Eating healthy doesn’t really mean refraining from relishing your favorite food items. It is more of a choice between natural and processed food items.
But making major changes in your diet can be quite taxing and unhealthy if made all at once. Instead, make small alterations in your choice of food items so as to give your body more time to adjust to the new regimen. These small changes made in your everyday diet can go a long way in providing big health benefits to you.
Maintaining a wholesome and healthy diet every day can be very effective in achieving a well-built and strong body. The maximum calorie limit recommended for men is about 2,500 calories and for women, is 2,000 calories. You must adhere to these calorie limits regularly to meet your fitness goals.
5 Things to Remember to Start a Healthy Diet
Here are 5 simple tips to transform your regular diet into a healthy one.
1. Consume about 300 grams of Carbohydrates Daily
Make sure that your daily meal plans include about 45 percent to 65 percent of carbohydrate. However, refrain from consuming processes and packed food products as these are high in added sugar, which is quite unhealthy. Processes food contributes to weight gain due to high-calorie content. You can switch over to healthier options like fruits and vegetables. With an adequate amount of starch and fiber fruits and vegetables provide the necessary sugar while not being too fattening at the same time. Include whole grains and whole wheat as a part of your healthy diet, as they contain an abundance of vital fiber and carbohydrates.
2. Choose Healthy Fats and Oils
Contrary to the popular belief fat is quintessential for a healthy diet and good health. So, fat cannot be avoided completely from your daily intake. Fat provides us with a lot of energy but its intake should be limited to a minimum.
Butter, clarified butter, and lard can be replaced with healthy oils, like soybean, corn, canola (rapeseed), sunflower, and safflower. These are some of the healthy alternatives can be incorporated in regular meals to cut down your unhealthy fat consumption. Always choose white meat, such as fish and poultry, which comparatively healthier than red meat as white meat has lower levels of fat. Furthermore, you must also reduce the consumption of processed meat. While cooking, try to boil or steam foods instead of frying them and cut off all fried and processed food items that are rich in industrially produced trans fat.
3. Incorporate 60 grams of Protein in Your Everyday Diet
A clean and wholesome diet is incomplete without the inclusion of proteins. An ideal way of eating healthy is to consume 60 grams of protein daily. Especially if you undergo moderate physical activity. But, in the case of athletes, higher protein intake is necessary, which could be supplemented with protein powder. Including protein is the correct way of meeting your calorie needs without depending completely on fats and carbohydrates. You can stay full for a long time by adding an adequate amount of high-fiber foods and protein to your morning breakfast.
Some of the best sources of protein are seafood and poultry. However, for vegetarians pulses, legumes, moringa, and beans can fulfill their protein requirement. Moreover, dairy products, such as milk, and yogurt, and their vegan substitutes, like tofu and soy milk also contain a high amount of protein. Moreover, red kidney beans or chickpeas can add to the protein content of a vegetarian diet effectively.
4. Add Fruits and Vegetables In Your Diet
Eating green vegetables and fruits in lunch and dinner is the healthiest and the best way of leading a healthy lifestyle. This will not only increase your nutritional count but will also add a variety to your meals. Also, consuming plentiful vegetables and fruits is quite effective in aiding weight loss. Include red tomatoes, green spinach, chilies, sprouts, and broccoli to make up for a healthy diet. You can also add carrots, leeks, and onions as these are rich in vitamins A, C, E, and some minerals. Opt for mangoes, papayas, and strawberries to add up vitamins A, B6, C, and E in your daily intake. You can also bring in some bananas in the fruit bowl as it is rich in potassium, and magnesium.
5. Limit Your Salt and Sugar Consumption
We are aware that overeating salt can lead to raised blood pressure, which is a major trigger factor behind most strokes and heart disease. So, cut back on salt consumption by decreasing the intake of condiments such as fish sauce, and soy sauce, which have high salt content. Incorporate healthy and fresh snacks over processed food products. Consume packaged or canned foods that are devoid of added sugar and salt. Also, go through the labels of food products and choose those foods with a low level of sodium.
Increased sugar intake also increases the risk of obesity and weight gain, that can be the primary cause of certain chronic diseases. So, reduce your consumption of sweets, high sugary drinks, like fruit juices, fizzy drinks, flavored water, and others.
The Bottom line
Incorporating these in your regular diet will make it a healthy one and will keep you fit and strong. But, don’t try to incorporate these ideas all at once but rather make one change at a time for a healthier diet. Remember a healthy diet is the first step to disease-free living.
