BCM - How did your life change when you became a mom?

Heather - I thought my life had purpose before but being a mother IS my most important job. It gives me the most joy and it fills my heart with the most love. Its hard to remember what life was like before kids, I would never want it any other way, :).

BCM - What has been your most memorable moment (s) as a mom?

Heather - Dropping Zander off at her 4's class and her giving me a hug good bye and saying, "I'll be OK mommy, are you OK?"

Giving birth to my first twin boy...thinking...ahhh...OK, that was good...let's go home. Forgetting for a moment I had to birth one more boy!!

BCM - What has been the biggest challenge for you in motherhood. Any advice for new moms?

Heather - BALANCE!!! I am always trying to give everything to everyone...each child, my husband, my clients, family, friends. I feel like I do it all but I can never do it all perfectly.
My advice? Never forget to take care of you! You'll be a better mom if you take 30 minutes to go for a quick run, walk, eliptical, anything...just move your arms. Eat well. Taking care of yourself is the one thing in life you can control.

BCM - How do you manage your work life balance?

Heather - I've always been very focused on organizing my life, even before I had kids. Because I have my own business and I work really hard and, of course I have to have time for my husband, it's always a challenge to find time to fit everything in the day from exercise to real down time. But I just do the best I can. I think the key is planning. For me by waking up before the rest of my family, getting in a run, it gives me the time to plan out the rest of my day and it always sets me up in the right path. My parents (both runners) taught me to run at a young age so its like brushing my teeth, sounds crazy, I know, but it relieves my stress its very theraputic for me. During my run I plan out when I'm going to have some quality time with my kids and husband. Then I always try to be in the moment. When I'm with a client and we're trying to figure out how he or she can reach a goal, I'm totally focused on that issue. When I'm with my family, I'm 100% there. Of course, like everybody else, I do multitask. I run to work...yup, you'll see me running from the train to my office, and I'll wear an ear piece so I can call my mom or dad or a friend at the same time to catch up on calls. This way, I can get in my cardio and phone calls all in one (I put my hair in a bun or get a blow out and I shower at night!). If you're a mom, you're always going to feel pulled in ten different directions. They key is to plan ahead, don't let anything that unimportant absorb your time and always remember to laugh and love and never sweat the small stuff.

BCM - We love your business - Nu-Train. What inspired you to start your company?

Heather - From a very young age it was my passion to help people eat well and live a better life. I knew that the strategies that I'd developed to help people eat well and lose weight were unique. I was determined to to reach as many people as possible with the same blueprint I use with clients in my office. Everything that I do with my company, whether it's a book or another commercial affiliation, is geared to spreading the word that you can eat well and lose weight and be healthy. My philosophy is live your life, not your diet. My mission is to teach people how to eat in the real world .

BCM - Can you share 5 nutrition tips for moms and families?

Heather -

1. Start your day strong with a good breakfast (and it doesn't have to be first thing). If you aren't hungry at 7 am, it is OK to wait until 830 or 9 am. Go for either 0 or 2% Greek Yogurt with some Kashi Go Lean cereal and berries or 2% cottage cheese and fiber crackers or hard boiled eggs with fiber crackers. Also...if you aren't hungry in the morning you may want to take a look at what you ate last night (chances are you struggle with night eating, if you stop the mindless eating after dinner you'll probably get hungrier in the morning).

2. Buy yogurt or cottage cheese in individual containers so you can just grab and go (have some plastic or wood spoons on hand). They also make the Kashi Go Lean cereal sold on Fresh Direct in mini containers as well as the GG Crackers in 2 cracker packs. Individual packs are great for busy moms...perfect for portion control, and perfect for on the go, perfect for staying healthy!

3. Don't be afraid to eat sandwiches! Bread in the bread basket is the devil! But a turkey sandwich on wheat is a great option for a busy mom. First of all it can be less calories than a huge salad. It is also a quick option, you can find it everywhere and it is lower in volume than many salads making it a better option when it comes to weight loss.

4. Get your water on earlier in the day! Chug that first liter right after drop off! Don't delay that first liter of water or you'll never get it in. Water is hugely powerful in weight loss, it can help you fight off the munchies later in the day and it can help you fight those unwanted pounds. If you wait until pick up to start your water you'll never get in those 8 glasses. This way you'll have one liter done by lunch and can work on the second liter before you pick up your little ones in the afternoon.

5. Stop the picking off your little ones plates. These calories count DOUBLE! The bites, picks tastes when you clean their plates...they all add up and can be adding 1000's of calories to your intake daily. Cut it out and you'll see the pounds fall off.

BCM – Congratulations on your upcoming book "Bread is the Devil!" – Can you share some highlights?

Heather - I'm so excited about my next book. I think it will be helpful for people who are trying to lose weight, eat healthy and manage a busy lifestyle. Bread is the Devil is my effort to give readers the benefit of all my experience helping people successfully and permanently lose weight. As I always say, we all know what to eat. So why can’t we lose weight? The trouble comes from the “Devils” that plague us. Whether it’s the breadbasket on the table at the beginning of a restaurant meal or the Late Night Shuffle or the Roadhogging we do when we travel. Some of these Devils are emotional and some are situational. Every big city mom will absolutely relate to my chapter on LITTLE DEVILS. Its all about the bites, picks, tastes off your kids plates to the challenges we face every weekend morning when we pick at those pancakes and those endless birthday parties, 'monster' moms, to that challenging time of day when all the kids are asleep and the pantry is calling your name and all the other stressful situations we face as moms that just well...make us want to eat. Bread is the Devil is all about all those challenging situations that prompt us to eat and make it hard to lose weight. My book offers offers effective strategies for defeating these diet devils once and for all!

BCM - What types of activities do you like to do w/ your kids?

Heather - EVERYTHING! I love being with them when I am not working. Because I work I really appreciate all my time with them. Right now the twins are 17 months old and they are a little hard to take anywhere that isn't enclosed and child-proofed so we hang at home A LOT...but we love to have dance parties and chill in our playroom. Zander and Ross love to bake real homemade cookies every Friday night (and Ross's rule, they can never be reduced fat). We love to go for car rides...everyone is strapped in and can nap and it gives Ross and I the perfect opportunity to TALK, we love it. We also love to go for runs on the weekend...again, the kids are with us, in their strollers, all bundled up but it gives Ross and I a chance to catch up.

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FUN FACTS:

I’m totally obsessed with…

Heather - Finding in expensive blow drys for 35 dollars. I hate blowing out my hair and I can make it last 3 or so days (especially if I use some dry shampoo). Amazon prime..you can order anything--free shipping, next day at your door!

My biggest influence is…

Heather - My mom. She worked while raising 3 kids, always cooked and did homework with me, has a great marriage, friends, and was always there for me when I needed her (and still is!).

My favorite drugstore buy is...

Heather - Cetaphil

Products I can’t live without..

Heather - Kerastase shampoo and Chanel Ultra Correction Lift moisturizer and any cheap under eye concealer plus a good mascara (helps with the tired eyes)!

My guilty pleasure is...

Heather - Reality tv..LOVE the Kardashians, any of the Housewives on Bravo, Millionaire Matchmaker. Kids in bed, husband and dog are snoring and I'm in reality heaven!

Favorite NYC Restaurant...

Heather - ABC Kitchen