According to John Norcross, a psychology professor at the University of Scranton and author of Changeology: 5 Steps to Realizing your Goals and Resolutions, healthy eating is one of the top five resolutions made each year. Unfortunately, it’s estimated that 75 percent of all New Year’s resolutions will end in failure.
So, if we’re determined to change at the beginning of a new year, why do so many fail at following through? Temptations! They lurk everywhere: sweets at work, fast food for lunch, potato chips calling your name when you walk past them in the grocery store. The good thing is, you are not alone and it’s never too late to get back on the right track.
Maybe you dropped the ball on your New Year’s resolution and with half of the year gone, you figure, why bother? If this is you, here are 4 ways to incorporate healthy eating into your daily lifestyle:
1. Don’t sacrifice a nutritious breakfast. You’ve probably heard the old adage “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”, and it’s true. But not just anything will do. Skip the sweet Danish for a more nutritious breakfast. Keep plenty of healthy breakfast foods on hand.
2. Enjoy easy, healthy snacks. Healthy snacks keep you from getting too hungry and overeating at your next meal. Keep foods such as yogurt, nuts, fruit and veggies such as washed apples, carrot sticks, and grape tomatoes, cottage cheese or sliced turkey on hand for a quick snack.
3. Cook more than you can eat. This tip saves you time and money while allowing you to eat healthier. Cook extra to refrigerate or freeze for your next day’s lunch or dinner. When you know you already have a nutritious meal waiting for you, you’re less likely to grab the high-calorie, high-fat junk food at the drive-through on your way home. Some good options include chicken, veggies, soups, and grains, including quinoa and brown rice.
4. Eat as many colors as you can every day. Opt for a range of nutritious vegetables and fruits every day. Keep a variety of colors on hand and make it a point to see how many different colors you can eat a day. Eat red peppers, spinach, sweet potatoes and blackberries one day and the next eat green peppers, yellow squash, blueberries and bananas.
It takes time to make these changes, but if you keep trying every day, you’ll eventually begin to see it’s become a habit to eat healthier.
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