Last updated on June 18th, 2019
Eating a nourishing diet doesn’t have to be hard. Often people make a commitment to their health and do well for a few days or a couple of weeks, but then revert back to old, and generally, not-so-great habits. When you make a commitment like this, it’s important to be prepared with plenty of options so you can be flexible with your choices without compromising your health.
If you have food options at home that support your health, you are far less likely to eat the contents of the pantry in search of nourishment. Dedicate time at the beginning of each week to plan some healthy food choices for your coming week and make sure you have the right ingredients ready and available. Often people compromise their choices when they are hungry.
There will always be obstacles, another job you need to do or a reason why you need to pick up a snack/lunch on the run but if you are seriously committed to maintaining your health, you have to prioritise your nourishment needs. Here are a few habits you can introduce now. Remember that good things, consistently done, can produce extraordinary results.
Eat more vegetables
You can always eat more vegetables. In the rush of life, a few days can slip by where we might not have consumed enough vegetables. Establish some regular habits such as drinking a vegetable juice or green smoothie, adding a salad to your lunch, or ordering a side of vegetables when dining out. With habits like this, you’re able to amp up your vegetable intake while still juggling the many aspects of life.
Snack on nuts
Nuts are a wonderfully nourishing snack. Raw nuts are the best nutritionally as roasting tends to result in a reduction of some of the vitamins. Walnuts in particular contain a high content of long-chain plant fats that are extremely good for the heart and brain. Take some to work for morning or afternoon tea.
Eat at the table
Sitting down to eat, without distractions such as computers, mobile phones or the TV, helps to create healthy eating habits. It also means you’re less likely to overeat, as you’re able to focus on what you’re eating rather than getting distracted by your phone or what’s on the TV. If we’re distracted while eating we can miss the signs our body gives us to indicate it’s satisfied and doesn’t need more food.
Be mindful of your food-related language
If you tend to say to yourself that you ‘don’t have time’ to eat well, try changing that phrase to ‘eating well is just not a priority for me right now’ and see how
that feels. Notice if it leads you to change your food behaviours. Or perhaps you typically say to yourself that you ‘don’t know how to eat well’. If so, make this the year that you learn how to cook or the year that you learn new ways to better nourish yourself. There is nothing on the planet that replaces a great way of eating.
