When talking about fitness, it’s important to understand the body’s dietary needs. Caloric usage must exceed caloric intake to lose weight, that’s a given. Calories are often an under-used word when discussing dietary contents. Many popular diets such as the Atkins diet or the South Beach diet prioritize specific food groups over the overall picture, leading many to over-eat and sit dumbfounded and full.
Whenever you get that growling sensation in your tummy, have a healthy choice on hand. Look at portion sizes for your usual, and then compare that to the healthy alternative. This is a chance for you to fill up for less. Keep snack size portions on hand so you can’t use the “it’s easier to get the other” excuse.
One important nutrition tip to follow is to eat your vegetables and fruits each and every day. The USDA recommends an average of nine to thirteen servings of vegetables and fruits daily. That sounds excessive, but it can be done with some creative thinking. Orange juice at breakfast counts as a serving.
Always read your nutrition labels when you are purchasing food from a store. You can make yourself aware of ingredients to avoid and also make healthier choices to add to your diet. Keeping track of food this way can ensure that you do not overeat by providing you with serving sizes.
When it comes to pregnancy cravings, watch not only what foods they are but how much you want. In other words, if you must satisfy an unhealthy craving, do it in a healthy way. Watch your portions and what is in what you desire. This is not a free period to engorge yourself on junk as not getting enough of what you need can harm you, and possibly the baby, later on.
When considering nutrition for a child, it is important to consider that he or she may not always be open to new foods, at least, not as quickly as an adult. Children’s taste buds do not work the same as they will when they are older and foods may taste more harsh to them than to an adult. Give your children time and let them make the choice for themselves.
Digestibility needs to be considered along with the nutritional value of foods. Some studies (notably by Dr. Weston Price)show that traditional methods of preparing grains make them more digestible and add food value. These methods soak the grains and cause fermentation, which in turn creates enzymes that help us digest these foods.
Help to ensure that your children are getting the proper nutrition they need on a daily basis by packing healthy lunches for them to take to school. When making sandwiches, avoid high-fat deli meats, such as ham, bologna and salami, and opt for low-fat turkey, chicken or even lean roast beef. Use whole grain bread and light mayonnaise. Egg salad, tuna fish and an occasional peanut butter and jelly sandwich provide some variety. While fresh fruit is convenient and nutritional, switch up the usual apples, oranges and bananas from time to time with dried fruit mixes, granola bars, nuts, yogurt, or carrot and celery sticks with a low-fat dip. Water, low-fat or skim milk, 100% fruit juices and low-sodium vegetable juice all make healthy beverage choices. You can even surprise your children now and again with a homemade chocolate chip cookie for dessert!
If you need to lower LDL cholesterol -that’s the unhealthy kind- you might consider increasing your intake of something that’s not usually known for healthy living: Beer. Studies have recently shown this benefit from beer also increases the good kind of cholesterol, HDL. Those with problems with alcohol shouldn’t take this approach, and moderation is always in order for everyone.
Many people love drinking iced tea, but try drinking green iced tea instead of “regular” iced tea. Green tea has polyphenols, which help protect against cancer, lower cholesterol and have anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. Black tea contains polyphenols as well, but far less than green tea. Green tea also has less caffeine than black tea.
Beans, beans what a wonderful food. Studies have shown that eating beans can reduce your chances of developing heart disease and could also prevent breast cancer. These great properties are thanks to beans’ high protein, vitamin, and fiber content. To reduce the chance of indigestion, add them to your diet gradually.
Regularly consuming lean meats to significantly increase your muscle growth. By eating four to eight servings of lean beef, fish, turkey, and chicken, you should experience greater muscle mass than someone who follows a similar workout program but does not regularly eat a diet in which meat is present.
Diet is a balance of composition and sheer bulk. While there is no specific diet that suits everyone with a hundred percent objective health, the wisest, general choice is simply to limit a person’s intake based on which goals they aim to achieve. Losing weight should require a calorie restriction; gaining weight, on the other hand, should see a higher caloric intake than the average dietary needs.