Eating Well in a Healthy Game Plan
It’s not about salads and veganism: Four wellness gurus tell us their best tips and personal approaches.
Egan Inoue
Egan Inoue—a former professional MMA fighter and former world champion in racquetball and Brazilian jiujitsu—runs two Egan’s Fitness gyms in Honolulu with his wife, Marcia. His daily routine includes breathwork, mobility and balancing exercises, calisthenics and downwind foilboarding, along with training clients.
TIP: “Never go on fad or strict diets. Learn how to moderate the food you eat, and make sure you always eat enough protein.”
I eat as clean as possible. My diet’s not real strict. Even at my gym, I have people make sure they get the right macros—the right amount of protein and carbohydrates. Eat enough calories. The way they get it, that’s up to them.
Protein helps your body rebuild. Carbohydrates, your brain needs them to think. Low-carb diets might help you lose weight, but that’s not our intent. It’s about being healthy.
Fruits, fiber, that’s usually in the carbohydrates part. We don’t even count vegetables because the calories you take in from them is very little.
In the late morning I’ll usually eat a Greek yogurt with 20 grams of protein with 2 tablespoons of chia seeds, blueberries, some granola and coconut chips. That’s pretty much Monday through Friday.
Lunch is usually takeout. My favorite is K. Bay Bros.—I really like their scallops, mixed in their own secret sauce. If I feel like I want rice, then I’ll do it. I pretty much eat a whole pound by myself over two lunches.
Lot of times it’s leftover dinner for lunch. Bangkok Chef, I’ll do the green beans and ginger chicken. It’s really clean—there’s barely any oil, it’s chicken breast and green beans.
Once in a while, people see me at W&M [Bar B-Q Burgers], they’re like what? Yeah, it’s OK if you exercise too. I get two Hal’s Special burgers with barbecue beef in it. My estimate is with the patty and the barbecue beef, it would be around 20 grams of protein.
Natalie Duran
Co-host and producer of HI Now Daily, Natalie Duran is a former American Ninja Warrior finalist. She climbs daily—whether it’s a tree, light pole or her regular rock-climbing session at HiClimb in Kaka‘ako.
Wellness to me is how you’re feeling and how you’re feeling about yourself. Having a degree in neuroscience allowed me to look at my emotions and my physical body in such a black-and-white way, it made life kind of more predictable. That knowledge keeps me sane on a day-to-day basis. If I’m upset or depressed, it’s not the world happening to me; it’s my insides happening to myself. It will pass. You just can’t feed into it.
Oftentimes, I go through weeks that I don’t eat meat. I’m just listening to my body saying I kind of want just leafy greens and raw food, and maybe on a Saturday, I could be a meat lover and get Onkee Korean Grill House. I’m a firm believer that sometimes having a different diet is a good conversation to have within yourself.
There’s one place downtown called SEA Street Kitchen where they do Wrap N’ Roll Wednesdays. They have a summer roll with a crispy deep-fried spring roll in there with vermicelli noodles and a piece of shrimp. The owner says you get all the seasons in one bite.
At The Pig & The Lady, there’s this vegan chestnut and mushroom pâté. God, it was so good. It tasted like liver pâté. Arancino [at the Kāhala Hotel & Resort] has paccherri alle cozze. It’s a pasta with mussels in a pomodoro sauce. It was insane. We dream about that.
Whenever I have a celebration or I want to just celebrate myself, french fries and a glass of Champagne is my favorite cheat eats.
TIP: “Listen to your body. Everyone’s gut microbiome and metabolism are as unique as their fingerprint. If one week you crave meat, you may be iron deficient. If the next week you only want veggies, your body probably wants more fiber. Everything in moderation.”
Eric Rosso
Certified breathwork trainer Eric Rosso is the founder of Breathwork with Eric and an owner and teacher at Yoga Room Hawai‘i.
TIP: “Our bodies are unique, and so are our nutritional needs. That’s why mindful eating matters—pay attention, do your research, and find what truly works for you. If you’re overeating or choosing foods that don’t support your well-being, it comes down to honesty and discipline. Growth requires a willingness to choose better, even when it’s not easy.”
There are cheat days and days I’m on it. I consider myself a half-vegetarian. People laugh at that, but I have two meals a day, and one of them has to be vegetarian, which makes me a half-vegetarian, right?
I think the salad bar at Down to Earth is really, really good. The restaurant I frequent most is Ruscello. My go-to is the panko-crusted chicken salad, with or without the chicken. They also have great chicken-lime-cilantro tacos. I get a cup of the tomato basil soup, and I always order extra crostinis on it.
For brunch, Tangö [Contemporary Café] has a great eggs Benedict. They do these really good potato fries, and the house ketchup is off the hook.
For dinner, Hangang’s [Korean Grill House’s] barbecued steak is great. They got the LA kalbi, and I always order the meat jun. The service is great, they give you a whole bunch of veggies on the side, and you can always order more. It’s pretty awesome.
Bernini has one of the best pizzas in town. I usually get the Margherita and depending if I had meat that day or not, I have them throw on some pepperoni or sausage. Their pasta Bolognese is fantastic. And the carbonara has an egg on top, which is cool.
I’m doing a walk almost every day, twice a week I’m running, I’m at UFC Gym two or three times a week, and I do yoga almost every day. So I’m definitely working that off. But I like good food.
Jinan Banna
A nutrition professor at UH Mānoa, Jinan Banna also helps clients with weight loss, plant-based eating and preventing chronic disease.
I think about wellness in terms of balance—work, life outside of work, relationships. Appropriate rest and work and play—all those things need to be in balance so one can feel good. Basic principles of healthy eating include balance, adequacy, moderation and variety.
Breakfast varies but it might include fruit, oatmeal and nuts, toast with tahini and jam. At lunch, I like to change it up. So it could be lasagna made with beans, or chicken and lentil soup with a lot of vegetables. It might be tacos with beans or chicken and vegetables, or fish or shrimp and that could easily go on a salad. If I eat lasagna, for example, there would be vegetables on the side. There’ll be a whole grain usually, some type of protein, vegetables, fruit as dessert. Dinner is along the same lines.
I also exercise—it might be in the morning or after work, but it’s a fundamental part of my day. I make time to strengthen relationships with family and friends after work, and prioritize sleep and winding down before.
On the weekends, I’m often out hiking with friends, and it’s a nice time to try different things at restaurants.
Traditional Hawaiian food is highly nutritious and very delicious, and I love Highway Inn’s squid lū‘au or pork lau lau and sweet potato and poi. I also love Pioneer Saloon’s reasonably priced salad with salmon and nice creamy dressing. And I love Deck. It’s a beautiful space to sit. Ambience is a fun part of the experience. They have an avocado toast on sourdough, salmon with vegetables, and the soufflé pancakes are fluffy with berries on top, and they’re just fun as an occasional order.
TIP: “Keep your eating balanced across all the food groups—make sure you include fruits and vegetables, whole grains and protein-rich foods.”
