Most of us want a healthy mind and body, but are we ready to make it our top priority to follow nutrition guidelines to achieve them? It should be everybody’s priority, but it’s not. Regardless of how good or otherwise our education about healthy eating was as children, when we become adults, our diet and eating habits often change for the worse. Fast food outlets, drive-throughs, and no time left in our day make it more challenging to follow a healthy diet.
As unhealthy foods continue to flourish, so do chronic ‘lifestyle’ diseases. To prevent illness and live a long and healthy life, you must develop better health habits.
Valuable Nutrition Guidelines for Improved Health
If you want a healthy lifestyle to prevent disease, maintain your ideal weight, or lose some excess weight, there are essential dietary tips you need to follow, which are backed up by research. The following are just a few:
Create Better Eating Habits
To be more successful in improving your eating habits, take gradual steps instead of drastically changing your diet. If you don’t, it will only lead to cheating or quitting. Start by slowly incorporating more fresh ingredients, such as colorful fruits and vegetables into your meals daily because they are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.
They also promote gut health, which is vitally important. Be committed and consistent in adding nutrient-rich foods to your meals. It’s essential to improve your eating habits if you already have any health-related issues, such as kidney and heart disease, that can worsen from unhealthy eating.
Use Moderation
Eating is necessary, but you must eat intelligently. Healthy nutrition means a balanced diet and moderate eating. You cannot achieve a balanced diet if you eat and drink excessively. If you are eating more than your body needs, you are doing damage to your health.
Consume a balanced nutritious diet rich in complex carbohydrates, fat, fiber, minerals, protein, and vitamins. If you are adhering to healthy lifestyle principles, occasional indulgences are OK. If you love consuming salty, sweet, or other unhealthy meals, snacks, or drinks, consume small portions only and only sometimes! Too much of anything is harmful to your health and well-being.
Be Mindful of Portion Sizes – Self-control Is Key
You can manage your diet and weight better if you are mindful of the amount of food you consume. If you want to lose excess weight and dine at home, use smaller plates so you only have small servings.
If you are dining out, choose a starter or entrée on a small plate as your primary, or order small-sized main courses. If you are served up a huge meal, be mindful and don’t eat it all.
Track What You Eat
Jot down in a food diary what you consume daily. It can help you determine what to eat, more or less concerning nutritional content. You can also get help from a dietician or nutritionist for a personalized diet plan. They will advise what you should eat more or less of, especially if you have an existing health condition.
Follow Mindful Eating
Healthy nutrition is about what you should eat and how you prepare and eat. Think of your food as essential nourishment for your body. Instead of frying foods, it’s healthier to bake, broil, or grill. Be sensitive to your body’s signals. Are you hungry or just thirsty? Also, watch for your satiety cues.
While dining, enjoy chewing and savoring your food slowly. Put down your fork and knife between bites. Don’t pre-load your fork while chewing; be ready to thrust more food into your mouth. Don’t eat while watching tv or using your mobile phone because you are likely to overeat. You can’t be mindful of what and how you eat in these situations.
Avoid Erratic Mealtimes
Don’t skip having a nutritious breakfast. Avoid eating or drinking late at night. Eat more at lunchtime rather than at dinnertime to give your body time to digest everything better before you sleep.
Timing your meals and snacks right, such as 45 minutes after exercising, can reduce fat gain. Also, you can try intermittent fasting to improve your health and allow your body to process any food eaten.
Drink Plenty of Water
Staying hydrated daily helps flush toxins and waste products from your body. Dehydration causes headaches, low energy, and tiredness. So, drink plenty of water. Avoid energy drinks, soda, fruit juice, instant coffee, sweetened milk, and iced tea.
You can improve your health and fitness if you follow the above steps. Nourishing your body through healthy nutrition is the main ingredient for better health and the one you should have the most control over.