Healthy food choices
Eating healthy is one of the keys to staying alive longer and enjoying your life as well. If you don't take your palate healthy and willing to try new things, you won't be able to have the advantages that people who eat healthy have. Eating healthy lessens the risk of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. It also helps with getting a good night's sleep. You don't only have to eat healthy, but you have to exercise as well. Exercising doesn't only help maintain a healthy weight, but improves your mood as well. It's also important to know about moderation and variety. For moderation, you shouldn't eat so much meat that you're about to burst. For variety, you should explore different foods and no eat the same foods everyday. You may ask, why do I need to maintain a healthy weight? This goes along with eating healthy. Eating healthy and maintaining weight go together, as well as exercise. Doing both exercise and eating healthy provides all these benefits, and even helps with body image. Culture and your environment can affect your food choices, but they don't always need to be unhealthy. For example, the United States has a lot of unhealthy foods such as burgers because of their fats. Just because we have access to these doesn't mean we should resort to them though. We can instead make homemade burgers as a healthier alternative or find new meals all together. The reason you should start young is because this can have an affect on your kids as well. If you eat unhealthy, you're prone to all these risks. Your kids may start to eat unhealthy when you have some, and they would have the same problems you do. Even if you don't plan on children, think about your future. As I've said, eating healthy and exercising lessens the risk of chronic illnesses, and you'll be able to enjoy your life in the future!
Tips
Create meal plans
Create lists before you go shopping
Find healthier alternatives of the foods you like
Replace restaurants with home cooking
Try new recipes at least twice a month
Exercise by doing things you love (sports, dance, etc.)
Get a good nights sleep
Eat smaller portions (helps with moderation
Breakfast
You know what they say about breakfast being the most important meal of the day! Breakfast is the start of your day, and where you get your energy to go do the things you need to do. Here's a list of a few foods you can eat!
| Foods | Drinks |
|---|---|
| Eggs | Water |
| Whole wheat bread | Milk |
| Whole grain waffles | |
| Oatmeal (great alternative for cereal!) | |
| Overnight oats (if you're more into yogurt) |
Lunch
Lunch is something that helps you get through your stretch of school or work happy and energetic! Here are some meals and drinks to get you going!
| Foods | Drinks |
|---|---|
| A sandwich with vegetables (lettuce, tomatoes) and protein (chicken, eggs) | Water |
| Avocado toast | Green juice |
| Burrito bowl (brown rice/beans, meat, lettuce, corn, onions, etc.) | |
| Salads (moderation on the dressing) |
Dinner
This is the last meal of the day, and it is personally my favorite one. You're in no rush with dinner, and you can prepare your meals to something amazing.
| Foods | Drinks |
|---|---|
| Whole grain pasta (or zoodles! but make sure to pair actual grains as well.) | Water |
| Chicken breasts or salmon | |
| Mashed potatos (as a side) | |
| Cultural foods can be healthy as well! Such as shawarma and donburi bowls. | |
| Fish tacos |
snacks
| Foods | Drinks |
|---|---|
| Mixed nuts (pecans, hazlenuts, almonds, walnuts, etc.) | Water |
| Fruits (grapes, mangos, apples, etc.) | |
| Granola bars | |
| Vegetable snacks (celery sticks, carrots, cucumbers, etc.) | |
| Healthy beef jerky and cheese sticks (in moderation) |