For many, starting the New Year off right means revamping eating habits. The problem is, many people don't know where to start when it comes to eating right. The answer is, anywhere you want!
It does not matter if you want to first make changes to breakfast or to snacks in between meals. The best thing you can do is commit to make the right changes and improve your health.
And, remember, the more positive changes you make, the better. So, simply deciding to change your breakfast cereal to one with more whole grains is great, but committing to consuming less refined grains all day is better. Like I wrote in last week's column, try to create specific New Year's resolutions. The more you focus on specific ideas, the better the chance you'll be successful.
Here are a few ideas to change unhealthy behaviors into healthy ones.
n Avoid overeating high calorie candy from the candy jar at the office. If you struggle with temptations from the chocolate candies that are always lurking around, come up with a plan to avoid them. For instance, take a different route so you walk by the jar less frequently. Or, offer to bring in something more nutritious for the jar (i.e. naturally flavored hard candy instead of artificially flavored chocolate).
The best bet would be to pack yourself nutritious snacks like fruit to satisfy your hunger in between meals and then work on addressing your behaviors and temptations.
• Avoid grazing on food and drinks at home. Assess if you like to open the fridge to see what's inside and then have a taste or two of things that look good. Same goes for the pantry. Instead, stay out of the kitchen in between meals to avoid temptation.
• Eat breakfast. If you tend to skip breakfast … don't. It is important to get you going for the day. It is intended to "break the fast" from overnight and get your metabolism going. If you skip it to lose weight, you will likely not be successful.
• Get moving … or move more. Exercise is essential to health — no matter what you weigh. Keep your heart and other body parts healthy with regular movement, be it walking, jogging, yoga, etc. — it all helps.
• Eat more whole, organic and natural foods. Less processed foods are generally more healthful. Shop the perimeter of the grocery store for fruits, vegetables, lean meat and fish, lowfat dairy products and fresh breads or grains. Choose boxed meals, sodas and chips less frequently.
• Stay hydrated. Choose water (still or sparkling), diluted juices, lowfat dairy (or dairy alternatives like soy milk) and unsweet decaf or low caffeine teas. Try choosing hot tea instead of coffee sometimes — especially green, white or red teas.
• Read encouraging/motivational tips, rather than discouraging ones. Take a look at the magazines you read — are there enough positive ones? Do you regularly read the Health section of the paper? You should. With enough encouragement, it makes positive changes a lot easier.
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