Sneaking in a Healthy Diet

There are many ways to involve healthy, vitamin-rich foods in your diet without torturing your tastebuds. By adding coconut oil to a recipe in place of butter, you can knock off tons of fat and calories. By using ground cauliflower to make tortilla shells or pizza crust instead of flour, you can eliminate a large amount of carbs and calories from your meal. Eating healthy doesn’t always have to be expensive, either! Taking small steps to improve your body’s health can encourage you to take larger steps in the future to better your life, such as later developing a daily workout routine or changing your diet as a whole (gluten free, vegetarian, etc.). Starting easy helps you stick to a healthy decision and can give you a positive mindset and really kickstart your way to a healthy life.

If you are anti-veggie and think vegetables are completely impossible to eat, there are ways to make in nearly unnoticeable that you are even eating them. Instead of eating a bowl of ice cream to satisfy your sweet-tooth, microwave a sweet potato and add butter and a dash of brown sugar and cinnamon. This is a great way to get vitamins and minerals without struggling to eat them. Another easy way to eat vegetables is to treat them like homemade mozzarella sticks. Slice up the vegetable you hate the least, such as zucchini, or purchase a bundle of green beans. Coat the veggies in egg wash, bread crumbs, and sprinkle them with Parmesan cheese. Bake the veggies, and enjoy them dunked in your favorite dipping sauce. Marinara is always a hit! A quick internet search for vegetable recipes can open a new window for your nutrition. Adding spices and flavors to veggies can really change the whole game.

Snacking is something we all do very frequently, whether we want to admit it or not. What do you normally grab from the pantry? A poptart? More often than not, eating a poptart does not fill you up, so you take a peek in the fridge for snack time, part two. Maybe this time you grab nacho Lunchable. Think about it…what nutritional value comes from any of that? It does taste good, no doubt, but it does not do anything good for your body. Rewinding to part one, if you chose to grab a pouch of nut and berry trail mix and pair it with a Greek yogurt from the fridge, you have a dynamic duo! Not only will those snacks fill you up, they will give you energy from the vitamins and minerals they provide. The saying “you are what you eat” makes perfect sense because your body and the way you feel are a direct reflection of the food you consume. Fuel your body with the good stuff, and it will thank you later. Picking healthy snacks is a daily habit to get into.

Altogether, eating healthy does not have to be a hardcore dedication. Even small adjustments make changes. Try ordering a little healthier during your next family dinner at Chili’s, or asking your parents if you can have salad with your dinner rather than buttery corn. Healthy alternatives do not have to be painful! Take advantage of all of the recipes we have access to, special menus at restaurants, and your ability to choose what you eat every day. Every choice you make diet-wise really does impact your body immensely, remember that.