You can’t control everything in your life, but you CAN control what you put in your body. Every time you eat is another opportunity to nourish your body, not punish it!
Here are 8 ways I changed my bad eating habits into healthy ones:
1. ADD A SERVING OF VEGGIES TO AT LEAST ONE MEAL PER DAY
Are you a picky eater? So am I! Or, I was. Vegetables were one thing I did not eat very much of but knew had to be in my diet most. I use a colored portion container system for my meals, and for my custom meal plan, I am allotted 4 container servings of veggies. If I end up hungry still at the end of a meal, it’s always veggies most!
But how do you add veggies to your diet when you don’t like the taste of them? BINGO...over here! Before my health journey began, the only veggies I ate were peas and baked beans, and I’m pretty sure the latter isn’t even really a vegetable.
So I started off by adding seasonings and some shredded cheese to my veggies. Of course, putting cheese on top of all of my veggies isn’t the ideal thing but it was better than having no veggies at all! I slowly started to add less and less toppings and my pallet slowly got used to the taste of veggies. Now I eat most vegetables with nothing on them at all except a little pepper. Your taste buds CAN change.
Here are a few other easy and delicious ways to add veggies to your diet:
- Add beans or pureed veggies to your favorite soup recipe, or sweet potato chunks to a batch of turkey chili.
- Find yourself some dehydrated veggies. You can toss them in soup, casseroles, or almost anything else you whip up but you’ll never know it was in there.
- Mix your veggies with your meal, such as with your rice.
- Start off slow and be patient.
2. MAKE BREAKFAST AHEAD OF TIME
Do you skip breakfast because you don’t know what to make, don’t have time, or really just don’t feel like it? I usually don’t have the momentum in the AM to make breakfast so I like making it ahead of time (one day of prep = a week of healthy meals). Breakfast is super important and it’s something I won’t let myself skip out on.
Here are some easy make-ahead ideas:
- Egg cups (so many varieties you can make!)
- Overnight oats
- Baked oatmeal
- Muffins
- Mason Jar Parfaits
3. DRINK MORE WATER
When you’re hydrated, you’re going to see a difference in how you feel, look, and perform. But no one said this would be easy but again, your pallet will change over time and there are ways to ease into consuming more fluids.
Start by drinking a glass of water for every non-water beverage you consume. Adding slices of fruit, cucumber, mint, or unsweetened carbonated water are great ways to freshen up the taste of your water.
TIP - you don’t necessarily have to DRINK your water! You can also eat fluid-rich fruits and veggies like watermelon, lettuce, pineapple, or oranges.
You should be drinking half of your weight in ounces of water each day. So if you weigh 160 pounds, you should be consuming 80 ounces of water each day.
4. LEARN WHAT A SERVING OF EACH TYPE OF FOOD SHOULD BE
I was an emotional and over-eater, a sugar addict, and I let food be the boss of me. Now I use a portion fix container system to help me easily portion out my meals. It’s customizable to you and easy to follow. I never have to worry if I’m over or under eating and I feel like I actually have control of my food now.
I also use a series of strategies to help me coexist with food in real-world situations (like restaurants, out with friends, weddings), satisfy my cravings, and anticipate setbacks before they happen.
5. DRINK (or eat!) YOUR SUPERFOODS
Superfood shakes are great to blend up for a healthy snack any time of the day and is your daily dose of nutrition. Not only does it contain proteins, fiber, antioxidants, phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals, adaptogens, prebiotics, probiotics, AND digestive enzymes -- it also helps you lose weight, reduce junk food cravings, gives you healthy energy, and supports your digestion and regularity. Yes, I get all of that from one delicious chocolate shake every day. I also add in spinach, fruits, peanut butter, and more. My superfood recipes are endless! (PS - it comes in more than just chocolate)
6. CUT DOWN ON ADDED SUGAR
This was something I needed to bring to my own attention by looking at nutrition labels. Sugars that naturally occur in foods, like fruits, are healthy. It’s the sugars (usually FAKE) added to your soft drink, fruit drink, sweetened coffee/tea, energy drink, alcoholic beverage, and flavored water. They also occur in snacks and sweets like ice cream, cookies, donuts, and pies.
But don’t cut all sweets out of your diet! Not all brands have added or fake sugar. Make sure to check your labels and find the good, natural food companies you can still enjoy.
7. EAT MINDFULLY
Do you have a habit of eating breakfast at home, then grabbing a bagel or donut from the staff lounge an hour later? Or snacking while watching tv? Habits, clocks, emotions, breaks, social gathering...these all can prompt us to eat when we aren’t even hungry!
If you’re not hungry enough to eat an apple, you’re not really hungry...you’re just bored.
If you find yourself mindlessly eating throughout the day, try these tips before you eat:
- Mentally take note of your food triggers and habits. Making yourself aware of your physical hunger is a big step towards becoming a mindful eater.
- Drink a glass of water before each meal.
- Track your food and beverages daily
- Make a list of alternatives. If you feel yourself gravitating towards more food, go outside or call a friend to keep yourself busy.
8. SNACK SMART
One thing that changed my bad snack habits was having healthy ones ready to go. I make bad choices when I don’t already have a healthy snack readily available. I usually have 2-4 snacks per day. Prep once and eat healthy all week long!
An ideal healthy snack containers fiber, protein, and fat to help keep you satisfied in between meals. Plus, a higher protein diet may help you to lose weight. Research shows that your body burns more calories digesting protein than fat or carbs.
Here are some protein based foods:
- Eggs
- Almonds/Peanuts
- Oats
- Chicken breast
- Cottage cheese
- Greek yogurt
- Broccoli
- Lean Beef
- Tuna
- Quinoa
- Shrimp/Fish
“When you start eating food without labels, you no longer need to count calories” - Food Matters
THE BOTTOM LINE
The way you are currently eating does not have to be permanent. I completely changed my unhealthy eating habits to healthy ones with these tips, some great recipes, and motivation to change my ways. Eat good, feel good!
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