When it comes to “eating healthy” there is a lot of noise out there on the internet. It can be hard to know what to believe. Rather than trying to “eating healthy” we think about how to eat for health instead. Read on to see our 7 health habits that will help get you on the right path and sign up for our free habit tracker to monitor your progress!
Find your way around:
Question: When is healthy eating important?
Answer: The simple answer is all the time. It is always easier to maintain your health through nutrition, in comparison to trying to regain health.
When you eat for health, this should be a daily activity. It should be a part of your lifestyle and something that puts you in the right Mindset, is Sustainable, Evidence-based, and allows for Habit formation.
If you go through burst of motivation in which you eat healthy for period to “get in shape” for the summer, holidays, a special event. Ask yourself, why don’t you want to be your best self all the time?
Mindset: Changing your relationship with food
Food is your fuel, and the old saying “You are what you eat” is true! On a regular basis, your body is being broken down and rebuilt. New cells are constantly being created and replacing old ones that have served their time. So what are your cells made from?
Now it’s okay to occasionally enjoy a special treat, but what the majority of your diet on a daily basis is what makes the difference. Many nutritionists and physicians in the past have recommended a 90/10 split, 90% being “healthy” foods and 10% being other. While some of us may strive for that 100% perfection, it isn’t always realistic.
If you think that “anything healthy doesn’t taste good,” then try to start simple, swapping out that candy bar for a freshly picked apple. Your taste buds may be over salted, used to high fat, and high sugar foods. As you start to remove processed foods from your diet and incorporate more whole foods this will shift. That fresh apple will being to taste sweeter over time as you adjust, and veggies will be more filling as you reduce the amount of added fat in your diet.
Question: Will eating healthy cause weight loss?
Answer: If you are used to eating high calorie foods, then yes, eating for health can cause weight loss. However, if you are underweight, eating for health can cause you to gain weight.
While one of the main reasons that people want to eat healthy is to loose those excess pounds, we really should be focusing on how we feel. Your body knows what a healthy weight is for you, so if you eat the right foods, it will gradually return to your natural weight.
Sustainable: Saying no to fads and yes to lifestyle
Instead of adopting a crazy extreme diet for 30 days that makes you feel deprived, why not try to add to what you already have? Today we will provide you with 7 eat for health habits that you can start adding today, without feeling like you need to remove the core of your basic diet. This will help you gradually create a lifestyle that you can sustain overtime and we will even provide a habit tracker to help you make sure of it!
A note on fad diets and weight loss: Most diets that seem “too good to be true” are often relying on one thing to make improvements: Calorie restriction.
This is a simple concept: Number of calories burned – Number of calories eaten = Negative calories -> Weight loss will occur. On the other hand, Number of calories burned – Number of calories eaten = Positive calories -> Weight gain will occur.
Based on the simple math, you don’t actually need to eat healthier in order to see results. Imagine that you normally cook for yourself at home and are eating 2600 calories a day. A diet could suggest two meals a day consisting of [Insert brand name] classic chicken sandwich and a small fry (720 calories per meal). Since this comes to a daily calorie total of 1440 calories you might actually see results. The reason this works is that you would have 1,160 calories a day less than your normal intake. In addition, if your average burn is 1810 calories, you would loose weight simply due to being negative by 370 calories.
Note: Want to figure out your daily calories burned? Check out the BMR calculator.
Now most people accept that eating fast food two meals a day for a month isn’t exactly “healthy”. So why do we buy into diet fads that use the same technique just in a less obvious way?
Question: Where to begin eating healthy?
Answer: Start by diversifying your diet. Eat more fruits and vegetables, add to this whole grains, nuts and seeds, fermented foods, and stay hydrated.
If you are ready to take the first step towards eating for health, but aren’t sure where to start you are in the right place! Here we provide you with 7 steps to improve your health through nutrition.
Evidence-Based: Nutrition backed by science instead of fluff
Online there are a lot of fad diets and bro science, and it is sometimes hard to separate the fact from the fiction. Here we have complied some of the top components to a healthy diet as established by reputable sources including: Harvard Health Nutrition Source, Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine, and NutritionFacts.org, just to name a few. This is the first introduction to how you can eat for health. These Level 1 changes that will focus more on adding to your existing diet than removing things from it.
- Fiber – Important nutrient only found in plants. Helps to promote regularity and may help lower your LDL cholesterol.
- Green leafy vegetables – Spinach, kale, arugula, or swiss chard. Contain nitric oxide that helps to dilate arteries and promote blood flow.
- Hydration: Water and tea can be great ways to help your system flush out waste. Be sure to alternate between the two, or stick with water.
- Fermented foods: These contain probiotics and insoluble fiber (food for the good gut bacteria) that can help to improve the health of your gut.
- Fruits and vegetables: Having raw fruits and vegetables between meals can help give you extra energy and help you feel full between meals. (You can’t have too many)
- Healthy fats: One avocado or an ounce of nuts/seeds provides you with omega-3s that are beneficial for brain health.
- Ending mealtime early: It takes between 1-2 hours for food to pass through your stomach. Allow time for your body to digest before bed and get more restful sleep.
Purchase your “Eat for Health” habit tracker!
Question: How are healthy eating habits developed?
Answer: Slowly overtime. Start small and gradually add on positive changes. Don’t focus on what your missing, but what you are gaining.
Start by seeing how many of these eat for health items you can do in a day. Don’t worry if it takes sometime to work your way up to completing all 7. What if any, items on this list do you already do on a daily basis? Maybe you already do a daily smoothie of spinach (1cup), a whole banana, blueberries (1/2 cup), flaxseed (1 tbsp), and soy/almond milk (1 cup). Or maybe you are great about hydrating well throughout the day.
Note: Take a moment to think about these positive habits that you already have! You are off to a great start.
If you don’t have any of these already in your daily routine, that is fine too. You are here and ready to get started. Now it the time to make a commitment to yourself, and work on improving your health through nutrition.
Habit formation: What gets measured gets managed!
For the next month we challenge you to take action! Track your Level 1 Eat for Health Habits everyday. To help you with this, you can get your free copy here. You will get a 4 week tracker checklist and a way to chart your progress. Let us know how you are doing throughout the month and let’s see how far you can get towards 7/7 habits in a day. Good luck! I’ll be doing it along with you.
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Join the conversation. Tweet us: @science_couple and use #eatforhealth to let us know your progress!
