Now that I am a dietetics major, I’ve become obsessed with nutrition facts labels and everything that I can do to better my eating habits. It’s almost the end of the semester, which means that I have learned a lot of new facts and unlearned a lot of things that I once thought were true. One of my favorite things about being a dietetics major is that I can apply the things that I learn in class to my day-to-day life. One example of this is nutrition facts label. Nutrition fact labels are easy to read, however, some of them can be misleading. There should be a new post up soon about how to understand them! Anyways let’s dive in today’s post!
Have (MOSTLY) a plant-based diet.
You get most of the nutrients that your body needs from plant-based food such as fruits, veggies, nuts, grains and legumes. I emphasized on “mostly” because I believe that it’s okay to include meat in your diet if you you’re a meat eater . You can get your most of your daily protein, carbs and fats from food like quinoa, arugula, nuts, beans and apples.
Snack on nuts.
Nuts are very energy dense which means that they keep you full for several hours. Therefore, you won’t be tempted to eat out of boredom. Nuts are also great source of unsaturated fatty acids (the fats that are good for you). So while consuming nuts, you’re getting your intake of unsaturated fats, protein and fiber.
Drink moderately.
Did you know that your body loves alcohol?! The body loves alcohol because it doesn’t have to digest the alcohol. Also, alcohol provides 7kcal/g which is great energy that the body doesn’t need to work for. The recommended drink for a woman is 1 drink per day, and for a man, 2 drinks per day. It is believe that red wine is good for you since it helps reduce cardiovascular disease. However, be careful, drinking too much can kill you.
Read the nutrition fact label.
The nutrition fact label is your best friend! It tells you important information such as nutrient intake, calorie count and ingredients about food that you are consuming. A lot of the food that we consume daily are packaged, which means that they have a nutrition fact label. When looking for at the nutrition facts label, watch out for words like trans fats/hydrogenated, added sugars to cite a few.
Minimize Packaged foods.
If you’re going to eat packaged food/ snacks make sure you read the nutrition fact label. The less ingredients, THE BETTER. Instead of having a bag of chips every single day of the week for snacks, switch it up and have an apple or any of your favorite fruits for 4 days in the week.
You CANNOT cut carbs out of your diet.
You just can’t cut carbs completely out of your diet. You just can’t! Did you know that the body gets most of its energy from carbs?! Yes! Carbohydrates are the main source of energy/fuel for the body. You get carbs from fruits, veggies, breads, grain and in approximately all the foods that we eat. You can be more mindful about the carbs by consuming plant-based carbs instead of heavily processed ones.
Don’t restrict yourself
With the holidays right around the corner, especially thanksgiving,remember that it’s okay for you to enjoy the foods with your family. If you want to eat 2 slices of apple pie with vanilla ice cream, DO IT; I know I will! The point is that it’s all about balance! I always hear people say that they don’t eat pasta because it has too much carbs, it makes you “fat”, or it’s not good for you. Like what?! I love pasta! If you want pasta or any food for that matter, Eat IT. As long as you go back to your regular healthy diet.
In conclusion, eating healthy can be a real struggle; Especially with all the fast foods available to us. Sometimes, it’s easier to just go through the drive-tru instead of going to the grocery store then home to cook. That’s where meal-prep comes in. If you haven’t yet, check out my post on how to meal prep for some ideas. Always remember that it’s okay to fall off track, as long as you get back up. Remember that it’s all about balance!
That’s all I have for y’all today loves! Like always do not hesitate to email me with questions and feedback; or leave them in the comment section below! I’m trying to get back to posting bi-weekly since this semester is almost over and I won’t have as much school work!
Xoxo
♥ 𝒮𝓂𝒾𝓁𝑒𝓎𝑀𝒶𝓇𝓊𝓉𝒽 ♥
