PREACHING about healthy eating and exercise has become something of a habit for Gwyneth Paltrow.

Now she's turned her attention to explaining how best to run a family life.

Her advice, however, doesn't take into account that most couples are not Hollywood stars married to rock singers, who don't have to worry about the next mortgage payment.

According to Paltrow, women who want to have children should seriously consider being stay-at-home mothers.

She said that even though it was not a feminist thing to say, she liked being at home with her two children and serving up dinner when her husband arrived.

In stark contrast to recent comments by close friend Madonna, Paltrow said marriage was all about "compromise and just working through the hard times".

She also revealed she had begun archiving her wardrobe of designer gowns so seven-year-old daughter Apple would one day be able to wear all her clothes.

Among Paltrow's clothes that have won Apple's approval are the Ralph Lauren taffeta frock she wore in 1999 to accept her Oscar for Shakespeare in Love.

In an interview with Harper's Bazaar, the Sliding Doors star said she was the one who cooked dinner for her husband, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, along with Apple and son Moses, 5.

They put the children to bed at 8pm every night before spending time together at their $6 million home in London. Even Martin's tour schedule has been adapted to make it family friendly, with each three-week block abroad interspersed with 10-day stints at home.

Paltrow, 39, said she was usually up at 7am with her children and worked on her website or second cookbook during the day.

The star said: "I have little kids in school. I want to maintain my marriage and my family, so I have to be here when he (Martin) comes home."

Paltrow, speaking of advice she gave to an unnamed friend, said: "She is an actress and in a new relationship with someone else with a big career, and I said this may not be feminist, but you have to compromise.

"It's been all about you.

"And if you want what you're saying you want - a family - you have to be a wife."

Paltrow, who was born in LA, gives a withering verdict on British men by praising Martin, 34, as being "very communicative", which is apparently rare for a British man.

She said she knew what it was to be betrayed and said one of her previous boyfriends cheated on her "all the time", but declined to reveal who it was.

Originally published as Gwyn talks of being a good wife