Healthy Eating Hacks

The Skinny Girl Diet Plan – Bethenny Frankel’s Secrets

Woman Wearing White Crop Top in Blue Jeans in Field with sun behind her.

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What Is The Skinny Girl Diet?

For some people, a strict diet doesn’t work for them. Bethenny Frankel understands this completely. Her Skinny Girl Diet is an excellent way to shed pounds while still allowing you to enjoy the foods that people love the most.

Her take is one of moderation. The Skinny Girl diet tries to balance and promote weight loss and healthy eating with the desire to live a “normal life” free of a bunch of food rules. Because there are no drastic alterations in the diet plan, it is a safe plan to try for most people.

So, let’s get into some detail on the plan and the person. First, why should you care about the Bethenny Frankel diet? 

Who Is Bethenny Frankel?

If you have found your way to this post, then odds are you know about Bethenny Frankel. But, if not, here is some background from her site. Born in New York City, Bethenny Frankel is a self-made entrepreneur, TV producer, multiple New York Times bestselling author, reality TV celebrity, philanthropist, and mother. Bethenny recently made a multi-year deal with MGM Television and Mark Burnett to generate unscripted television projects that she will produce.

Entrepreneur:

Bethenny is the Founder & CEO of Skinnygirl, a lifestyle brand offering practical solutions to women, including the recent launch of the Skinnygirl Jeanswear Collection which sold out on HSN within its first few hours.

She is a reality star of the popular Bravo series “The Real Housewives of New York City” and can be seen as a guest shark on ABC’s critically acclaimed series “Shark Tank.” 

She became an instant fan favorite, showcasing her entrepreneurial prowess and gut instincts alongside the panel of investors. Bethenny has also been named one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Celebrities by Forbes.

Author:

She gained national (and international) fame for her appearances on The Real Housewives of New York City in 2008. She later became a bestselling author with numerous life coaching, eating and exercise, and self-help books under her name.

Philanthropist:

It would be a shame if we talked about Frankel and failed to mention her amazing work as a philanthropist. 

Frankel started a disaster relief charity called BStrong. BStrong provides emergency assistance to people in need, anywhere in the world. Her charity has helped countless people who were suffering from disasters.

Most recently BStrong has helped the residents of Texas that endured mass power outages during a major winter storm. Leaving many exposed to frigid temperatures and no water.

BStrong stepped in to help during this disaster and many more throughout its history.

Fundamentals Of The Skinny Girl Diet:

Bethenny formulated her Skinny Girl Diet on 5 basic principles to which the user is to follow to help live a healthy life and fit into those skinny jeans:

1. Avoid eating the same food repetitively

Remember, variety is the spice of life….look for variety in what you eat. People often have a hard time sticking to a “diet” because they get bored eating the same bland skinless chicken breast and brown rice – 3 meals a day. Look to mix it up. Strive to have your base consist of healthy, whole foods but don’t be worried about experimenting with a variation on top of that base.

One of the greatest obstacles to making a change in eating habits is trying to avoid eating the same things every day. Due to the habitual qualities that exist in foods today, it is fairly easy for the occasional snack that is high in calories and sugar to manifest into an addiction. For many people, this includes junk food. Removing potato chips, cookies, candies, and sugary drinks should be the first step in taking on the Skinny Girl Diet.

2. Refraining from consuming the same food twice on the same day

This ties into the first point above. Variety is key.

No need to restate this again here. However, one point that should be considered now is the obscure “serving size” that is used on labels.

One misleading quality about unhealthy processed foods is how they are seldom consumed at the serving size amount that is listed on the nutritional label. The highly palatable nature of processed foods makes single-serving consumption almost impossible. If you are going to consume processed foods (and sometimes it’s necessary), it is very important, to be honest with the true serving size level.

3. Regulating the intake of proteins and starches

Protein is one of the most abundant compounds found within the human body. Nearly all organs depend on its collagen to maintain their structure. While it is created naturally in the body with essential amino acids, food that has protein content will drive weight loss by promoting lean muscle mass.

Starches are high concentrations of carbohydrates. They are found often in whole grains and rice. Here is an article where you can learn more about the benefits of resistant starches, which may help you achieve your goals.

The key with proteins and starches, on the Skinny Girl Diet, remains moderation. They are completely healthy as long as consumption is spread out.

4. Moderating sugary foods under vegetarian meals

Even if the Skinny Girl Diet does not depend solely on vegetables for fiber content, vegan meals offer a lot in the assistance of weight loss.

Green foods have high levels of potassium, vitamin B12, and antioxidants. Be careful with vegetarian meals, as they often contain higher than average levels of sugar and salt in order to increase the palatability of the food – since it is missing meat-based protein.

It would be a shame to lose all the benefits of a vegetable-based diet by consuming too much sugar. Just pay attention to the recipe and/or nutrition labels.

5. Placing good judgment on when to splurge

As the body readjusts itself to the healthy changes that are commenced from having fewer high-calorie meals, funds will also be saved since dieters are less likely to buy unhealthy foods to avoid any temptations. With this strategy, time can be well-spent on saving up for events that may include eating not-so-healthy ingredients. Having a large dinner at a restaurant or a random stop at a fast-food establishment will be less likely to end in a total diet relapse.

Skinny Girl Recipes

Recipes for the Skinny Girl Diet will generally be low in carbohydrates and sugars. If gluten is preferred to be avoided, whole wheat bread can be substituted with gluten-free wheat or rice bread. Cooking times are relatively short and meals should be eaten after cooking is completed.

Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

  • 1 box rotini pasta (or any other preferred pasta)
  • 1 cup nonfat milk
  • 1 cup of low-fat shredded parmesan
  • 1 cup of low-fat shredded cheddar cheese, sharp or mild
  • 1 cup frozen butternut squash
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of dry mustard
  • 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce or chili powder. More can be used if necessary.
  • 2 tablespoons of panko bread crumbs
  • 2 tablespoons low fat Monterey Jack or mozzarella cheese

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook the pasta in water blended with salt until it is firm.
  • In another saucepan, combine the milk, parmesan, cheddar, and butternut squash over medium heat until it is completely melted. Then turn the heat off and add mustard, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, and hot sauce or chili powder.
  • Do not rinse the pasta after it has been drained. Mix it with the cheese sauce and gently toss until it sticks to the pasta. At this point, more seasoning can be added according to the user’s preferred taste.
  • Coat a baking pan with cooking spray and put the blended pasta inside. Lightly sprinkle with mozzarella, breadcrumbs, or Monterey Jack. Then let it bake for 15 or 20 minutes max.

Vegan Lentil Burgers

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup finely chopped red onion
  • 1 1/2 cup cooked lentils
  • 1 1/2 cup bread crumbs
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. mustard
  • 1/2 tsp. Indian Spices (I used Za’atar, a middle eastern spice mixture)
  • 1 tsp. Tabasco sauce

Directions:

  • Add the lentils to a medium-sized bowl. Press the lentils with a blender until they appear smooth in texture.
  • Add the other half of the lentils. Blend together with the rest of the ingredients and shape into patties.
  • Add cooking spray into a pan and add the lentil patties. Cook over medium heat until both sides are browned and slightly crispy on the outer portions. Serve Immediately.

Crab Cakes

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • 3/4 cup of small diced red onion
  • 1 1/2 cups of yellow and red bell peppers
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of all-purpose seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper and salt
  • 1/2 cups of whole wheat bread crumbs
  • 3/4 cups of soy or low-fat mayonnaise
  • 2 teaspoons of mustard (dijon)
  • 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 pound of crabmeat
  • Cooking spray
  • 2 tablespoons of pesto, soy, and/or low-fat mayonnaise blended with salt and pepper
  • 2 tablespoons of minced parsley

Directions:

  • Heat oil in a pan and sauté the celery, onion, and bell peppers. Season with all-purpose seasoning, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
  • Mix bread crumbs, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and mayonnaise/soy mayonnaise. Add crabmeat and slow down your mixing. Refrain from breaking the crab pieces. Repeat the entire process.
  • Use cooking spray on the pan and turn the heat on medium. Place cakes into the pan using a scooper and sauté over medium heat. When brown on both sides, stop and add a small amount of pesto and the mayonnaise blend. Add a pinch of parsley. Serve immediately.

How To Get The Most Out Of The Skinny Girl Diet

As long as all foods and beverages are taken with calorie, sugar, and nutritional content in mind, weight loss is easier and considerably faster. Bethenny made the Skinny Girl diet with this as the most important facet of the diet plan. However, users can take it a step further by being active and busy in their free time.

Exercise and gym activities will turn any diet into a successful venture of getting in shape. Yet blocking oneself the recipes they crave the most does not have to always be the case. And the Skinny Girl diet plan exemplifies this greatly.

Love this article and want to read more about diet and weight loss programs? Check out these great articles!

This post was originally published on March 13, 2018. Here at EMH, we appreciate that what was old can be new again, so we have updated this post to keep it current and relevant to our readers.

About the author

EMHTeam

James is a fitness expert who enjoys biking, swimming, and weight lifting. He is training to complete his first triathlon this fall!

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