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Hal Elrod

Hal is an international bestselling author, top-rated keynote speaker, and host of the Best Year Ever [Blueprint] LIVE Event. He is the author of the Miracle Morning series, including The Miracle Morning and The Miracle Equation, and the host of the Achieve Your Goals podcast.

 What does a typical day of eating look like for you?

I start my day around 4:30am with a scoop of organic coconut butter, to immediately provide my brain with healthy fat for fuel. Then I make a cup of Pique organic jasmine green tea, for the purpose of caffeine (50mg) and L-theanine.

At 8:00am, I make what I call my Miracle Morning "Live to 100" Superfood Smoothie (here is the recipe, also available at MyMiracleMorning.), which is packed with 20+ ingredients designed to optimize my health and energy levels. I make 32 ounces of this and drink half in the morning, for breakfast, and the other half in the afternoon between lunch and dinner.

At 11:59am, I drink a second glass of Pique organic jasmine green tea, which I've found combats any fatigue caused by my lunch.

At 12:00pm, I make the same salad every day, which is like a party in my mouth! Here are the ingredients (all organic except for the pepperoncinis):

My Homemade Dressing (Organic hummus, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, cayenne)

  • 1/2 Green Apple

  • Handful of Spinach

  • 1 Avocado

  • 2 Tablespoons of Sour

  • Kraut

  • A pinch of Pepperoncinis

  • 2 Tablespoons of (raw)

  • Sunflower Seeds

  • 2 Tablespoons of (raw)

  • Pistachios

I pair that with some Flaxseed Crackers (brand: Flackers) that I dip in hummus, as well as some Mushroom Jerky (brand: Urban Cowboy) for variety. It adds even more diversity to the party in my mouth!

At 3:20pm, I drink my second smoothie that's been hanging out in the fridge, on my way to pick up my kids from school.

For dinner (usually around 5:30pm), I eat whatever my wife makes for our family. This typically includes either grass fed beef, pasture-raised chicken, the occasional vegan meal, and always some organic vegetables.

For dessert (usually around 6:30pm), I have either organic coconut yogurt with organic coconut chunks mixed in, or I have just a few bites or organic coconut ice cream. (Ever since I had cancer in 2017, I try to minimize how much sugar I eat.)

What do you eat when you’re on the run?

When I travel (which I do quite a bit for speaking), I almost always request a fridge in my hotel room and stop by Sprouts or Whole Foods and load up on the same foods I eat at home. I also carry a bag of Flackers and Urban Cowboy (mushroom) jerky in my computer bag, as well as Well Bars (flavor: Cashew, Matcha & Moringa) so that I'm never caught feeling hungry without a healthy option.

When I'm out and about in my hometown of Austin, Texas, I almost always eat a Casa De Luz, because their food is (allegedly) 100% organic and vegan. I've found that most restaurants use subpar ingredients (GMO, preservatives, hormones, seed oils like canola, etc.), so I'm very particular when I'm on the run.

Let's say you got to choose your last meal on Earth, what would it be?

Ooh, that's a great question! It would probably be a grass-fed steak with a side of mashed potatoes, with a bowl of my wife's soup (she makes the best soups, so any of them will do).

What is your go-to comfort food?

I'd say my go-to comfort food are the (Cashew, Matcha & Moringa) Wella Bars. I eat one of those every day, only I nibble on it during breaks from work, so it literally takes me all day to finish it.

How do you recover after indulgent eating?

I usually only engage in indulgent eating once or twice a week (on weekends), and when I do I take what I call my "get-out-of-jail-free" pill, which is Intestinal Formula #1 from HerbDoc.com. It helps you digest everything you ate and get rid of it the next morning.

How do you find time for fitness?

I work out at home, 5 days per week for just 20-30 minutes each day, from 8:00-8:30am.

What do you like to do for exercise?

First thing I do, as part of my Miracle Morning, is a quick 100 jumping-jacks to quickly oxygenate my cells and get my blood flowing. For exercise, I just use free weights and a pull-up bar. I alternate between "back and shoulders" days with "chest and arms" days, and workout my legs every day in some way (squats, burpees, etc.)

What are your 3 favorite workout songs?

They're all by Zayde Wølf: "Hustler", "Gladiator", and "We Got the Power."

After a challenging day, how do you destress?

I like being in solitude to destress. I'll typically eat dinner with my family and then ask my wife if she'll put the kids to bed, so I can head to my bedroom early and read a book or watch some TV.

How do you treat yourself after a long week?

I do two coffee enemas every week. Yep, every Saturday and Sunday morning. When I had cancer, it was one of the holistic protocols that I implemented to detox my body and heal. It's also surprisingly meditative, so I look forward to it every week. And it (almost) always guarantees solitude. There was that one time... :^)

Also, I also play volleyball with Front Row Dads - a group of entrepreneurial dads that I'm part of.

Do you have a nighttime ritual?

Every night, at 7:30pm, I take 30mg of CBD oil, 200mg of Magnesium, and 450mg of organic Valerian Root.

At 8:00pm, I say goodnight to my kids and go take a shower and get ready for bed.

At 8:30pm, I read for 30 minutes.

At 9:00pm, I turn the lights out and think about what I'm grateful for, until I drift off to sleep. I imagine people in my life - my wife, kids, friends, clients, etc. - and feel deeply grateful for each. I also do that with any positive experiences that I had that day. Most often, that's recalling connecting with someone important in my life, typically my wife or one of my (2) kids.

I find that when I go to bed feeling grateful and peaceful, I almost always wake up feeling the same. If you think about it, typically our last thought before bed - and the feeling we have about it - is the same as the thought we have when we wake up, and how we feel. If you go to bed thinking about something that causes you to feel stress, you're likely to wake up thinking about the same thing, and feeling the same way.

So, being intentional about what I focus on before bed has been transformative for how I start each day.

Is there a motto or saying you say to yourself that helps you?

I have a few sayings that I repeat to myself to direct my focus, on a daily basis. Here are a few of them: 

  • Do the right thing, not the easy thing.

  • My life is perfect exactly as it is.

  • I have the ability to enjoy every moment. 

Is there anything you’re working on changing?

I'm really working on being my focus and productivity. For most of my adult life, despite having pretty severe ADHD, I've always found a way to be extremely productive. However, after enduring 650+ hours of chemotherapy, I've experienced significant cognitive challenges that have been detrimental to my ability to focus. Part of why I'm so strict with my diet is that I'm always eating with the intention of optimizing my mental focus and physical energy.

Why do you think so many people think being fit and successful can't coexist?

I think that so many people think being fit and successful can't coexist because they may not have (yet) experienced being fit and successful simultaneously. However, I believe that they can not only coexist, but that being fit contributes to your ability to be successful. There are two reasons I believe this is true.

First, I subscribe to the philosophy that I learned about in the book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker: "How you do anything is how you do everything." When you maintain the discipline and consistency to exercise and eat right, you are becoming a more disciplined and consistent person, and that positive impacts every other area of your life.

Second, when you eat well and exercise, it gives you more physical energy and mental clarity, which of course helps you to maintain the motivation needed to be successful.

What is something you know about health/fitness you wish you knew 10 years ago?

I wish I knew that eating healthy is actually really easy. For me, it started with awareness and a paradigm shift. I became aware that I was valuing the taste of the foods I ate over the health and energy consequences of what I ate.

The primary criteria I used when deciding what to eat was simply the taste. Think about it; when we go to a restaurant we typically make an emotional decision when ordering, such as what "looks/sounds good" on the menu. And we get excited about the prospect of eating that food.

When I realized this, I made a conscious decision to start valuing the health and energy consequences of the foods I ate above the taste. Once I did that, I was able to choose the best tasting healthy foods I could find. Through trial and error, I ended up finding countless healthy options, and I felt energized and healthy with every meal that I ate.

With this approach, eating healthy becomes not only easy, it's the only way we'll ever want to eat again!

 If you'd like to learn more about Hal, you can follow him on his website or on Twitter.

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