Lessons in Nutrition: 3 Things to Remember
By Genevieve Cunningham
Nutrition is one of the hardest parts of healthy living for many. It's not that we don't want to eat well, it's that we don't really understand how to eat well. Even more, we don't really understand nutrition at all. We don't understand how to group foods together, how to get the necessary nutrients through diet, or how to shop for our healthiest options. But maybe we actually make it a little too difficult. Maybe we should start smaller, with little actions that baby step us in the right direction. If you're interested in improving your health and diet, take a look at these three basic nutrition habits to avoid to get you moving in the right direction.
Skip Late Night Eating
Most nutrition experts agree that late night eating is not a good idea. When we eat too late at night, we don't give our bodies any time at all to process the food or burn off the calories. If these snacks are unhealthy options -- which late night snacks usually are -- we are setting ourselves up for weight gain as well. If you want an easy step to start healthier eating habits, nix late night eating first.
Throw Out Junk Snack Food
Snacking is a bigger part of our diet than we realize. When we're hungry, we don't necessarily wait until the next meal. We grab a small snack and keep our day moving. But if these small snacks consist of junk food, we might be eating hundreds of calories more than we intended to eat. To give yourself a good start, just throw out all of your junk food snacks. Instead, fill your cabinet and refrigerator with healthy snacks that get you by until meal time but still satisfy the taste buds. This is a small step that makes a big difference -- all you need is a little willpower.
Choose Water Over Everything
One of the easiest and most important choices that you can make regarding diet is to drink water. It sounds too simple, right? But if you really think about it, we drink everything except for water. We drink coffee, tea, soda, and juice. We drink sports drinks. We drink energy drinks. If we chose water instead, we would cut calories, caffeine, and sugar from our diets. It's not easy if you're addicted to a favorite drink, but it's a simple choice if you can muster up the willpower to make a good decision.
Nutrition is a huge part of who we are. Our diet choices manifest themselves in our appearance, the way that we feel, and the way that we function. If you want to feel better and healthier, nutrition is a great place to begin. Use these tips to get moving in the right direction, and you'll be on the path to healthy eating and living in no time at all.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Van Nuys, Calif.