Laura Prepon On Her New Book, The Stash Plan and Orange Is The New Black

When she was in her early twenties, Laura Prepon appeared to be at the top of her game. A gifted actress, she had played Donna on the hit TV series That 70’s Show since she was 18 and was also acting in films. Yet, while her life may have seemed idyllic, her reality was much different. “I started having problems with indigestion and inflammation,” says Prepon who now stars as Alex in the blockbuster show, Orange is the New Black. “I had no energy and was struggling with my weight. I didn’t know what was wrong with me.”

She began seeking answers, pouring through health and diet books. “I was always fascinated by anatomy, and from a young age, before I found that acting was my calling, I even planned to become a doctor,” says Prepon, whose father was an orthopedic surgeon. She tried every diet from cabbage soup cleanses to the Caveman diet to near starvation. Nothing worked. Often, after a week, she would be ravenous, eat unhealthy foods and gain back the weight and more.

Finally, in 2012, she discovered integrative nutritionist Elizabeth Troy, RD, IN, who works with athletes and actors to help them heal. Combining Eastern holistic medicine and cutting-edge food science, Troy believes that a healthy body begins from the inside out. Troy advised a sensible eating program, nutrient-rich broths and targeted stretches. Through this plan, they were able to help Prepon’s malfunctioning liver and gallbladder get “unstuck” and rev up her metabolism.

Ultimately, Prepon’s health was transformed. Her body became toned. Her complexion glowed. Her energy was restored. The inflammation went away. “All that time before, my body wasn’t assimilating nutrients and I would be hungry an hour after eating. But the broth started healing me right away,” says Prepon.

Eager to share their knowledge with others, Prepon and Troy wrote the new book The Stash Plan: Your 21-Day Guide to Shed Weight, Feel Great, and Take Charge of Your Health. (Touchstone). The book offers all the steps to this budget-friendly doable plan and is filled with delicious recipes for dishes like quinoa noodles, coconut almond chicken, turkey meatballs and broccoli salad. They also include experts like Sally Fallon, considered  “the Yoda of bone broth” and explain the benefits of broth and how it repairs the body. “Broth feeds your body from the inside out and healed me at a micronutrient level,” says Prepon. “That was one of the biggest game changers.”

The Stash Plan also contains visuals of Prepon demonstrating stretches. “I always hoped to do a book about food and nutrition but also wanted it to be meaningful. And when I met Elizabeth and learned her viewpoint on nutrition and began feeling better, I wanted to share it,” says Prepon. “It’s not about solving a problem with a pill. You’re actually nurturing the body with food.”

Prepon talked to Parade about The Stash Plan and the upcoming season of Orange Is the New Black.

How did you learn to cook?

My mother was a chef and shared everything she knew with me. One of the first things she taught me to cook was sautéed chicken. All the proteins in the book are cooked with bone broth. What’s funny is that when I was a kid, my mother was the first person who actually taught me to cook proteins in broth. Because when it comes to cooking turkey and chicken, they dry out easily. She always said that meat stays moist if you cook it in broth and chicken stock. But she never made her own. Now I make my own broth and cook everything with it.

What is the joy of the plan for you?

I don’t have to torture myself on crash diets. I had been doing them because I was always desperate to fit into my clothes on camera. It’s a constant pressure. But not having to crash diet anymore and being able to eat real food is so great. I don’t need to starve myself anymore.

So now you’re eating less and don’t have cravings?

Yes. Because when your body is functioning optimally and you’re giving it the nourishment it needs, you shouldn’t be hungry all the time. But the problem is that many people eat so many denatured and genetically modified foods. The body is literally starving which makes you starve.

Also, I had been working out so much because I was trying so hard to lose weight. I thought that I was eating things that were good for me. But I wasn’t assimilating any nutrients and got more and more inflamed. Then when I stopped kicking my ass in the gym and started eating things that were healing me, the inflammation started going away. That was key for me.

But if you ever get cravings how do you handle them?

I eat dark chocolate, butter,  have cream in my coffee—as long as it’s real food and my body can recognize it, I eat anything I’m craving. You should be able to have all these things. But when they’re altered and genetically modified in a lab that’s when it becomes problematic. You have to use common sense and can’t overdo it. But you can have your cake and eat it too as long as it’s not completely Hulk-ified.

What would you like to tell people who may think it’s too much a commitment to make the broths?

What’s funny is the broth is actually the easiest recipe in the book. If you have a Crock-Pot, you can literally throw in bones and vegetables. Sometimes I break the carrots in half with my hands. I don’t even cut them. I was nervous, but when I actually made it for the first time, I thought, this is the easiest thing ever. Seriously, if you can boil water and you have a pot, you can do this. I’ve taught so many people how to cook. None of my friends used to cook before and now they all cook with slow cookers. They all make their stashes and send me photos of it. I find that guys are big meal preppers and that’s so great. It’s just about giving people kitchen confidence.

So you’re gearing up for the next season of Orange Is the New Black.

The fourth season comes out June 17. It’s really exciting. The fans are going to love it. I think it’s one of our best seasons yet. I can’t give away any spoilers, but the way it was written, nothing is taboo for [show writer and creator] Jenji Kohan, We go there and push the envelope. It’s just so awesome.

Learn more about the Stash Plan at thestashplan.com.