Jennifer Garner is booked and busy. As a working mom, she juggles life with her three kids (two teenagers and a fifth-grader) and her constant acting projects—the latest of which is her Apple TV+ series, The Last Thing He Told Me.
Wondering how she does it all while maintaining an active lifestyle? Same. Lucky for us, she recently shared her seven-day game plan with Women’s Health, where she shared the low-down on everything she does to stay fit, feel good, and keep up with her kids and life.
The 13 Going on 30 actress shared all the deets, from how she starts her day to her favorite lunch hack, and even the best snacks in her pantry. Get ready to take notes— here’s everything Jennifer Garner eats in a day, plus, how she works out.
She’s an early riser.
Jennifer is up and at it by 5:00 a.m., starting every day with a cup of coffee. From there, she goes right into her daily Zoom workout at 5:30am, which is @thelimitfit with Beth Nicely. The class, which she does everyday, is a combo of dance cardio, plyometrics, and strength training.
“Building your cardiovascular fitness and building your strength—it’s not about how you look, it’s not about how you fit into clothes, it’s about your own strength and pushing yourself further than you think you can go,” she says.
Beth pushes Jennifer nicely, which she loves about their workouts. It’s hard, but Jennifer works through it. “It’s hateful, but it’s not so hateful that you just think, ‘Okay, I never want to do it again,’” she says. By 7:30 a.m., Jennifer has showered is rushing to take her kids to school.
She has a great lunch hack.
Stonyfield Organic Whole Milk Probiotic Yogurt
Breakfast is usually at 10:00 a.m. and it’s whole fat yogurt with nuts and berries. “There’s usually an apple in there somewhere,” she adds.
By 12:00 p.m., she’s eating lunch, which is the same every day: a “big, fat salad like Elaine in Seinfeld,” she says. The salad consists of arugula, hearty veggies like green beans and broccoli, and these days, she’s not topping it off with a protein.
Instead, she’ll toss in half a sweet potato, which she usually preps by cutting them in half, roasting them with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and storing them in her fridge for meals throughout the week. “That’s a hack for ya, you’re welcome,” she says. Lastly, she’ll top the salad off with cheese and chopped nuts, putting “anything” in there.
Dinner is just as yummy and healthy as lunch.
For dinner, she likes to “make mom food” for her family. For instance, when she cooks, she usually tries to include a starch and a big salad, so a typical dinner for them is often a roast chicken, mashed potatoes, twice baked potatoes, rice, or pizza crackers, a.k.a. baked pizza dough.
Fresh veggies from the garden are also thrown into the mix. While “nobody cares if they’re cooked or not,” she does love to roast veggies, like broccoli, and put them out so their family can “nosh ‘em on down,” she explains.
She’s a big snack girl.
365 by Whole Foods Market Organic Blue Corn Tortilla Chips
Popcorn is one of their fam’s favorite after dinner snacks, she says, and when it comes to weekend eating, it’s similar to how she eats during the week.
She’ll throw a few fun snacks in when she wants to, usually at some point every day. “Blue corn chips are my weakness—and Bitchin’ Sauce and chocolate.” She’s just like me for real.
It’s clear that balance works well for Jennifer—you go, girl!
Addison Aloian (she/her) is an editorial assistant at Women’s Health. When she’s not writing about all things pop culture, health, beauty, and fashion, she loves hitting leg day at the gym, shopping at Trader Joe’s, and watching whichever hockey game is on TV. Her work has also appeared in Allure, StyleCaster, L’Officiel USA, V Magazine, and Modern Luxury Media.
