Healthy Diet Tips

First off I need to confess that I am not a fan of a lot of the diet advice out there, most of which makes healthy eating out to be this miserable, joyless ordeal. I believe that counting calories, denying myself treats and obsessing about food is a complete waste of time. Eating healthy doesn’t have to conflict with eating well, as long as you follow a few healthy diet tips. Here are my Top 7 Healthy Diet Tips to help you eat better:

1) Don’t focus on calorie counting and depriving yourself of the foods you enjoy. Instead focus on choosing foods that nourish your body, give you energy and make you feel good.

As a personal trainer, I often hear people say silly stuff like “I love oatmeal, but I can't eat it because its high in calories.” Or “I was really bad last night and ate a whole banana – its high on the glycemic index!” I think if people took a much more natural, relaxed approach to eating they would have an easier time eating a healthy, balanced diet. If its natural, nutritional and your body wants it – just eat it!

2) Keep a positive food journal where you keep track of all the healthy things you eat – make it your goal to fill your journal each day!

I get my coaching clients to do this exercise when they are having trouble eating well and it is truly amazing at what a difference it makes. When you focus on the positive (the good foods you ate), you are naturally inclined to choose healthy foods more often. This is different from a traditional food journal in which you keep track of everything you eat, which can make journal entries feel like a dreaded event.

3) Indulge in small, healthy snacks throughout the day like carrot sticks and hummus, rice crackers with cucumber slices, popcorn with olive oil and nutritional yeast, or apple slices with a little almond butter.

Studies have shown that those who snack have more control over their weight than those who stick with three square meals a day. Frequent snacks help keep your blood sugar levels stable, preventing blood sugar crashes which can lead to sudden junk food cravings and tiredness. Keep a bag of almonds in your purse and make sure you always have veggie sticks and fresh fruit on hand for snacking purposes. Do not underestimate the power of frequent nutritious nibbling!

4) When you go to the fridge to grab a snack, check in with your belly – is it really hungry or is the hunger in your mind?

Often, we eat for emotional reasons. Eating makes us feel comforted and so it is no secret that food can be used to soothe upsetting emotions like fear, anxiety, depression, anger and even boredom. Since this kind of hunger is not physical, you will notice that when you place your attention on your stomach, it isn't growly or empty. This can be a good opportunity to just sit with your uncomfortable feeling for a little bit – get to know it, do some journaling, but don't run from it or avoid it. You may just find that in accepting the feeling, it goes away all on its own.

5) Stay mindful of how your stomach feels as you are eating. When you feel full, put down your fork. Refrigerate your leftovers and finish them later when you are hungry again.

We are trained from childhood to finish what's on our plate, regardless of how we feel. This is completely ridiculous! And yet it can be hard to get rid of this old programming. The more you make a practice of staying present in your body and honoring it's messages, the faster it will become a habit.

6) Cut out all sugary soft drinks – replace with carbonated water and lime juice with mint leaves or other fruit slices or berries.

Pop is the devil. “But I drink diet pop,” I hear you protesting. Diet pop has artifical sweetener, which is argued to be even worse for you than sugar. Drinking pop on a daily basis has become a real habit for many, many people. If the thought of giving up pop makes you tremble, start by cutting back on one glass a day and replacing it with water or the above suggestion. Your body will thank you for it.

7) If you get a sweet tooth in the evenings, try drinking tea with licorice or cinnamon in it – the natural sweetness curbs cravings for desserts.

Personally, I can go all day eating healthy foods but when seven o'clock hits I often find myself ravenous for chocolate, cookies, cake, you name it! But since making licorice or cinnamon spice rooibos tea my after dinner treat, these cravings have become almost completely extinct. Almost.

Try working these tips into your daily life and I guarantee you will notice the difference.