How To Make Healthy Eating Easier
Many of us want to eat more healthfully, we set out at the start of the week with the best intentions only to end up back where you started by the weekend. There are many reasons that our best intentions of changing our eating habits don’t work, I have outlined many of these reasons in my blog post about why behaviour change is so hard, have a read if you haven’t done so already. Today I am wanting to talk about some things that you can do to make changing your eating behaviours, and eating more healthfully easier.
By ditching the all-or-nothing thinking. Often when we want to make changes to our eating patterns, we try to emulate the ‘perfect’ diet (hint: it doesn’t exist, and will do yourself no favours by trying to have this). We go all in for something that is way too restrictive, and set ourselves up for failure, as we inevitably can’t follow this for very long. Healthy eating is not perfect eating, and it looks differently for all of us. Healthy eating is eating a variety of foods that make your body feel good, that you enjoy and the diet as a whole is supportive in keeping your mind and body healthy. So get rid of the idea that there is one perfect diet or way of eating that is best, and instead work on checking in with your body and discovering which foods make you feel good, which foods give you energy and which foods you enjoy.
By having a plan and being prepared. This is a big one and something that is often overlooked. We only have so much decision making power each day, and our lives are filled with making decisions. If we leave what to eat for dinner until after work, it will be all too much and we will fall back on what we know and what is easy for us. If, however, we put aside some time when we are relaxed and have capacity to put together a rough plan of what our dinners will look like for the week and buy all the ingredients that we will need the ‘what to eat for dinner’ decision has already been made, the ingredients are ready, and we no longer have to think and make decisions after a long day. Read my post on how to put together a meal plan if you are looking for more advice on this.
By stocking your kitchen with the foods you want to be cooking/ eating more of. If nutritious ingredients or foods aren’t available we won’t eat them. As above, if we make a plan with what we want our meals to look like for the week and buy these ingredients, this is what we will prepare. It is important to have a good variety of foods available, so we have different options if we feel like something different and also so we are not depriving ourselves of the foods we enjoy. It’s a great idea to have longer-life staples stocked in your pantry and fridge so you can make an easy meal or snack if you haven’t been prepared with the shopping. Here is a good list of kitchen staples, and here are some easy meals that can be made using the staples. Keeping a fruit bowl or jar of nuts on the kitchen bench is a great reminder to have some fruit or nuts as a snack when we are hungry.
By making sure your meals are balanced and you are eating enough. Under eating doesn’t lead anywhere positive. Our bodies need food, when our bodies are well nourished we can get on with all of the important things that we want to do and stop thinking about food all the time. Our hunger plays an important role in making sure our bodies get the food that they need, often we are scared of hunger, but hunger is a good thing it’s a sign that our bodies are working efficiently and using the fuel that we are providing it with. Eating regularly is a good way to make sure that we eat appropriately for our appetite, and leave the meal feeling good and energised. Having balanced meals is a good way to ensure our bodies are getting the fuel that they need and are satisfied from our meals. Read my blog here about what a balanced meal looks like.
By getting support. Getting support can be a crucial step in making behaviour change and working out a balanced and sustainable approach to eating more healthfully. Setting up a support system means that you are making a commitment to what you are wanting to change and the support helps to encourage and keep you accountable. This is great to help keep you on track with what you are doing but especially important when things aren't going the way you want them to.
Please note, this information is general in nature. If you have any medical conditions or food intolerances it is helpful for you to get advice from a dietitian as to what healthy eating might look like for you in these parameters.
As a dietitian and nutritionist in Canberra, I work with individuals to help them achieve their health goals, and in my experience when people commit to the process and have the accountability and support provided by regular appointments, that is where longer-term behaviour changes can be achieved and improvements to health made. If you would like support and guidance with making behaviour changes, get in touch! I'd love to hear from you.
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