Habits are very hard to break – and our eating habits are notoriously difficult to change. People trying to lose weight and start a healthy lifestyle often slide back into bad habits, which typically causes more weight gain and a further loss of confidence.
The good news is, your eating habits can be changed.
We’ll let you in on a little secret: learning to eat well doesn’t have to be difficult it should make you feel great! You’ll have more energy, and more motivation and your self-confidence will be through the roof.
And you’ve already made the first step in your journey towards eating healthier: recognising that you’d like to make a change.
Once you’re armed with the right knowledge and a healthy dose of commitment, you will have the power to eat better, reach your weight goals and be a healthier, happier you.
9 tips to help you change your eating habits
So what are the secrets that help people successfully change their eating habits once and for all?
Here are nine proven strategies for eating well and developing a healthy lifestyle.
1. Set yourself up for success
It’s like the Boy Scouts’ motto: “Be Prepared”.
When you get things set up for healthy eating ahead of time, it makes things a lot easier for the future, hungry you.
Here are some ways you can set yourself up for succeeding in your healthy habits:
- Schedule time each week for planning and preparing your nutritious meals for the upcoming week
- Portion your meals out into healthy-sized portions and pop them in the freezer
- Bring nutritious snacks to work so that you’re not tempted by the snack machine
- Keep a reusable water bottle on your desk so you can sip away during your workday
- Be sure to include some of the foods you love in your meal plan. It’s not about starving yourself – it’s about keeping things under control
2. Keep a food diary
Healthy eating begins with being conscious of our thoughts and patterns. A great way to do this is to keep a food diary. Writing things down by hand allows us to fully process our thoughts and get them out into the open.
In your food diary, keep track of when you’re eating and what you’re eating. Do you eat breakfast, or wait until lunchtime when you’re way too hungry to stick to a healthy portion?
Try to pinpoint your unhealthy eating patterns, for example, “waking up in the night and eating a bar of chocolate”. By simply being aware of our patterns, we can put boundaries in place to keep them from happening.
3. Recognise that your eating habits have both positive and negative effects
Wanting to eat healthily and knowing how to do it are two different things. When you’re shopping in the supermarket, how do you know what foods are healthy choices? (Hint: labels like “low sugar” and “low fat” can be very misleading!)
A balanced and healthy diet consists of a variety of foods that combine multiple nutrients:
- Cereals (including wheat, barley, and rice), starchy tubers (potatoes), and roots (yams)
- Legumes (beans and lentils)
- Fruits and vegetables
- Healthy protein. This doesn’t have to be meat, or even dairy and eggs – there are great vegan proteins out there like tofu and tempeh.
4. Choose foods that support healthier eating habits
Once you’ve become fully aware of your not-so-good eating habits, you can start to replace them with good ones. Well-chosen meals and snacks can satisfy the cravings we have for junk foods while giving us the nutrition we need for a healthy lifestyle.
Here are some great ideas for healthy replacements:
- In the mood for crisps or savoury snacks? Try some sourdough bread with salt and pepper, or oat biscuits with a nut butter
- Craving sweets? Try a sweet fruit like oranges, peaches and plums first and see if sates the craving
- Dreaming of a pizza? Eat smaller, thin-based ones instead and use lots of veggies as part of your toppings. If you’re feeling adventurous and making pizza at home, you can replace your wheat base with rye or spelt
- Hankering for some chocolate? Reach for dark chocolate instead! (secret fact: cocoa is good for you!)
5. Control your environment
While it’s impossible to fully control your environment, there are lots of steps you can take towards making sure your surroundings are in tune with your healthy lifestyle choices.
Get rid of all those sugary and salty snacks. We know, it’s hard. But having them sitting around is only going to tempt you when hunger sets in. Instead of throwing them away, donate unopened snacks to families in need – undertaking a good deed like this will only further reinforce the positive nature of your nutritional journey.
Keep fruit and healthy snacks within your eyesight. Start a collection of healthy cookbooks in your kitchen. When you leave the house, pack a few nutritious snacks to bring with you.
Another effective tip is to downsize your dinnerware – having smaller plates will reduce your portion sizes.
6. Keep thinking positive
There’s one thing that’s for sure: traditional dieting is not equivalent to healthy eating. That’s partly because it puts you in a mindset that it’s important not to be in: that you’re restricting yourself.
Instead of thinking about what you can’t have, choose to focus on what you can have more of.
You’re going to drink more water, as well as eat more fruits and vegetables. You’re going to get to try new foods and discover new favourites.
All of these things will bring more energy, vibrancy, and excitement into your life!
7. Good eating habits need S.M.A.R.T goals
Overhauling your diet completely won’t work – it will just scare you into wanting to give up on healthy eating.
Instead of saying goodbye to everything you like, start by making sustainable and SMART goals:
- Specific: Don’t have a vague goal, but something specific – like “I will eat a cup-sized serving of fruit for breakfast every morning”.
- Measurable: Make sure you’ll be able to measure when you’ve hit your goal, e.g. “I will drink 8 cups of water every day.”
- Attainable: don’t go overboard with your goal and make it impossible for yourself to succeed. An attainable goal would be, “I will decrease my portion sizes at dinner.”
- Relevant: Make sure your new eating habits are tailored to your tastes with foods you like – don’t try and force yourself to eat chopped liver for lunch, unless you genuinely like it!
- Time-bound: Be sure to set a timeline for when you want to reach your goal. For example, “I will drink 8 cups of water a day for the next 2 weeks”.
8. Drink lots of water
Did you know that our recommended daily water intake is 11 cups for women and 16 cups for men?
We don’t blame you if you’re not there yet – that’s a lot of water for a busy individual!
Focus on increasing your water intake throughout the day, because water is an essential part of a healthy lifestyle. Choose water over sugary drinks like soda and you’ll notice a difference in the amount of energy you have, how well your brain functions, and how much weight you lose.
Water gives our bodies the nourishment and hydration they need to keep operating at their best.
And a pro tip for getting your water intake up and reducing your appetite is to eat more foods that are high in water content like tomatoes, apples, watermelon and peaches.
9. Forget the labels
Stop categorising foods as “bad” or “good”.
This kind of thinking can quickly lead to eating behaviours that are particularly unhealthy for us, like overly-restrictive diets. Understand that any of your favourite foods are okay to eat in moderation.
Next time you get offered a delicious piece of chocolate cake at a celebration, allow yourself to enjoy a piece without guilt-tripping yourself. But maybe decide to have half a slice, or share a slice with someone!
The most effective tip of all – if you need support, then get it!
You don’t have to do this all alone!
At VY Nutrition, we provide nutritional coaching that’s designed for busy people, with hectic lifestyles. We help our customers to create sustainable and healthy lifestyles by changing their habits and behaviours and by providing the ongoing support they need to make sure that the change is permanent.
Get in touch with us today and let us steer you towards crushing your lifestyle goals.
Here’s to a healthier, more energised and more motivated you!
