Eating Healthy Today

Getting Healthy

What does it mean? Well, it really means so many different things to different people. It seems like the number of people seeking a healthier lifestyle, including some healthy recipes, increases with each passing year. Also, there are so many diets, like intermittent fasting, out there. And there always seems to be a new and better one. To increase the options (and perhaps confusion), there are a ton of cookbooks out there…both healthy cookbooks and not so much.

Whether you are on the bandwagon to eat healthier because you want to look better, feel better, or you simply want to find new ways to eat healthier, the info shared today should help you understand what eating healthy means so that you can create a plan that lasts when it comes to eating healthier.

Healthy Eating

Healthy eating is really what you want it to be. Many will start eating healthier by choosing new healthy meal plans such as clean eating or hop on the bandwagon of joining Weight Watchers. There’s ket and paleo, Nutrisystem and Jenny Craig. There’s Whole30 and who knows what else! It can really make you head spin, right? There are many programs out there to help guide you to understand what healthy eating means and how you can achieve success with this mission. Some work better than others, but it really depends on you as a person and how you want to live your life.

Personally, I’ve tried a ton of different things, and while they all worked, I always also seem to boomerang back at one point or another. I really wanted to change the way I was living in the least “artificial” way so that I can really stick with it forever. I have so far found much success and happiness with intermittent fasting and just plain eating better.

Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting, to me, is just eating less, but its also eating within an 8-hour window. The effect on that body is that in the 16 hours when you aren’t eating, your body is using what your body already has (including all that extra fat). It really does make a lot of sense and once you get over the hump, it’s easy to stick with. I started out not eating right when I woke up at 7 like I always did. I strung it out more and more each day, trying to push out the meal as long as possible.

When I started to get a better hold on my appetite, I started to drink more in lieu of a meal and really pushing the first meal out. While probably not “text book,” I started to have a bit of milk with my coffee and that really seemed to satisfy. The dairy and protein worked wonders. I’m at the point where I don’t really eat anything until 11AM or so.

When I do finally eat, I have a Squared 100 calorie protein bar (I also love Naked bars) and a spoonful of crunchy (love the nuts, natural peanut butter. Lick the spoon, please.

Healthy Snacking

Once you get over the initial shock of not eating junk foods, you really do lose the cravings. It’s like getting off a drug. Give yourself 3-5 days or so, and you will be a changed person. I promise you that. You will not crave the chips, soda, and candy bars like you do now or like you always think you will. It’s actually pretty amazing and liberating. You start to really think about how and what you are eating and your body almost pulls you towards better choices.

There are a ton of healthy recipes out there for both meals, but also for snacks! You’d be surprised. There are even healthy cookbooks out there just for snacking! If you’t not into that, just keep it simple. I snack on fruit and veggies, jerky, and cheese. I also love Greek-style yogurt and Icelandic-style Skyr. Both rich and satisfying, with a ton more protein than other yogurts. They also tend to have a lot less sugar, which is key!

Less Sugar

While there is always a new angel and a new devil in the world of nutrition, the current devil seems to be sugar. It makes a lot of sense. There’s just nothing really good about it and a lot that’s bad. The addiction aspect of it is the #1 problem. It really is like a drug, which is why so many things have sugar in them now that never really did. Please, read the ingredients and see for yourself. You can get breads with no sugar, and they are even better! Fresh and delicious and good for you. Same with everything else…less is more.

Drink More

This is so key. Drink more non-caloric drinks. Black coffee (or a little milk), water, flavored seltzer (so many delicious ones out there) and diet soda (yes, I love it…). Drink it up until you are satisfied. It will prevent you from overeating but it’s also something your body needs. Your mind has a hard time determining whether you need food or drink. More often than not, you actually need to drink but you think you need to eat. This is so important and it’s such a great way to take in less calories but also to keep your body healthy and hydrated. This is also a great thing for feeling good and being healthy!

Healthy Recipes

Make sure you scour the internet and any healthy cookbooks you can find to get the best healthy recipes that you can really stick to

Often eating healthy means you will only purchase products with ingredients that you can pronounce. You will throw away fake sugar products, you will opt to have more fresh fruit and vegetables within the home and you may even take on a new exercise routine. Eating healthy is a lifestyle versus a diet plan. You will need to be 100% on board with the full extent of changing those bad habits, feeling comfortable with learning how to fight cravings and in turn educating yourself on what foods are healthy versus what foods are now being offered to consumers that are bad for our bodies.

Healthy eating means eating more food that is closest to its natural state than not. No more processed food and no more added sugars. Eating healthy can happen to anyone, it’s a matter of making the commitment to change and finding educational websites to guide you forward with this mission.

Feel Better

Eating healthier will help boost your mood, increase overall energy and in turn make you a happier person. When you opt to eat healthier, it means that you will no longer consume fake food. You will need to learn how to read nutrition labels, understand food ingredients and learn to switch your whole lifestyle to a healthier one.

Grab those healthy cookbooks, try new ways of eating like intermittent fasting, and see what works the best for you and your lifestyle! You will feel like a new person and wonder why it took you so long to get it together! Once you find something that clicks, believe me, I know what I’m talking about.

Best of luck on your journey! I hope it’s a successful one. Let me know how it all turns out!! I’d love to hear all about it.