Mia
As we enter February, you may find yourself struggling to stick to a number of the new year’s resolutions you set. Year in year out, health, diet and fitness related resolutions tend to be the most popular amongst Brits – however, how can you improve this area of your life in a way which you can stick to? With a huge number of diets ending in failure, it’s better to look towards making certain lifestyle changes, rather than constantly trying out new fads. Here are our top tips on how you can improve your diet once and for all.
Eat at home
Eating out and ordering takeaway is one of the main ways which people fall into unhealthy eating habits. A lot of socialising can centre around food and drink, so it can become difficult to avoid temptation if you are wanting to socialise in this way regularly.
Meals that you buy out tend to come in larger portions, and include a lot more of the ‘bad stuff’ such as high fat and being ultra-processed. Limit yourself to eating out once a week, and in turn suggest other forms of socialising which don’t centre around eating and drinking.
If you cannot avoid eating out more than once in a week, make wise choices such as opting for a healthier alternative, or swapping the glass of wine for a water.
Cooking for yourself
By cutting down the number of times you eat outside your home, it’s likely you will have to enhance your cooking skills to satisfy your tastebuds! If you dread the meals you cook for yourself, there’s a higher chance of you giving up on your diet.
Surround yourself with fresh produce and minimally processed foods to experiment with. If you are finding it hard to come up with recipes, invest in a healthy cookbook or try the eyeball method – where you load your plate with half veggies, a quarter protein, and a quarter carbohydrate.
To improve your cooking experience, you should invest in some new cooking equipment which will make meal preparation more enjoyable and easier. Your current set of kitchenware may not be enough to support your new diet so you will need to make sure you have everything you need. For example, you’ll need a frying pan to cook quick healthy meals like omelettes, or a blender to make homemade sauces or smoothies.
Lifestyle change
A diet often requires a lifestyle change and you will need to think about the choices you make daily. For example, grabbing your lunch from a food outlet everyday can quickly rack up the calories and the bills! Swap this for a packed lunch will be much healthier. You may also look to getting your friends and family involved in your diet, so you can socialise in ways which don’t revolve around food, and keep each other on track.
By sticking to these changes, you will reap multiple benefits such as improved mood, improved fitness, lower risk of diet-related diseases, and weight loss.
