Although, with her reliable and engaging mien, she enters the homes of millions of Americans every morning as a co-host of FOX & Friends, Ainsley Earhardt possesses a humanity that somehow appear uncharacteristic for the usual conception of a top national TV anchor. Perhaps, it has a lot to do with her most important role - that of a mother to two-year old Hayden, whose schedule dictates Earhardt's. Her trust in God, which is the subject of her latest book, The Light Within Me, also contributes to her humility in the face of enormous success.
Haute Living caught up with Earhardt one early morning in late April, hours after her work day had begun, to learn more about her beauty and wellness tenets, and the conversation naturally revolved around motherhood and faith and hard work.
You have a busy work routine. What do you do on a daily basis to keep your skin and body healthy and fresh?
I wake up at 3 o'clock in the morning, so it does require a lot of care. So, I usually take a nap during the day when my daughter is asleep. I usually nap with her or find a time during the day when she has a class. I usually take her to all of her classes but sometimes end up napping during her classes and have the babysitter take her. I just always try to have some time to get a little napping, maybe an hour or an hour and a half. I eat extremely healthy. I do not eat fried food or drink soda. I drink a lot of water. I love steamed vegetables.
How do you protect your skin from the heavy make-up you have to wear daily for the show?
I use a lot of products. I use lotions and creams on my face and wash it every night and every morning. I eat healthy and I do not have a lot of problems with my skin because of that, I think. I just try to stay healthy and take care of my body because I want to be a healthy mother and I want to be around for a long time for my daughter.
Are there any products that you cannot do without?
I love cocoa butter creams. The Queen Helene is my favorite. I found that prevents dry skin. I use all different types of products on my face - four or five different products that have been recommended to me by doctors that help my skin - but do not have a favorite one.
During your pregnancy, what special care did you take for your skin and body?
I definitely used a lot of cocoa butter cream - every single day to prevent getting stretch marks. I ate all-organic foods, but I do that anyway. I just wanted to nourish my body and give [my daughter] all the benefits that I could. I took pre-natal vitamins for a few months before I tried to get pregnant and continued that through the pregnancy. I drank a lot of water too.
I remember after I had Hayden and I just needed to lose some of the baby weight, I really took to eating healthy and make smoothies. There is a smoothie that I love that is all organic - bananas, strawberries, peanut butter, coconut water, ice. It is such a great smoothie and I would drink one or two of those a day.
I would crave occasionally pizza or ice cream but I try to stay away from those foods. I enjoy eating healthy, though. I do not even like fried food. I really enjoyed becoming healthy and learning how to eat healthy and reading about what is healthy.
What tips do you have for someone looking to adopt a healthy diet?
My advice would be to start eating healthy and give it a little while but then you will stop craving the food that you are not supposed to have. Even when I get on a binge and I am eating too many sweets and I stop for awhile, it is really hard at first because you crave those foods, but after a few weeks, you stop craving them and it becomes much easier and you will find that you start to enjoy the healthy choices and that you can go to bed without the guilt. It just makes me feel better in the morning.
Are there any meals that you love to prepare?
I do not have a large family, so I do not cook big pots of dishes. My daughter actually loves what I love. She loves broccoli and cauliflower, so I steam them and that would last for several days. I love green beans. What else do we eat a lot of? We eat a lot of organic, ground turkey and I cook that on the stove. I do a lot of grilled chicken. Hayden eats a lot of dairy and apple sauce too. She eats turkey meatballs and I put that with zucchini instead of spaghetti and put a little bit of Parmesan cheese on top and it is delicious. Our meals are pretty simple, but very healthy and filling.
That's great, though, that she takes to healthy food, which not many kids readily do.
I know. I think it goes back to my point - whatever you put in your body, you get used to that and you have a taste for it.
How do you manage to balance your time between family and work?
I would be lying if I said it is easy. It is not. I just try to take it one day at a time. With the book premiere, it is extremely difficult but when I have a book signing or an appearance, I try to work around my daughter's schedule so that I can go to classes with her. I really try to be present for all of her classes. She takes pretty much a class everyday. I try to take a nap when she takes a nap. I try to get in bed at 9 o'clock. I will put her down at 7:30pm so that I have an hour and a half for myself and to study for the show and to prepare and to go over my schedule for the following day.
Your new book, The Light Within Me, is your first book not geared toward kids. What can you tell us about it?
I wrote two children's books and then I had this book on my heart that needed to be told. It is a story for everyone because it is a story of God in my life. It is such an inspirational story of how you go through rough time and I just felt that God is always there to pick me up and get me back on track. It helps viewers understand more about me and my faith and God in my life and I want Him to get the glory. Because of my relationship with God, all of my dreams have come true. I have become a mother and an anchor on the number-one morning cable show. I am just so blessed and I write about what motivates me every morning and my passions and how a girl from South Carolina has made it to New York.
On that note, what advice would you give to young people who are just starting out?
The book is called The Light Within Me and my advice would be let your light shine. There is a scripture that goes along with that - Let your light shine before others, so they may see your good deed and glorify your Father in heaven - which is Matthew 5:16. That is what I want to do - whatever light God has given you, let that shine.
Young individuals are searching for what they are going to do for the rest of their lives and I encourage them to shoot for the stars, find out what their passion is and find a career that involves that. I have young people come to FOX and shadow me at work and ask me questions about my life and how I got to FOX, and I tell them go into the profession you might be interested in for the summer so that you can get a good feel for it and determine whether that is what you are supposed to do.
My job just happens to be in the limelight and I get a lot of exposure for that, which I am very grateful for. But every person is God's child and everyone is important. Whatever you decide you want to do, work very hard, nothing comes without work. You do not become the CEO when you are 21 years old. It took me 20 years to get my dream jobs. Just finds what God created you to do and go for it.
Images courtesy of FOX
