5 Simple ways to improve your nutrition without having to break your head
Mim Kleiberg
There is so much information out there on nutrition today and it can all seem very complicated. You can be totally immersed in all of the ins and outs of nutrition and for most of us, we just don’t have the time to count calories, read labels and follow complicated nutrition guidelines. Here’s my 5 simple ways to make eating healthy easy without any brain labour!
- Eat as close to nature as possible
Try to eat the food as close to how it occurs in nature as possible. Foods that occur in nature are generally have the healthiest ratio of nutrients for our bodies. For example, fruit contain sugar however, in nature, are always paired with fiber which slows down the sugar’s absorption into the bloodstream. Cutting out processing and additives that can turn a perfectly healthy food into something unhealthy, means that your body can avail of nature’s nutrient profile design. Simply put, potato rather than potato chips, chicken rather than chicken sausage and apples rather than apple juice.
- Eat out less
It’s a very easy way to make sure that you’re not eating anything unhealthy. Remember restaurants and takeaways are in the business of selling food. It’s in their interest in making the food taste amazing so that they sell more. This means that this usually takes priority over the health profile of the food. If you prepare your own food as much as possible, you know exactly what’s in your food.
As a side note, these days there is a trend in restaurants with a focus on healthy food, why not make these your go to for take away and eating out once in a while.
- Eat vegetables at every meal
Vegetables are a great source of nutrients and fiber. Nutritional guidelines have recently been reviewed and now, 10 a day, rather than 5 a day have been recommended. Now its easy to incorporate vegetables into lunch and dinner with salads and vegetables being part of many staples but breakfast is always a challenge. My answer is green smoothies. Blending vegetables into your morning smoothie is an easy (and tasty) way of having veges for breakfast. Alternatively, adding veges to your eggs are a more traditional way of getting in the nutrients.
- Drink more water
Hydration, hydration, hydration. If you’re properly hydrated then you are able to absorb nutrients from your food much better than if you’re dehydrated. Also, dehydration can send false signals to your brain about your hunger levels.
- Eat mindfully
Stop and pay attention to what you’re eating. We always seem to multitask while eating. Eating mindfully, paying attention to your satiation, your chewing and the taste of the food means that the process of eating will maximise the absorption of nutrients.
Mim Kleiberg is a Star 3 Spinning Instructor, personal trainer and Co-owner of THE ROOM Abu Dhabi with qualifications in Olympic Weight Lifting, Kettle-bells & Functional Training.