit is start drinking.

Even if it's not food, drinking will set everything for you. Really, everybody. Start now, we have a comment that came in just now. And, you know, by the way, you guys were live. So if you ever want to, if you're listening to the podcast and you ever want to come live, all you have to do is come follow me on YouTube or on Facebook or on LinkedIn, and you can put in any comments and we will address them live.

So I love it that there is a woman here, Sarah Malcolm says, I just took a swig from my bottle. So thanks. So yes, I'm happy. We're inspiring you to stay hydrated. Let's talk about foods. What happens when you want to start getting on top of it and be more organized and you're like all gung ho about it and then it's just sort of like fizzles out.

What do you do?

  Hey! Before we continue the episode, I want to ask you something. Are you ready to get answers from God directly? Feel more in love with your husband and more supported than ever? Run the business of your dreams without having to sacrifice any other part of your life? That is exactly what my one on one private coaching is for and I want to invite you, just you and me, for a free deep dive discovery call.

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Now back to the show. 

 First of all, you need to start with things you like. Okay, don't try to eat like the same way. If you don't like to drink water, don't try to overdo it. So the same thing here, choose the protein which is going to give you the energy that you like. So whether it's plant based, whether it's animal protein, Start with protein.

Always have, like, a quarter of a plate should be protein. Then, vegetables. Try, I always encourage to try one new vegetable per week, you know, if you're not into vegetables, and cook it differently to see if you like it better. And I have that inside my group where I'm always motivating them or bringing a new vegetable, which for me, they're not new, but for some of them like pak choy or kohlrabi or fennel, they, some people don't even know what these vegetables are until they actually try them.

And so I always encourage to try new vegetables, cooking them obviously differently. You can have them in a salad, you can have them roasted, you can have it in a soup, you choose. So make it attractive, pleasant, you know, something that you like, something that you're going to be craving for eventually.

Because if you just make plain salad with lemon and olive oil, you might not enjoy it at all. You need to kind of something, something crunchy, something maybe sweet. I'm not into sweet into salads, but maybe you want to have some cranberries or some fruit or some honey in the dressing.  Start making it.

Delicious for yourself. Don't think of it as boring.  So yeah, you know, in my marriage breakthrough retreat day one. is make a list of all the things that make you happy. And one of the things in the worksheet that I give is what foods make me happy. Like what foods would I want to have on hand that totally upgrade the meal?

And, you know, sometimes it's, people would say, like seeds and nuts and, you know, craisins hearts of palm. For me, it's parsley or cilantro. Like when there is something green in the salad, I feel so luxurious. I'm sitting there eating a salad that actually feels like it's, you know, fancy. So. If you can figure out what this thing is for you, all you have to do is just have it on hand, you know, like, right. 

Almonds is so easy to buy and just have, and then throw it into your food. And you're like, Oh,  this is nice. You know, so getting in touch with what you like and what makes you happy, and then giving yourself permission to do that on a regular day, without any reason for celebration, just upgrade your meals. 

Right. Like some people might like the avocado, the creaminess, you know, when you mix it with the greens and the, you know, the tomato, the cucumber, and just that avocado, a bit like soft can give, can, can take your salad to the next level. So definitely look for what is appealing to you. What is it that you're going to enjoy eating?

Because if you're not going to enjoy it, you're not going to eat it. And then you're going to look out for something else. That's not going to give you that satisfaction. Long term. It might give you a  temporary satisfaction just then, but afterwards in the afternoon, it could be you're feeling heavy because you ate too much of it, or it was too heavy or whatever.

So try to make it fresh, light and enjoyable. That would be my tip. Yeah. And also, you know, I'm just remembering now there was a couple that came that we went to visit when we were young. Those were the days when we actually went to, you know, eat by people in people's houses.  And got to taste other people's food,   but I think we had like two kids and they had maybe one and she made this big salad and she put out this really junky dressing next to it, like filled with all the whatever.

And, and I was like, I don't get it. And she says, my husband never eats vegetables, never will never touch a vegetable. But if there is a yummy dressing, he will actually put salad on his plate and put a ton of, you know, junk on it. I don't care. Like, I'd rather him eat the salad and eat the dressing along with it, then not have it all.

Because it's just not worth it. And I think that having the all or nothing mentality of like, it has to be perfectly hot, you know, a hundred percent, the highest level of health and whatever. And then it's like, nevermind, we don't have it. So we're just going to eat the junk. It's almost like gives me also there was something recently of like sourdough versus white bread. should I make the sourdough with whole grain and with all these things? I like, listen, if you can make sourdough with white flour, it's still healthier than the way I had  that blew my mind. I never thought of sourdough as possibly not perfectly like, you know, it doesn't have to be perfect.

So it just opens up your Eyes a little bit to how can I get creative within the imperfect to get a little bit closer to my goals. So just allow yourself to play with it.  Definitely. You just like need to make it work for you.  Step by step, and you can always improve. We are always, always learning in our business as mothers.

We always making it every experience as a learning experience. So the same thing is with the food you're going to be trying plan, start planning and don't wait until after this start today, you know, we tend to say, we'll start after Shabbos, we'll start after Pesach, we'll start after the birthday, we'll start after the holiday.

No start today  You know now for lunch She said you inspired me to drink from my bottle right now. That's what we're here to do I want you to be inspired to do something right now, you know Think of one thing that you want in your food right now that will make you feel so happy And I don't care if that's not under the like healthy options.

Just I want you to feel excited about what you're eating. And the more you feel excited about what you're eating, then you're going to want to improve it and want to work there because the avoidance of, Oh, I just don't want to deal with food is worse for you than having to, you know, start to pay attention. 

Absolutely. And there's no reason to find an excuse. It doesn't have to have the fancy tupperware. It doesn't need to start up to tomorrow, can start today with whatever you have, even if it's a plastic spoon and a plastic plate,  whatever you have, really  take it from there. But let's talk about snacking.

Okay,  let's do it.  Snacking. We. You know, we sometimes are so busy working that we skip a meal,  right?  It happens to all of us, even myself.  Even if I'm planning my meals, sometimes I do skip the meal because the kids are coming home and I want to get this done and this and that. It happens.  So you tend to go and snack. 

So  why is it important to snack the right thing and not to overdo it with the snack?  It's important to always have protein also in your snack. So what are protein? Nuts, avocado.  Hummus, tahina, those things you can combine so nicely with fruits, vegetables,  anything. What about peanut butter? Is peanut butter a protein? 

It's a protein, but not to overdo it.  Okay, because I am thinking my go to snack is a banana with peanut butter.  So that's a bit heavy. 

I'm obsessed, guys. I'm sorry. But again, but again, better that a snack than going and eating, you know, like a whole.  Ice cream and cake and just in the middle of the day. So rather have the banana with peanut butter or apple. I like to have like apple with almond butter. I don't like peanut butter, but almond butter and just make sure also that the almond butter or peanut butter is naturally  Sweeten it like with the, it is just nuts and nothing else that you don't have like extra sugar or something.

Yeah. Additives or something. Yeah. We make sure it says a hundred percent peanuts. 'cause we're like, what's the point? They're just delicious. As they are. As they are. You don't have Exactly. You plant them and they are delicious and sweet as they are. So have that. But I like to, for example, also celery sticks with almond butter is delicious There.

You get this vegetable and you get also the.  The protein.  Okay. This way you're having the right snacks during your working day. When you come to your next meal, you're not going to be starving. You're not going to overdo it with your meal. Your blood sugar is going to be balanced and then you're going to just be eating like a person sit down, wait for your meal.

I mean, wait, we are serving it. Yeah. But  this is what I mean. So if you tend to skip a meal and have a snack instead of a meal, Make sure that your snack is healthy and make sure that you like the most important thing would be not to miss the meal or not to skip the meal, but it happens. It happens to all of us, so make sure your snack is going to be a healthy one and not just because you skipped the meal or you didn't have lunch.

You deserve to have anything and everything,  right? Because you didn't have those calories. We're not counting calories here. We actually counting nutrients that you're putting into your body, which are actually benefiting your body. productivity and your energy throughout the day, right? I love that. I love that.

So make sure you're eating some sort of like healthy oils and proteins and things like that. As a snack, that's a good point. I like that. I like having almonds in my bag so that I could just grab and you know Grab and snack on I'm a big snacker you guys I love dates and nuts. I love banana and peanut butter.

I love All fruits. I love that. Popcorn is also a good snack, by the way. You know, you can keep like give give your kids popcorn instead of giving them chips or bamba or bissli, if they want something crunchy  popcorn.  I didn't think of that. Homemade it. If you make it with olive oil, it's even better.

Or with coconut oil to give that taste, little coconut taste. I like that. So homemade them also, I would suggest. That's very cool. So are you also planning your snacks as well as your meals? Like, do you make sure that you have certain things on hand at all times, just to make sure that you have what to go for? 

Yes, so I do what I do. Usually I make a big batch of Trina before Shabbat. So I like to have that. And that lasts for at least five days if it's not eaten before. So I like to snack on some Trina with vegetables. I also like to have nuts. I'm also a big fan of dates. So I like, I love walnuts inside. My day, you know, love those.

I would also take some apple with almond butter. What else would I have? Yeah, some different nuts. I like pistachios as well. And I like to alternate. I think the better, the more you alternate, you get different benefits of different foods at different times. throughout the week. So it's important also not to eat always the same nuts and not to eat always the same foods.

And if you can go seasonal, even better. I can't wait for summer when all those plums and peaches and watermelons and all of those fruits come back. So, but right now we're enjoying those oranges and grapefruit and, you know, kiwis, which are,  yeah, by the way, in the summer, the way I hydrate is sit down with watermelon and I devour the whole thing.

Well, not the whole thing, but you know, like a quarter of it. Me and my kids can just like, you know, done.  So it's, it's a really great way to get hydrated because it has all the, you know, all the water in there, but also sugars that absorb and, you know. which are natural sugars and are good for your body.

Yeah, definitely. Yeah, I love that. This is so awesome. But if I'm going to eat nuts, I would also put them on a plate or take a handful. Don't take the bag of nuts and eat one after the other because they are quite addictive. And if you put them by your computer and you just kind of snack at the end, like without noticing, you're going to finish  that bag very fast and you don't want to overdo it as well.

So it's important to count your nuts or take a handful and put it on a plate or You know, so you limit them. I love that. I actually started doing that. A couple of years ago where I have this plate that I really like and I put, I cut up the apples and I put the walnuts or the almonds next to it.

If you're looking at my Instagram, you guys, I'm at connected for real. You'll see every so often I post what I'm snacking on and it makes me so happy to have a plate. You know, like I feel like a human, I feel like I'm not grabbing food. But I'm like respecting my body and sitting down, even if it's while working.

There's a plate right there. It's not like it's just bags and, you know, a mess or whatever. It's like really taken care of.  I'm giving myself the respect. So I, I started doing that a couple years ago and I didn't think about it until now, but now that I'm thinking back to it, it's a great. 

It's a great habit. Yeah. Yeah. It's a good habit.  It's a wonderful habit.  Yeah. It's a mindful, I mean, ideally it would be without the computer or without the phone,  but I know we are short on time and we need to take advantage of every minute.  Let's be realistic.  Yeah. Usually snacks are, you know, grab and go because we are 

not that available, but I feel like also again if you're going to be all hard on yourself and be perfect about it Then you're not gonna snack at all And then you're gonna eventually go for the junk because your body is just like over, you know over the limit Well, you know over tired over hungry over whatever so  You know, allow yourself to be imperfect, allow yourself to be messy. 

That's a really good  a good, a good title, Be Messy With Your Food.  Yeah, go for it, just start small and just improve day by day.   This way you'll have more energy, you will be more in control of your thinking and of your feelings. It's so much, you will feel so much better.  Yes, I love it.

This has been such a fun conversation I hope that you guys took a bunch of things away from this. If you don't do anything else But just one thing start drinking water right now, even if it's just one sip or one half cup  one cup or whatever Number two is be imperfect And just,  you know, be messy about it.

Do whatever you need to do in order to succeed.  Be yourself and don't look for excuses.  Don't look for it. I think be yourself is also a big takeaway because what we do is we compare ourselves to everyone else, but she does it this way, you know? This is something that was going through my head. Like, oh, I really need to do it.

Like my friend who cooks everything ahead of time and has like things in her freezer. She has pans in her freezer ready to go in the oven every single day because she one day batched for the entire month. Like, that's wonderful, but I'm never going to do that. First of all, I don't have that much room in my freezer.

Second of all, I don't have that much, like, forethought  to sit down and really plan that many meals and and I just why am I comparing myself no, you need to be you because you are you and you're unique  and stop putting pressure on yourself Also, we are exposed like that's how I started when you asked me We are exposed to so much food noise and so much pressure with social media  Not everything you see is real.

So be real yourself and do what you can at home. Forget what you see,  really. I love that. That was a perfect way to like, you know, culminate everything we've been talking about. It's just be connected for real people. Yeah, you see, not even planned.  That wasn't even planned. Be yourself, do the things that work for you, create the systems that work for your family and your lifestyle.

And put together the rhythms.  have to be in place for you. So for example, if you know that Friday is your day in the kitchen, so not only are you cooking certain things on Friday, but you're also planning ahead. So making a little extra of the Tina, making a little extra of whatever, you know, making sure that you're doubling some recipes, whatever you need to do in order to make your life easier later on, that'd be amazing.

I know my sister, every single Sunday, they boil an entire like. dozen eggs or whatever, and they have boiled eggs in their fridge the entire week they're grabbing eggs for whatever meal they're eating, right? I also have always boiled eggs in my fridge. Not, I don't cook so many, but I do have, you know, Yeah, well, you know, they have kids, they have a life, so it works for them. 

I personally don't eat eggs, and it's really sad for me because I see how useful and, you know, creative you can get with eggs. But,  I just feel like if you can find that thing for yourself, then you're going to be a lot more successful in the long run. And, make sure that you don't try to be perfect.

Because, we're not here to be perfect.  We are here to be ourselves. Yeah, so if you want to start slow, I actually shared with you this list. I have like this guide, which is giving you 10 ingredients ideas. You can change the ingredients. These are only suggestions where you can actually batch cook and have in your fridge and then kind of mix and go and make a salad or make it as a side dish together with some protein.

So grab that guide if you like. And get started again. Don't be perfect and you can change it. The only suggestions, but it gives you kind of a guideline of how to get started. So I love that. Don't worry, you guys, it's all going to be down in the description below and in the show notes.  Thank you so much, Dahlia.

This has been so much fun. Tell us how we can find you and you know. All of it's about you.  Thank you. So it's always fun to have these conversations with you. We are like so connected for real.  And now that was planned. Yeah. Anyways,  so you can find me on fully in balance. com. That's also my handles for social media, but a website you can find them fully in balance.

com. You can also book a clarity call with me if you want it. Get started without being perfect step by step, or if something is bothering you, don't know what kind of foods are good for you and what, you know, what is blocking you from feeling great or losing weight. You can contact me and have a conversation.

So thank you for having me.  Dalia has so many great products and so many great  advice. I love being in touch with you. Every time I have like a question, like,  So I highly recommend it. Make sure you go to fullyinbalance. com and check her out. She is so much fun. Thank you so much, Dahlia, and thank you all the listeners for being here.

Make sure that you tell your friends about this show. Also, Just a note, if you rate and review the show, it really helps. I was in a, you know, I was in a retreat, and at the end of the whole retreat, I'm like, You guys, I've been recording my podcast for almost three years, and I'm over a hundred episodes.

And I have like two or four reviews, like that doesn't make any sense. Let's get it moving, people. So I'm going to tell you also, if you could do me a favor and rate and review my show, that'd be amazing. I would love you forever. I think it's just really nice to hear the feedback and also tell the algorithm that it's working.

So thank you so much. Thank you for listening. And don't forget to be connected for real.  Thank you for having me. Bye.

 And that's it! Thank you for listening to the very end. I would love if you can leave a review and subscribe to the podcast. Those are things that tell the algorithm this is a good podcast and make sure to suggest it to others. Wouldn't it be amazing if more people became more connected for real?  And now take a moment and think of someone who might benefit from this episode. 

Can you share it with them?  I am Rebbetzin Bat chen Grossman from  connectedforreal. com. Thank you so much for listening and don't forget you can be connected for real.