Hi there, I’m Jade and I’m excited you’re here! Whether you’re a foodie, love to cook or just a newbie to everything health, fitness + wellness, HGG is the right place for you. I created this blog because I have a passion for wellbeing and living a healthy lifestyle. Throughout the years, many people have reached out to me in various ways asking me to share my recipes, routines and tips. I finally realized that it was time to start a blog! I want to help people and show them that living mindfully can be fun, delicious and above all, rewarding.

I started my career as a model at the young age of 15. Throughout my career, I had to stay on the thinner side of fit. My body is naturally curvier than the typical, “skinny” model body type. I have always had hips and a more shapely bottom, which doesn’t always fly when you’re wearing couture! There were many times, even as a teenager, when clients would turn me away at castings because my hips were “big.”

Over the years I developed a thick skin towards hurtful body shaming comments. However I didn’t necessarily develop the healthiest exercise, eating + supplementing habits. In an attempt to stay “skinny” I wasn’t looking out for my well-being. Although I was eating healthy salads and getting plenty of cardio, I wasn’t ingesting all the vitamins + minerals my body needed. At the time I thought I was doing great, but in reality I was stripping my body of crucial nutrients. I also didn’t realize at the time that I can be fit + healthy without depriving myself!

My career as a model started in Boston, MA and took me to New York, Italy, Germany, London and Miami. At the age of 26 my body had had it and started rebelling! I was living in New York at the time working as a full-time model. My skin started breaking out all over with cystic acne. This was devastating as it was affecting my work, my confidence and my mental health. I went to estheticians and dermatologists who couldn’t solve the problem. I spend thousands of dollars on facials, cleanses and treatments at the dermatologist office. Finally the dermatologist suggested I go on Accutane, and also casually mentioned that I would have permanent scarring and pits on my face! I left the office in tears, not knowing what to do. One thing I did know was that I wasn’t going on Accutane. These were all just bandaids for what my body was really trying to tell me.

I started researching and found my way to gut healing, natural remedies and certain foods that would help clear my skin. I also switched my diet and cut out gluten, dairy, legumes and grains. I went full Paleo. Throughout the years I have tried Vegan, Paleo, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, and more recently Plant Paradox. What I’ve found is that everyBODY is different! There’s no perfect diet for all of mankind. Health starts in your gut, your microbiome. Since then, I have altered my diet to be the most nutrient dense, anti-inflammatory way of eating for my body. As an asthmatic, eating an anti-inflammatory diet is key for me.

Cutting out gluten and dairy were the major two things that really made a difference in the way I felt. I had more energy and my asthma wasn’t as active. Cutting out legumes and grains made a huge difference in my digestion. I felt less bloated, had little to no gas and literally started feeling lighter with less inflammation. In 2018 I started learning more about anti-inflammatory foods. My mother was diagnosed with Lupus (an auto-immune disease which is aggravated by inflammation), and since I knew that my asthma was triggered by an inflammatory response, I wanted to start the process of self-healing. Although my asthma will never be fully healed, I can treat the inflammation in my body naturally with the right foods, and hopefully avoid having to take prescription medicine every day for the rest of my life.

I am passionate about making creative, delicious healthy meals for myself and my loved ones. Why not share my passion and spread the love, all while helping people live a healthy life? I try to add healing ingredients to all of my dishes. Hippocrates said, “let food be thy medicine, and let medicine be thy food.” We have so many healing foods at our fingertips, so let’s use them in our everyday meals! You can find lots of easy recipes here that you’ll make over and over again.

Since resigning from my career as a model, I have taken up a new line of work as a full time Group Fitness Instructor and Pilates Reformer teacher in Miami Beach, FL. However, I have been leading Challenge Groups, teaching classes and private sessions since 2013. I offer LIVE group fitness classes, an HGG Class Library and private virtual sessions here on the blog! My classes are suitable for all levels, and I always provide modifications.You can find a list of class descriptions as well as my LIVE Online Class Schedule on the home page.

Thanks for reading + I hope you feel at home here. Please reach out to me directly with any questions or concerns. Hope to see you in class!