Eva Mendes Eats This Same Meal for Lunch and Dinner: ‘I’m a Creature of Habit’
When it comes to her diet, Eva Mendes sticks to what she knows.
“I don’t get bored with food,” the actress and girlfriend to Ryan Gosling tells SHAPE for the April cover story. “I try to think about it as fuel for my body.”
That means rotating the same few dishes—with only the occasional treat throwing her off course. For breakfast, it’s eggs.
“I think they’re like magic—you can do so much with them,” she says. “I mostly keep it simple and have scrambled eggs and a piece of Ezekiel toast for breakfast. But if somebody brings over muffins or some other kind of delicious treat, I’ll eat that with my coffee instead. It’s a terrible way to begin my day, though. I really regret it later, because I just don’t have as much energy. I find that when I start out with the right source of protein, it definitely helps.”
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Lunch and dinner will often overlap. “I grew up eating rice and beans, so I want some kind of grain in every meal,” says Mendes, 43. “For lunch, I usually have salmon and rice or quinoa, and I try to include a salad. I’ll eat the same thing for dinner. I’m a creature of habit in that way.”
As mom to two daughters, Esmeralda Amada, 2, and Amada Lee, 11 months, no matter what she’s eating, it’s got to be quick. “What I am looking forward to is the time when dinner becomes a sit-down situation again. Right now I’m in survival mode with two babies, eating on the go,” she says.
Her weakness comes in the form of Cadbury eggs. “The mini ones and the big ones with the filling,” she says of her go-to treat. To balance out her indulgences, the head of the Eva Mendes Collection at New York & Company makes sure she gets in at least three days a week of interval training.
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“Sweets are my thing. It’s ongoing, and I have to manage my sugar cravings constantly,” she says. “I’ve gotten used to having something sweet after every meal, so I’m always bartering with myself: No, no, I can’t have that after dinner, but maybe I can have it after lunch instead. The kid in me thinks, I work out, so I can support my sugar habit. I know that’s not a very wise thing to say, but I really do feel like I’m working it off!”
