Eating well and fuelling your body: Where to start?
Want to eat healthier but don’t know where to start? Here are 5 tips to help you get the nutrients your body needs.
Want to eat healthier but don’t know where to start? Here are 5 tips to help you get the nutrients your body needs.
If you’re looking to improve your health, boosting your nutrition is a great place to start.
Making healthy food and drink choices on a regular basis can help you maintain and improve your overall health. You’ll also feel good too.
Making big changes to your diet can seem overwhelming. Instead of making major changes, try starting with a few smaller ones. You’ll be more likely to succeed. When you prove to yourself you can do something, this will boost your confidence and help you overcome obstacles.
Here are 5 tips for healthy eating:
1. Fill half your plate with vegetables and fruit at every meal and snack
Fibre, vitamins and minerals are essential to good health – and vegetables and fruits are full of them. Canada’s food guide recommends eating seven to 10 servings a day.
This includes fresh, frozen or canned vegetables and fruit. For canned vegetables, choose ones that have little to no added salt. If they do have salt, you can drain and rinse them to lower the amount of sodium. And for fruit, choose ones that have little to no added sugar.
Does eating seven to 10 servings of vegetables and fruits a day seems difficult? Try adding them to one or two of your meals a day, and over time, add more. Here are some ideas:
2. Eat enough protein
Proteins are the main building blocks of your body. They’re used to grow and repair cells in your muscles, tendons, skin and nails. Your body also uses proteins to make enzymes and hormones which carry out important body functions.
Most adults need around 0.8g of protein per kilo of body weight. However, this total depends on your age, sex, health status and activity levels.
If you’re looking to get more protein in your diet, here are some suggestions:
3. Choose whole-grains
Whole-grain cereals and foods can reduce the risk of developing diseases such as coronary heart disease, cancer and diabetes. When grains are refined (for example, to produce white flour), the bran and germ are usually removed. This strips the grain of important nutrients including B-vitamins, iron and fibre.
Try these tips to add more whole-grains to your meals and snacks:
4. Eat mindfully to fuel your body
Being mindful of your eating habits takes the concept of mindfulness (giving your full attention to your thoughts, emotions and physical sensations) and applies it to food. It involves having an awareness of what you are eating and why (how the foods help your body function well). It also involves:
5. Hydrate yourself
While water isn’t food, it is vital to our health. It plays an important role in many of our body’s functions including:
A common guideline is to drink eight glasses of water a day. But the reality is the amount of water you need varies from person to person.
If you’re working out a lot or sweating, for example, you should be drinking more water. How much water you need may also change depending on your health. If you have an infection or fever, or if you lose fluids through vomiting or diarrhea, you’ll need to drink more water.
Here are some tips to help you stay hydrated:
You'll know that you're drinking enough if:
Snacks with a combination of protein, fibre and healthy fats are a great way to help keep you full during the day. They can also help you increase your intake of nutrient-rich foods like vegetables and fruits.
Here are some nutritious snack ideas:
Remember, overhauling your diet all at once can be overwhelming and harder to do which can lead to feelings of self-doubt. Instead try to incorporate small changes bit by bit. By mastering small changes, you’ll gain confidence, and these little improvements will slowly become part of your lifestyle. Change is a process, not an event.
Looking for support? A registered dietitian can help.
Visit Sun Life Healthy you for ideas, tools and tips for developing healthy eating habits.
This article is meant to provide general information only. It’s not professional medical advice, or a substitute for that advice.