Margaret Mead had rightly said, “It is easier to change a man’s religion than to change his diet.” For most of us, changing unhealthy eating habits is a Herculean task. That is something we are going to discuss today in this guide How to start eating healthy without giving up the food you love.
So, what do you mean by eating healthy?
Depending on whom you ask, “healthy eating” may take any number of forms. It seems that everyone, including healthcare professionals, wellness influencers, coworkers, and family members, has an opinion on the healthiest way to eat.
Plus, nutrition articles that you read online can be downright confusing with their contradictory — and often unfounded — suggestions and rules.
This doesn’t make it easy if you simply want to eat in a healthy way that works for you.
The truth is, healthy eating doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s entirely possible to nourish your body while enjoying the foods you love.
After all, food is meant to be enjoyed — not feared, counted, weighed, and tracked.
This article cuts through the noise to explain what healthy eating means and how to make it work for you.
To solve a problem, when we go deep into the root cause, the solution becomes much easier to find and also very effective. Hence, in this case, too we will first see what stops you from following a healthy diet and what are the obstacles in your path of healthy eating. So let’s begin with the Science of Eating Healthy.
I. Science of Healthy Eating.
Imagine on one side you have a chocolate chip cookie and on the other side, there’s spinach and some other greens. The cookie contains fats and calories but is delicious whereas the spinach is low calories and nutritious, but it doesn’t taste that good. What would you choose? If you are like most people, you will obviously go for the cookie. I mean who doesn’t want to treat their taste buds! Well, most of you will know for sure that spinach is a good choice and healthy, but it will be tough to resist that cookie.
This brings us to the question: why is self-control for some foods so difficult and why do some people have good self-control whereas others don’t!
Now we all are fairly aware of all the good things that eating healthy food has. If we ask a dietitian or a nutritionist we get the same answers over and over again. We know that healthy food is good for our health, boosts our energy, helps in weight loss, cardiac diseases, and overall health of our body. So if all these good things come with eating healthy, why is it so difficult to choose?
To know exactly why we need to jump to the part where we know what cravings are and especially why we crave junk food and how our mind works around it.
1.1. Why do we crave junk food?
Well, you are not the only person who finds junk food irresistible! Burgers, pizza, chips, chocolate, ice cream say whatever. You say you’ll have just a bit but end up eating the whole of it. We have all done it, Don’t deny it! Have you given a thought as to why this junk food tastes so good but yet is so unhealthy for you? How can a small pizza hijack your brain to eat all those bad calories and fats!
Even though you know it’s not good, still you cannot resist it. Scientists have been trying to figure out why junk food has so much power over us. According to a study, junk food is usually packed with a lot of fat and carbs. Your brain gets more active when these are combined in a snack. Junk food literally hacks your brain.
Our body requires energy. So if you know, our ancestors, like pretty old ones, survived on fruits, berries, and leaves. When the fire was discovered, cooked meat became a part of their diet. This in turn gave more energy to their body. Hence, slowly it became visible that when fat and carbs were combined, our brain reacts differently, similar to the pleasure we get when we feel loved!
So now you know why that midday chocolate bar makes you feel like a hulk! It’s all on the brain.
1.2. How food scientists create cravings.
The world is all about advertisement and profit. Food companies compete to give you the best taste and also to create the best advertisement which will amuse your eyes and in this case your stomach too! It’s all a race, isn’t it!
Food companies literally pay handsome amounts just to make sure that those chips have a perfect crunch! Or the soda you drink has the perfect fizz and tangy taste. They play with our sensory organs very well so that you get those cravings and dive right into those bags of chips.
A perfect combination of salt, sugar, and fat gives pleasure to our brains. Imagine your job is to just sit and taste a hundred different flavors of ice cream and get paid a huge amount! All this is just to make sure that you grab that item and fall in love with it.
Before the discovery of agriculture, not much was known. Our ancestors used to eat whatever was available first handedly. Then came agriculture where we humans experimented and fused in different components such as fat, carbs, and other essential elements. Taste developed and our brain started to demand more.
So now food companies create the best item and also advertise it in a way that you get carried out by the colors, the packaging, and the presentation of the food itself. And once you taste it, there’s no going back.
II. How to make Healthy Eating Easier.
When we use the word easier we often think about a certain plan of action to follow, the motivation behind it, and how you can get that motivation. But it’s not always as such. Sometimes you need to play smart than work hard.
When you ask for someone’s advice on how to lose weight or eat healthily, you’ll probably get the same responses much more frequently.
“Eat less”, “Eat more real than junk”, “Try to be more organic” and so on. I mean really! Do you actually need to remind yourself to eat more vegetables and fruits! Not so. Because the problem lies with not overeating more junk food, but sometimes eating more food itself! Hey, it doesn’t mean I’m promoting junk! My point here is, you can still eat a burger or pizza once a month just to treat your taste buds.
Obviously, junk food is a big NO, but imagine you eat lots and lots of veggies and say oh man, why isn’t my weight coming down yet! Oh hello! This is overeating. All foods have certain limits.
This brings us to another important topic, the environment.
2.1. The Importance of Environment for Healthy Eating.
Everything we do, the environment around us plays a great deal in it. Take an example of a baby. As the infant grows, he/she will adapt to the environment it has been raised in. If you keep speaking in a certain language with your child, it will grasp that language and follow around you. Your teachings, values, etc. develop a child. The same goes for eating habits too.
In today’s busy world, unfortunately, we don’t have time to cook a meal and hence the canned foods and storage have taken over the world. Instant 2 minutes noodles and canned tuna are dominating. In our busy lives, we have forgotten what healthy food looks like. Remember, we eat what we are surrounded with.
The main key here is to plan certain things. For instance, when you go grocery shopping, make a list of essential items first. Jot down things that you enjoy eating and which are nutritious. By doing this, you will avoid making unnecessary things. Also, take a look at your fridge. Don’t store items that are unhealthy, so that automatically when you are hungry and open the fridge you will reach out to healthy items only.
2.2. How to Eat Smart.
Listed below are some useful tips on how you can change the way you eat so that the right amount of food goes into your diet and you benefit fully from it.
- Using smaller plates/dishes:
Probably the best solution to start with, using smaller plates actually works wonders. At first, you may not feel like it is working or you may not understand the working behind it. But believe it or not, this is the best thing you can start from.
Now, this is totally a brain trick. You might say that it’s not a big deal! I’ll just take a large plate and pour a small portion into it. But it’s not so. If you do that your brain will trick you to eat more since it will not be fulfilling and you will remain unsatisfied.
But at the same time, if you use smaller plates, your mind will signal you to feel satisfied in the same amount. A study conducted shows that, just by changing the plate, you will have good control over your eating within a year.
- Using contrast color plates:
When we use the same color plates, our brain cannot distinguish between the food and the plate. Hence you tend to pour more. But if you switch your plates with contrast, you naturally stop yourself from taking more food on your plate. Don’t confuse that poor brain!
- Use tall glasses for drinks:
If you take a look at the image above, which line do you think is longer? Oh to your surprise, they both are the same! This is exactly how your brain tricks you. Our brain has a tendency to overestimate vertical lines. Hence, taller drinks look more fascinating to your eyes and you tend to drink less as compared to short mugs. You will drink 20% less from a taller glass than you would from a small one.
- The storage technique:
While arranging your grocery or jars filled with snacks, keep the unhealthy ones or the more junk ones to the end and the healthy jars right to the front. It’s basically arranging students for a singing choir. The good singers go straight upfront while the average ones at the back. By doing this you will feel more attracted to foods that you often see in front of you and also while in a hurry you will just grab those jars and not keep searching for the junk.
- Using big jars and attractive jars:
Big things are noticed obviously first than the smaller ones. Hence, storing healthy food items in a large container can catch your eye quickly and so it will remind you of eating healthy. Another good technique is to use attractive containers and jars to store healthy food. Your eyes like to see something pleasant and colorful, dull jars will automatically push you away from eating anything inside them.
2.3. What should I skip and what should I eat?
To be very honest, there’s really no need to tell you what is a good and bad diet. You must be all aware of it. But as mentioned earlier, let’s just get into this real quick.
The basic greens: there is no single diet plan anywhere that tells you to avoid greens. Veggies are the most primary and vital thing one should have in their diet. Even if you are a staunch non-vegetarian, make sure you have at least one green dish in your diet every day, and feel the difference as this is done. So better eat your greens people!
Feel free to try new food and always make sure you have a variety: imagine eating bitter gourd everyday! The thought itself is horrifying, isn’t it! When you plan to eat healthily, it does not mean you have to eat only greens 2 times a day for entire sessions. You can try adding different spices and flavors to that dish and create something new. Also, make sure to include at least 2 different items in a meal so that your brain won’t squeeze you out and make you bored.
Control your sugar and salt intake: while we know that we need to avoid fat and bad calories, sometimes people overlook the amount of sugar and salt intake that they have. Traditionally we think diet means just getting rid of junk food and food that contains fat. But that’s where you go wrong. If you control fat but keep supplying loads of sugar and salt to the body there won’t be much change.
Water is basically the boss: without water your diet is incomplete. Even if you eat healthily, but say no to water, you are at a great loss. You need water to flush out all the toxic waste out from your body. Hence if you drink enough water in a day, your internal body will stay fit and clean, but if you don’t! You very well know what then!
III. How to Stick To Healthy Eating Habits.
“I’m strong, I can do it easily.” Many people say this before starting a diet plan. Some succeed, some don’t. As mentioned earlier, eating healthy is not as simple and easy as it may look. When you go through articles that provide you with a diet plan, it looks like a left-hand game. But once you start, within a week you realize how difficult it is to be on track.
Hence, here are a few pointers that will guide you to have a healthy diet by improving your eating habits.
3.1. How to say NO to Temptation.
The biggest challenge is saying NO. You have a box filled with sweets lying just in front of you, for yourself alone. No sane person will not have at least a bite from it. I’ll have 2 bites I say!
Our brain just cannot handle temptations easily. These naughty creatures will make you fall for it. But still, you can start by practicing. No person is perfect, but as the saying goes, practice makes man perfect or near to perfect. Hence, start.
Instead of saying ‘no, I cannot eat that, try replacing it with ‘I don’t eat that. Can’t and Don’t make a difference, slowly but surely.
3.2. Healthy Tips from the Experts.
When it comes to eating healthy, everything needs to be in place. You should learn the basics as well as some advanced. Listed below are some tips which will help you figure out a plan and help you eat in a healthy way.
Always have a meal plan– by doing so you will not get carried away by unnecessary food items. If you don’t have a meal planned, you will end up cooking something unhealthy such as quick canned food or instant noodles, etc.
A home-cooked meal can never go wrong– try to eat as much home-cooked food as possible. When you cook for yourself you can avoid unhealthy ingredients and can easily replace it with some proteins, fibers, etc.
Try out fancy names for your food plan– such as Meatless Monday and so on. This will help you remember what you are supposed to eat and will also keep your boredom at bay.
Use the small meals technique– you often have 3 meals in a day with snacks in between. Try to keep this up. Eating 3 meals and snacks in between will help you stay full and if you skip some meals or snacks, your brain will trigger you to eat more. When you wait for too long, you might end up making unhealthy food choices.
Drink plenty of water– this is by far the most basic. Drinking water before a meal actually helps you in your intake of food. If you drink water before a meal, your stomach will already occupy space and hence automatically you will not overeat anything.
Go to snacks are a must– when you are traveling or say somewhere out, always keep small healthy go-to snacks in your bag.
The habit of reading the ingredients– make this a habit. Read the ingredients list and instructions on any food item before you place it in your shopping cart. Avoid an unhealthy list of ingredients.
IV. What Does a Healthy Diet Look Like? Lets See….
The very common question when one speaks about a healthy diet is, ‘what exactly does a healthy diet contain’? Here are some things that will help you plan your healthy diet.
4.1. Nutrients you need to start including in your diet chart.
We often get confused as to which nutrients are to be included in our diet and to what percent. Hence, I’ve made an effort to make your worry go away by listing some basic nutrients that your body needs.
Fiber– It is one of the main components your body needs. Adequate fiber in your body has proven to reduce chronic illness and helps in good digestion. Your body should have a daily intake of 25–38% fiber.
Calcium– your body needs calcium in order to keep your bones strong. The heart, muscles, and nerves need calcium too. Approx. 2000 mg of calcium is needed.
Vitamin D– many people think calcium is enough for the bones. But vitamin D plays a vital role too. It absorbs calcium from the food.
Iron– probably the basic thing you’ve heard of is iron. It plays a vital role in the transportation of oxygen to the cells. If your body lacks iron, the level of hemoglobin decrease and in turn causes anemia. You need 8.7mg per day if you are a male and 14.8 mg per day if you are a female.
Some other important nutrients are potassium and magnesium – they both support the smooth functioning of muscles and nerves and also contribute a check to blood pressure.
4.2. Food that you need to start including in your diet plan.
Let’s have a quick look at some things that you should follow in order to have a balanced diet.
Eat loads of fruits and vegetables– dark-colored green friends, yeap go green.
Choose whole-grain foods– made by using entire grain so that you don’t miss on any fiber and protein.
Proteins are a must– eggs, fish, chicken, low-fat yogurt, etc., you know them well.
Limit ultra-processed foods– basically junk food in which original nutrition sources are removed and replaced with sugar and salt.
Water the boss– over and over again.
V. How to Get the Best Out of Every Food You Eat.
Every food has some or the other benefits in it. Some give us Vitamins, while some Proteins etc. But sometimes we unknowingly take the good things out of the food and eat just nothing but the item itself without any benefits.
5.1. Tips for storing and preparing food.
1. Store dry food in a cool and dry place.
2. Most foods when properly stored in a refrigerator stay in good health.
3. Eggs can easily stay for 3-4 weeks.
4. There’s a myth that when you microwave your food, the nutrients are lost. It’s not so. It is safe to microwave your food.
5. When you wash the fruits and veggies, do not soak them in water. Just run some tap water and you are good to go. Over washing will lead the nutrients to drain away from them.
6. Skins of fruits and veggies are a rich source of nutrients. So if you can try not to peel off the skin of those fruits which can be reality eaten with the skin on.
5.2. How to create healthy meals at home.
Now that you have stocked up all the healthy ingredients in your racks and fridge, let’s see how you can make the best use of them and create something deliciously healthy.
Salads are lifesavers– salads are one among the top food items which provide all the main nutrients at once and are also delicious. There are various salad styles to choose from. Easy to make, and loaded with nutrients, they surely are your best friends.
Turning leftovers into makeovers– sometimes we cook more than needed. Accidentally or purposely, both can be used again to create dishes and the food will not be wasted too. If you cook more chicken, keep it for tomorrow’s pasta as well. The leftover fish can be stuffed in a tortilla and enjoyed to the fullest
One-dish meals– .also known as sizzlers! Here your plate contains all at once. Some rice, some grilled chicken, soup, stew, carrots, and other veggies. This looks presentable and exciting to eat as well.
Do not throw away the extras– sometimes we cut deep through a particular food item. Say you have celery and you cut the edges far deeper than it needs to. Stop wasting it. The edges also contain nutrition’s and can be used. Toss them over your soup or in a salad.
Conclusion: How to start eating healthy
So I tried to include all the important things one needs to know about eating healthy. As mentioned earlier, it is not always as easy as it looks, but if you start at once, you’ll get there eventually. Also, we humans are all different from one another. What may work easily for me will take a bit of time to work for you. Hence, consistency is the key and patience is the second one. Try to first figure out what you are doing wrong and think about ways that you can make it right by following this article. Start at once so that you won’t regret later. Start small and proceed further. There’s no compulsion for you to take it at once.
I hope this article will benefit you in the best way possible and bring a good change in your life.
FAQ.
1.What is a Healthy Diet?
Healthy Diet comes down to one word- BALANCE. If you have the right amount of proteins, vitamins. Calories et in your food, your food will be balanced perfectly and will in term be known as Healthy Diet.
2. Should you quit the intake of sugar and salt fully?
No! Sugar and Salt are necessary for our body. You just have to make sure you are not overconsuming sugar and salt. Every food has a limit. So do sugar and salt.
3. Are fats and carbs unhealthy?
When you hear the word fats your mind automatically processes it in a bad way. But not all fats are bad. Fats and carbs are also a vital parts of our body. As we need proteins and minerals, we need fats and crabs too. But in a controlled manner. Many foods contain carbs such as bread and pasta. Fruits and veggies also have some amount of carbs in it which are needed as a source of energy.
4. Should I quit eating sweets and junk food forever?
Well, it won’t harm you as such. After all, it is a good thing to avoid junk. But your brain and most importantly your taste buds sometimes require treats just so that they won’t get bored. Hence, it all depends on you. If you have strong willpower you can go for it. But it is advisable to treat your taste buds with something exciting once every 2 months.
5. Does only eating healthy work?
Eating healthy will definitely help you out. But with that, your body needs movements too. Exercising, meditation, yoga, etc. will help you and your body to boost up your fit rate. So make sure you also work out well with your body along with eating healthy.