Long-Term Healthy Living

Eating healthy is always hard to start, but once you develop this useful habit it becomes second-nature. Eating healthy is always hard to start, but once you develop this useful habit it becomes second-nature. By applying some useful principles to your daily eating habits, little by little you will see and feel the changes in your body. As with everything in life, activities become habits and second-nature when they are repeated, so the more you get used to eating healthy and exercising the easier it will be to do in the long run.

Remember, eating healthy is the most important factor in losing weight yet it is often the most overlooked. So to make life easy, and to help you stick to your healthy eating patterns, try not to think in terms of calories. Your body is the most intelligent machine in existence. Listen to it instead and do what it says (eat when it says you're hungry, stop when it says you're full, etc). Here are some tips to help your mind become more in tune with what your body is telling you to eat and what not to eat.

I. Eat small portions of food for each meal: There is no 'one size fits all' rule here. You know what a sensibly small portion looks like, for you. A typical health portion for meat is the size of a deck of cards. Desserts that contain a lot of sugar or fat should be eaten rarely, but when they are they shouldn't be more than a cup in size. It's usually obvious when a piece of cake or a huge bowl of pasta is too big, listen to your instinct instead of what what portions are handed to you.

II. Eat frequently: Most adults get hungry about 3-4 hours after their last meal. Aim to eat at least 5 small sized meals each day. This keeps your metabolic rate high, thus helping you release excess weight easily, naturally, safely and healthily. Study yourself and see how soon after eating you feel hungry again. This will help you prepare in advance so that you don't get very hungry and fall into the temptation of eating anything available

III. Eat foods that you enjoy eating: Making sure that each meal contains all the essential nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fats, minerals and vitamins). Broaden your range of 'enjoyed food' to include as much unprocessed food as possible. Try new things and limit unprocessed foods as they're plain unhealthy. Set yourself up to succeed by stocking healthy foods and snacks in your house. That way they're readily available, and you've got no choice but to eat them.

1. Prev:Common Diet Myths
2. Next:Quick weight loss with no health hazards