Christmas is all about spending some quality time with your friends and family. However, it’s also a period notorious for encouraging overindulging. Sometimes you just can’t help tucking into that last mince pie and brushing it off with the excuse that ‘it’s Christmas!’. Then, when Christmas ends after a little too much eating and drinking, you start to feel guilty. It’s an inevitable cycle. If this sounds familiar, then why not beat the January blues with a committed health kick? Here’s a look at some healthy eating habits you should try:
Create A Balanced Plate
A ‘balanced plate’ is all about having different food groups forming your meal, with some in moderation. It’s one of the easiest healthy eating habits to get into once you start monitoring what you’re eating. Nutritionists suggest that your five portions of fruit and vegetables a day should make up just over a third of the food you eat daily. This can be fresh, frozen, tinned dried or juiced. The rest of the food on your plate should be a mix of starchy foods (like carbohydrates), dairy and alternatives, and protein sources.
Try Slow-Energy Releasing Foods
Many people can start to feel de-motivated and tired as the day goes on. Slow-releasing energy foods can combat feelings of being run-down, and they’re also likely to keep you fully for longer. Foods such as bananas, oats, fatty fish and brown rice all very nutritious alternatives to sugary foods you may be tempted to snack on for a quick energy boost.
Snacking Can Be A Healthy Eating Habit
Snacking can be a great way to keep hunger at bay – as long as you keep it as part of your new found healthy eating habits. Nuts, fruit and sugar-free granola bars are all great to snack on throughout the day. Ideally, you should be eating full meals that will keep you satisfied all day, but sometimes you might need a little pick-me-up.
Only Eat The Food You Love
Don’t eat strange food combinations just because you read somewhere that it’s healthy. Trying out new foods is great but eating food just for the sake of it being healthy is not. Work out what you like and stick to it. You also shouldn’t deny yourself a sweet treat every now and again.
Eat Mindfully
How do you eat your meals? Perhaps you’re sat in front of the TV or maybe you eat on-the-go in-between meetings at work. Try to switch up your habits by being more mindful about what, and how, you eat your meals. Properly chew your food, breathing as you go. Take note of the textures and flavours. Not only does this give you a new-found appreciation of food, but it also allows for the proper signals to be sent the brain when you’re full, stopping you from overeating.
New Year, New You?
It’s a cliché saying, but sometimes it can be motivational – particularly when you want to try introducing healthy eating habits. So, choose one or two to start with as see how well you get on. Remember, healthy eating goes hand in hand with exercise. Regularly working out combined with eating well can be great for the body and mind.
