Actress Francia Raisa (Selena Gomez’s friend and kidney donor) is celebrating her birthday the best way she knows how—by wearing a beautiful swimsuit and enjoying the sunshine. Raisa, 35, shared pictures of herself celebrating the big day, posing in an orange bikini and straw hat. “If I’m not in a bikini on my birthday then it’s not my birthday 👙,” she captioned the post. How does she stay so fit? Read on to see 5 ways Raisa stays in shape and the photos that prove they work.
1. Intermittent Fasting
Raisa’s breakfast usually consists of just coffee. "I accidentally started intermittent fasting years ago when I was introduced to coffee,” she says. “So I actually drink coffee on an empty stomach. Is it healthy? Probably not. But I do it. I'm a big fan of plain Greek yogurt with my homemade granola every morning, especially before I work out because we definitely need some substance in our body to burn fat or anything while we're working out.”
2. No Big Meals At Night
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Raisa tries not to eat a heavy meal after 6.30 p.m. Her typical diet consists of protein and vegetables, and she loves snacking late at night. "I try to balance it out, depending on how much I have been exercising that day or that week, or if my body is like 'not today,'” she says. “I tend to do yoga late at night. I like it before I go to sleep, but obviously, you're starving afterward. A little granola and yogurt is the best meal to have before you go to sleep."
3. Apple and Peanut Butter
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Raisa’s favorite snack is apple with peanut butter. “Unsalted peanut butter, with 5 milligrams of sodium, has a terrific potassium-to-sodium ratio,” says Walter C. Willett, MD. “Salted peanut butter still has about twice as much potassium as sodium. That profile compares quite favorably with bologna, roast beef, and many other sandwich fixings.”
4. Mental and Spiritual Health
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Raisa makes an effort to support her mental health every day. “[I] journal, pray and work out,” she says. “It helps set up my mental and spiritual energy for the day into a positive one. If I skip a day I do notice a difference in my mood and energy and I'm not my favorite person. I journal so I can emotionally pour my feelings on paper and not the wrong ears and they're also letters to God. I pray as my form of meditation and centering my spirit and I work out to release adrenaline and because I like the way my body looks when I do it.”
5. No Sweet Tooth
Raisa isn’t big on sugar, instead preferring a cocktail. "I do not have a sweet tooth at all whatsoever," she says. "Personally, I like the [Ketel One] peach and orange blossom, and then you like pick a garnish, a soda water, and that's it. We're learning so much about our bodies. And I'm entering my mid thirties, so I'm learning about how food just sits in your stomach. I had to learn how to portion better because my eye is definitely way bigger than my stomach."