By Catherine McCurry
WEIGHT loss and healthy eating comes up in all different types of situations and conversations and the promotion of healthy living is staring us in the face on a daily basis.
Most people hope and wish for a better body and to have the motivation and discipline to achieve our goals, however it’s never an easy process.
We have only ourselves to rely on to get on the road to a healthy, active lifestyle where exercises fall easily into our daily routines and to a stage where we enjoy and look forward to it.
We all want to change something about our bodies but everyone’s goal is to have full confidence in ourselves and be proud of what we have or achieved.
Whether it’s to lose or put on weight or tone up, the first point is to understand what works for us and to change our outlook on food and fitness.
How we view all different types of foods is crucial to how we eat. People are always being told to eat plenty of vegetables, fruit and drink loads of water. This is easier said than done but if we look at the reasons why we should do this then following this advice becomes easier.
It’s best to educate yourself on why you should follow a healthy lifestyle and how it benefits you.
Understanding just how it will improve your life and well-being will help your motivation levels and if we know what food does what, e.g. lift energy levels, then living a healthy life becomes easier.
Look at foods like spinach, asparagus, kale, fish, green beans and eggs and learn about how they work and what they do. Which food gives you energy, which foods stop you from bloating and which foods will keep you from feeling hungry.
Set yourself simple and achievable goals and work towards those and continue from there. Every time you achieve a goal keep going – whether it’s increasing your strength or length you can run, continue on.
If you put 100 per cent effort in, you will get it back.
Don’t overdo it or try too hard, take your time, particularly if it is all new to you. The results won’t come easy so don’t expect changes in unrealistic times. If you make small and gradual changes it won’t be so overwhelming and a new way of eating and maintaining a different lifestyle will be easier to manage.
Introduce some new, healthy foods into your meals and start from there and hopefully your meals will be filled with greens.
Try out a wide range of foods from the vegetable aisle and experiment with new recipes, this is an easy way to find what you do and don’t like – you’ll be surprised at how tasty they can be.
You have to make changes to see progress.
