How to start eating healthy - top tips

Lately, we all hear how we should eat healthily to live a long, high-quality life. It is not about managing weight anymore. No matter what goal you are pursuing with changing your eating habits, it is quite hard to start.

Here are some tips and tricks for you to change your diet forever:

1. Do not tag your food as "bad" or "good". Instead, be aware and consider the nutritional value of the food. Simply put: food is food, it gives us energy and nutrients. The difference is in what nutrients it will provide our body with. Thus eating healthy first of all stems from what we choose to fuel our body with. For example, 2,5 cups of watermelon and an Oreo cookie may have the same amount of calories, but they will not be equal in their nutritive values. While Oreo will bring high fructose syrup, 13 gr of sugar, and artificial ingredients, watermelon provides half of the sugar content, potassium, vitamin A, and magnesium, all of which are super important for our health, with an equal amount of calories. See, it is about what the food gives us. You might choose oreo or you might choose watermelon. But make sure you are aware of what you are consuming, and tend to make better choices.

2. Focus on REAL FOOD. This is a really easy shift that everyone can achieve. Choose real fruit instead of fruit chips, or dried fruit. When the fruit goes through the drying process, it is stripped away from fiber and water, leaving us with sugar. Thus, if you eat 100 gr of dried fruit, you will get hungry quickly, as your body will receive a quick blood sugar spike. Now, if you eat whole fruit, you will feel full for longer and the blood sugar will spike less, thanks to its fiber and water content. The same goes for all highly processed foods, they are simply stripped from the valuable macro and micronutrients during processing.

3. Instead of restricting, ADD new foods. It is a great opportunity to try new things, experiment with recipes, and find those that you will love! Integrating new foods into your diet will not only make it more interesting and tasteful but also will bring the diversity in the macro and micronutrients that you are receiving - great one all around!

4. When in the SUPERMARKET, make OUTER AISLES your PRIORITY. Most of the fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, and fish are usually located in the outer aisles of a grocery store. Thus, by hitting the perimeter, rather than the center, you can get all your whole foods covered.

5. Start slow. You do not have to "quit cold turkey". Instead, try to substitute less nutritious foods with healthful foods one at a time. Learn about nutrition during the process, and evaluate how you are feeling both physically and mentally. It is not a sprint, it is a life-long journey. It is an experience. Focus on getting in tune with your body, learning about nutrition, and implementing it into your sustainable lifestyle.

We hope that these tips and tricks will help you with your healthy eating journey!

If you would like to learn more about fitness and nutrition, do not forget to check out our blog posts: https://www.alyanafit.com/blog and subscribe to our YouTube channel to learn more about nutrition and fitness: https://www.youtube.com/@alyanafit

See you soon,