Teresa Cutter, The Healthy Chef

“For me, beauty comes from the food you eat…

and your lifestyle. I eat clean nourishing wholefoods that include lots of antioxidant rich leafy greens and berries, good fats with a little protein. The nutrition from whole foods give strength and structure to your skin and will help it glow. I have a health spa holiday every year at Kamalaya which keeps me on track and helps me relax and renew.

TERESA STEALS TO KAMALAYA RETREAT IN THAILAND EVERY YEAR

THE CHEF KEEPS HER BEAUTY ROUTINE EASY AND QUICK

My beauty routine is quite basic and simple.

I jump in the shower, cleansing and exfoliating my face using a little olive oil and a hot face cloth for about 1 minute. Exfoliation keeps my skin glowing and looking so great.  I also apply a little olive or cold pressed almond oil over the rest of my body whilst still damp out of the shower and lightly pat it dry – it makes the best moisturiser. I sometimes scent it with rose petal or sandalwood essential oil, which makes it just glorious.

I start my day by dry body brushing.

It smoothes and detoxifies my skin and stimulates circulation. I also love my rose hip oil and use it morning and night before I go to bed. I also love spritzing my face with rose water, as it stops my skin from drying out during the day and keeps me fresh. I also drink tons of water to keep my skin hydrated.

I’m not into heavy makeup.

I always start with a cleansed, hydrated and moisturised face. Less is more. I only use a little foundation and keep my base sheer. My sister put me onto Jane Iredale BB Cream in number 7 – I find if I mix it with moisturiser it gives me the right colour and sheer look I’m after. I love to use my Kevyn Aucoin brow pencil to help accentuate my eye brows when I go out at night and NARS brow gel to groom my brows. I use Terry thickening mascara, but only on my top lashes – never on the bottom. I also love using Dior Addict Lip Glow in place of traditional lipsticks because it’s very subtle, natural and the perfect colour day or night. I also love Bal D’Afrique by Byredo Parfums – it’s glorious and I’m addicted to it.

A FEW OF TERESA’S FAVOURITE PRODUCTS

BYREDO AND BYTERRY ARE FIRM FAVOURITES

I’m a huge fan of By Terry skincare.

I love to apply Crème de Rose moisturiser – it helps my skin look fresh and dewy. I generously apply Baume de Rose onto my lips and finish off with a layer of Terry Mascara over my top eyelashes. I drink a large glass of water with a spoonful of Healthy Chef Cold Pressed Wheatgrass, with a hint of lemon to help alkalise and wake up my body. I love the Ayurvedic way of hair care and I often apply cold pressed sesame oil as a hair treatment once a week – I use Uspa Wheatgrass shampoo and conditioner.

I never really paid much attention to beauty. I was busy riding my pushbike and going to the gym at sixteen. I lived in training gear and runners.  I still describe my look as natural and sporty. I like simple classic designs, nothing fancy – timeless and fresh. I like to keep my make up and hair clean and natural.

I remember trying out my sister’s beauty products.

She is two years older than I am and had a drawer full of Maybelline eyeshadows, foundations and lip glosses. I wasn’t the best at makeup so I didn’t like how it looked on me. She actually experimented on me when I was 10 years old. She shaved my legs and plucked all my eyebrows off and mum had to draw them in for school – it was terrible – but we laugh about it now because she’s an amazing make up artist in Perth]and owns her own beauty salon. I attribute it all to her practicing on me when I was young – and she does amazing eyebrows! I always see her when I’m back in Perth and she loves to show me her new discoveries in skin care and make up. She does the best facials and makes me up a nice little bundle of goodies to take back to Sydney.

TERESA IS FULL OF BEAUTY-FULL FOOD TIPS

TERESA LAUGHS AT STORIES FROM HER TEENAGE YEARS

I had a DIY experience with waxing…

when I was 16 and still in high school. I overheated some wax in the microwave and applied it to my upper lip – when I pulled off the wax it took a few layers of skin completely off both sides of my lip. It was horrifying. I ended up putting mercurachrome on my face with a few band aids and pretended I had an accident on my push bike. That was the last time I did my own waxing. For my brows, I see Jasmine Pampling – she’s awesome and the only one I trust in Sydney to do them. I also get manicures and pedicures from Vaia Beauty in Surry hills, but I don’t wear nail polish. I like to keep my nails short and natural as I’m always in the kitchen cooking.

I do most of my own facials at home,

using yoghurt, smashed strawberries, organic superfood and honey. I also love smashed avocado face masks with my wheatgrass powder and olive oil. Your skin feels hydrated, it’s infused with vitamin C and it glows. My mum taught me one recipe that consisted of natural yoghurt and a little honey – brush over the face and leave it on for 30 minutes and rinse off. Yogurt is rich in lactic acid which is a natural exfoliant as well as moisturising on the face and honey is great to hydrate the skin. Just use two parts yoghurt and one part honey.

HER MUM TAUGHT HER TO LOOK AFTER HER SKIN

TERESA’S LUSH CHERRY AND COCONUT SMOOTHIE

My great Polish grandmother was a big influence

She taught me about the value of good food and the benefits to your body which will show through your skin, hair and overall health. Her skin care routine was like my mothers, nothing fancy. She loved olive oil and avocado and it’s what made her skin look fresh and vibrant. I love soaking in a warm bath with candles and essential oils such as sandalwood, lavender or rose. I add magnesium oil or some Himalayan salt to help relax the body.

As I age, I’m all about…

nurturing my body and giving it the love it needs. I want to age gracefully and do the best I can to keep my body in the best shape possible. I think every day is an opportunity to do the best you can for your health and wellbeing. I’ve learnt not to stress too much about life these days. Things normally work themselves out eventually. I think stress is very aging on people and I am aware of how much it can affect our health and state of mind. I meditate with nature during my daily walks around Centennial park. I also love baking cakes, making bread or cookies in my kitchen. Using your hands and kneading the dough is very therapeutic for the soul.

TERESA’S WELLBEING BREAKFAST BOARD

TERESA’S NEW BOOK, THE HEALTHY CHEF

The Healthy Chef has been a life long journey of creation.

I launched The Healthy Chef Functional Food Range made from the best natural wholefoods available on the market, to support optimum health and wellbeing. Today, I’m bringing the simplicity and freshness of what keeps me healthy every day and combining it with my training as a chef for my recipes I create as well as my whole food product range.

I know how the female body adapts…

to the training and what you feed it.  I’ve competed in many fitness figure competitions at both state and national level. At the gym I focus on high repetitions 30 – 50 and super set and giant set exercises. You can do this using just your body weight or a pilates machine, for instance, 30 free squats followed by lunges followed by leg raises etc. It’s non stop but your workout is over in 30 minutes and you work your full body – this is the best way of getting lean toned muscles fast. I’ve traded my boxing gloves in for Pilates at the moment. I’m finding the exercises interesting and very muscle specific; I’m getting my own reformer for the office and I can’t wait. It’s also important to do regular cardio, which helps with fat loss and body shaping. I love long walks and riding my Colnago bike. My husband and I sometimes head out to Akuna Bay in the northern beaches – it’s awesome and feels like you’re riding in Europe.

TERESA TAKES DAILY WALKS AROUND CENTENNIAL PARK

TERESA’S CITRUS SALAD AND ORANGE BLOSSOM HONEY

It’s important to know where your food has come from…

and to treat it with the love and respect it deserves. Extreme diets or people who push strict dietary ideologies are not helpful. I find that a lot of people stress over finicky nutrition details rather than focusing on the broader picture – that is, that one should eat natural whole foods, focus on fresh fruit and vegetables and keep it simple. We should all take the time to think about what foods make us feel good nutritionally and what foods don’t. My advice is to eat whole foods and customize your diet based on your unique needs.

Every morning I make myself a hot matcha tea.

It helps get me started for the day. I love smoothies made with coconut water, frozen banana, blueberries and a scoop my protein. It’s a complete meal I can make in 1 minute any time of day. I also love Yoghurt bowls made with thick Greek style yoghurt topped with berries, roasted almonds and a little honey.

TERESA LOVES SMOOTHIES MADE WITH THE HEALTHY CHEF PROTEIN POWDER

TERESA KEEPS LINDT DARK CHOCOLATE IN HER FRIDGE FOR A TREAT

For lunch, I mostly have a large salad…

made with leafy greens, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, goji berries, apple, avocado and beetroot. I generously add aged balsamic and a good splash of Joseph cold pressed olive oil. I love to snack on roasted tamari almonds and organic dried pineapple. For dinner, I love often have a big bowl of vegetable soup made from what ever is good at the local markets or my green pea and spinach risotto topped generously with grated parmesan. There’s always a few block of Lindt dark chocolate in my fridge – I love to splurge and eat a few pieces or a bowl of my Naked Chocolat made with almond milk.

I mostly eat a vegetarian diet,

So getting enough protein is a must for my health. I make sure I have at least one protein shake a day, either made as a meal or mixed with coconut water during the day. I pretty much take all the supplements that I design for The Healthy Chef brand. The whole reason I design them in the first place is because I couldn’t find anything out there that suited my needs to support my health and lifestyle.”

TERESA ENJOYS PROTEIN SHAKES DAILY

Interview by Sigourney Cantelo. Story by Bryce Anable. Photography by Paul Cutter ACS.