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6 Easy Steps to Better Nutrition

Posted by Lynda on June 22nd, 2012 (Diet, Nutrition)

Changing your diet doesn’t need to be hard work.  Follow these 6 easy steps for a healthier diet and better nutrition.

Changing your diet doesn’t need to be hard work. If you swap your bad habits for equally delicious healthier options, you will boost your nutrition and improve you diet without even noticing it. You will still feel satisfied after every meal, with the added benefit of more energy and vitality.

Here are 6 simple steps to better nutrition. I call them steps because instead of trying to incorporate them all at one, pick one or two, start doing these for three or four days, and then add another. You are more likely to keep good habits if you take it a step at a time, and too many changes at once can feel like too much hard work in our already busy lives.

Eat Breakfast
Skipping breakfast is an unhealthy start to your day. Breakfast kick-starts your metabolism and is the morning fuel that helps you concentrate, work and make decisions. Research shows that people who skip breakfast have higher incidences of depression and are more overweight than people who don’t – so pack your morning meal with healthy whole-grains, low-fat yoghurt, porridge or eggs. If you find it hard to eat first thing, a piece of fruit, a yoghurt or smoothie will do.

Eat a Salad a Day
Salads are a great way of increasing the amount of fruit and veg in your diet, plus they are packed with vitamins and nutrients that boost the immune system and protect against disease. Try swapping your lunch time sandwich for a big salad instead. If you work in an office prepare the salad in a tupperware and the dressing in an old jam jar, so you can dress the salad just before you eat. Pick three of four different fruit and veg for your salad, add some protein like a boiled egg, tuna, grilled chicken, or toasted pumpkin seeds or walnuts, and top with a drizzle of healthy olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.

Eat Wholegrains
Swap white bread, pasta and rice for wholemeal varieties instead. Brown rice and wholemeal bread and pasta contain more nutrients and take longer for the body to break down, which means they gradually release sugar into your blood stream so you feel fuller for longer and have steady energy levels. White carbs cause a spike in blood sugar levels which we experience as a burst of energy, followed by a slump.

Swap ‘Bad’ Foods for Good
We all have our particular snacking weakness but try swapping it for a healthier but equally enjoyable option. Swap crisps for hummus and carrot sticks; the biscuit jar for a handful of nuts and dried fruit or put out a bowl of olives, gherkins, antipasti pickled veg and home-made yoghurt, onion and cucumber dip with crudités on the table.

Vary Your Food
Variety is key to good nutrition so try not to eat the same things all the time. Not only do our bodies thrive on a combination of vitamins and minerals, but so do our brains – because if every meal is enjoyable, exciting and satisfying with a good combination of carbs, protein and fruit and veg, you won’t feel the need to raid the biscuit tin an hour or two later.

Drink More Water
We could all do with drinking more water, so get into the habit of drinking a glass every time you think you are hungry, before you start preparing or eating food. I find if you keep a large glass of water next to you throughout the day, you will naturally drink more water.

If you would like to see a dietitian in Sydney, get in touch.  We have clinics in Mona Vale, Kogarah and Ryde,  plus Skype and telephone consultations too.  

Take advantage of our special offer.  Book before 31st August and receive a free computerised dietary analysis with every consultation.  

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