It’s 7.30am and the street lights have barely switched off in Auckland’s leafy central suburbs when I tap softly on Nadia Lim’s front door.
While it might sound like a rude awakening, the early start was her idea, and with a diary packed to the brim weeks in advance, it was the only time she could spare to sit down for a chat.
Emerging in her dressing gown and ushering me inside with a cheery welcome, the culinary guru looks fresh-faced, relaxed, and not remotely bothered by the idea of talking business with a journalist before the coffee pot has even boiled.
Nadia pictured in the May issue of NEXT
In the kitchen, Lim’s husband of five years, Carlos Bagrie, cajoles baby Bodhi to eat his breakfast, as the toddler waves fistfuls of scrambled egg and flashes a gummy grin. It’s the sort of scene that’s typical for many young Kiwi families each morning, but as soon as Lim starts reading out her upcoming schedule, it’s safe to say hers is something of a life less ordinary.
“I’m cooking with Richie McCaw this week,” says the businesswoman and bestselling author. “That’s a line you don’t get to say very often! I’m really looking forward to meeting him.”
Other days include filming for an appearance on My Kitchen Rules, publicity events, a magazine photo shoot, and time dedicated to recipe testing and a special family gathering.
And while little Bodhi might still be in nappies, he isn’t Lim’s latest baby. Most recently, she’s been tinkering on a new venture as part of her wildly popular business, My Food Bag. The latest offering in the line-up is a weight-loss bag called Fresh Start, which the trained dietitian has helped develop in response to countless emails from customers wanting her down-to-earth advice on shifting excess kilos.
“It’s really different to anything we’ve done before,” she says. “People have been asking us for good, credible information on weight loss, and this is about giving that information – and the tools you need to do it – in an easy, sustainable way. I want to help people into good habits they can continue for the rest of their life, not just something they are going to do in an extreme form for a few weeks and then go back to their old ways.”
Learn more about Nadia’s first year of being a mum, the surprising way her body has changed since giving birth, and why she’s feeling more inspired than ever in NEXT’s exclusive cover story from the May issue – on sale now.
Our May issue is out on April 17th
