In today’s society, fast food is more common than healthy options for a meal.  Portion sizes are out of control.  Finding food that doesn’t contain bleached flour, artificial colors, and preservatives can be a real challenge for both your wallet and your time.  Fortunately, you can improve your overall nutrition without feeling as though you’ve been deprived along the way.

It doesn’t do you any good to say that you want to “eat healthier” if you have no idea what that means.  Do some research.  Learn what a food pyramid really looks like.  Read articles by certified nutritionists and learn what real food can do for your body.  Then, set clear, specific goals.  For example, try, “I want to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables per day,” or, “I want to increase the amount of water I’m drinking every day to a minimum of 64 ounces.”

Notice that in both of those examples, the statements are positive, not negative.  This is because negative examples tend to cause you to focus on the things that you can’t have, rather than on the changes that you’re trying to make.  For example, if you say, “I want to eat less sugar,” the only thing you’ll be able to think about is that box of cookies in the cabinet or the cake sitting on the counter.  On the other hand, reminding yourself that you need to eat another serving of fruit will help you make a healthy choice when you walk into the kitchen.  If you’ve already filled your stomach with healthy foods, you’ll be less likely

to give in to temptation and reach for the unhealthy ones.

There’s a reason why “diets” never seem to work.  They’re temporary “fast fixes.”  Not only that, they’re generally fixes that deprive you of things that you really want on a temporary basis, making it that much more likely that when the restriction is lifted, you’ll dive face first into the foods that you love the most.  Instead of making drastic changes all at once, consider easing into it.  Start by setting out your end goals, then break them down into manageable pieces.  For example, you might start by replacing all the white flour items in your home–white bread, white pasta, and so on–with whole wheat flour.  Trying to cut down on sugar?  Drink more water in your day, replacing one soda per day with a glass of water until you’ve kicked the habit.  Small, simple changes over time can add up to big lifestyle changes, but making them gradually will help you feel less like you’re giving something up and more like you’re making changes that you can live with.

When you walk into the kitchen looking for a pre-dinner or post-workout snack, you’re going to reach for the items that are easiest to grab.  If there are chips in the cabinet when you need a quick snack and all the healthy items in the kitchen have to be prepared, you’re going to find yourself munching on the chips “just this once” or “because you’re in a hurry.”  Fill your cabinets with healthy snacks.  Not only that, make it harder to get to those unhealthy options.  Instead of leaving them at the front of the cabinet, where they’re easy to grab as you walk by, tuck them in the back.  Even better, consider storing them in an out-of-the-way cabinet that you wouldn’t normally visit.

While you probably don’t have time to make everything from scratch, there are plenty of things that you can make on your own to improve your nutritional content and decrease the amount of chemicals in your food.  For example, if you make a smoothie yourself from plain Greek yogurt instead of grabbing a pre-made pouch, you can use honey or agave instead of sugar; add only real fruits; and avoid artificial colouring used in many commercially produced smoothie packs.  Baking?  Choose unbleached flour, and make your mixes yourself instead of reaching for the boxed mixes on the shelf.  You’ll get fresher ingredients, fewer chemicals, and a better flavour.

Cooking from scratch doesn’t have to be time-consuming.  Once you get used to it, you can have a quick, easy meal thrown together in no more time than it would have taken you to use those boxed mixes.

 It’s the hurried, rushed moments you didn’t plan for that will, over time, take the greatest toll on your new, healthier habits.  The late night at the office, when you didn’t have time to cook, will have you pulling up outside your favorite fast food restaurant.  Running late getting out the door in the morning will either have you skipping breakfast altogether or grabbing a doughnut from the ever-present stash in the staff room.  Waking up too late to pack a lunch will have you heading out for a meal that will use up your entire calorie count for the day.

Instead of falling into these traps, plan ahead.  When you know you could be caught at work late, toss a meal in your slow cooker before you leave in the morning.  Even better, have a stash of healthy casseroles in the freezer for those nights when you’re unexpectedly late.  If you’re frequently running behind in the morning, pack your lunch the night before and make sure that you have plenty of fast, healthy breakfast options on hand.  Keep healthy snack foods around you so that you have plenty of options to choose from.  Eating healthy is a lifestyle choice, and the easiest way to abide by it is to prepare ahead so you know that you won’t be caught short.

Looking for more information on getting healthy and improving the nutritional content of your food?  Contact us to see what we can do for you.