Start small. Take it One Step at a Time.
There is so much conflicting information about how to eat properly, that it can be overwhelming and very confusing. To start eating better, the best method is to keep things simple.
Start by making one meal a day healthier.
Put all of your effort into improving one meal each day. Let’s pick dinner as an example. Make it your goal to follow the four principles below, for each of your dinners:
1. Eat slowly and mindfully.
If you pay attention to what and how much you are eating, you will automatically cut out some of the unhealthy choices. We all instinctively know we shouldn’t be eating chips, and we should be eating more vegetables. When you pay attention to what you’re eating, your consumption of chips will decrease. Slow down, and pay attention to your body’s signals – eat when you are hungry, not when you are bored. Try to take 20 minutes to eat a meal to give your hormones a chance to tell you when you’re full.
2. Limit processed foods.
Minimize the sugars, unhealthy fats and chemicals you consume, by cutting down on packaged foods. No, veggie chips, orange juice and protein bars are not healthy! Junk food doesn’t do a good job of filling you up, in fact, it often leaves you craving more food which adds inches to your waistline.
3. Eat more veggies & fruits.
These nutrient dense foods provide us with the vitamins and minerals we need to stay healthy. They’re
Salads can be healthy and low in calories but a few ingredients can make them very fattening.
packed with fibre to help us stay full, and to keep our digestive tract moving. Unfortunately, less than 20% of North Americans are eating the recommended 7-10 servings daily. Start by adding one extra serving of veggies into your dinner meal each day. Try these tips to add more veggies into your meals.
4. Add lean protein.
Make sure each dinner contains either seafood, fish, chicken or beans. Protein helps keep you feeling full, in addition to assisting you build that hard earned muscle you work on developing in the gym.
5. Drink more water.
Our bodies are made up of over 50% water. We need it to assist with digestion, break down food and eliminate waste from our bodies. Limit pop, coffee, juice and alcohol; these beverages don’t count towards your daily water intake. In fact, they often serve to dehydrate you more, and add to your sugar and calorie consumption.
Where to Go From Here
The best way to implement these strategies, is to add one principle in at a time. Pick a strategy above to focus on for one week and only after you’ve mastered it, go on to the next step. If you try to do all of these steps at once, you will probably fail.
Once you’ve improved your dinners, try tackling your breakfasts. Be patient with yourself, creating long-term, healthy habits isn’t easy. There is no race to healthy eating. Those who are more successful with changing their habits for life, build up their healthy eating habits slowly, over time.
To Sum it up…
Healthy eating can seem like an overwhelming objective. Just take a step back and keep things as simple as possible for yourself. Focus on improving one meal a day by using the five principles I’ve outlined above. Once you’ve improved one meal daily for at least two weeks, try another. My personal training clients who have successfully changed their eating behaviours for the long term, form one strong, healthy habit at a time. Please connect with me to learn more about healthy eating habits that have worked for my clients and myself.