Make Eating Healthy Creative by Adding Fruits and Vegetables

When it comes to a healthy diet, you absolutely must have some variety. Eating the same thing day in and day out is like torture for most, and it also works against the principles of a healthy diet as well.

The good news is that there is a lot of variety you can sample when it comes to healthy foods. About all the supermarkets sustain a great deal of fruits and veggies and wide array of fish, meat, dairy products, nuts, beans, poultry, and lentils. If you’re trying to eat healthier and have a healthier lifestyle, you shouldn’t need to be bored while doing so!

One important part of enjoying this wide variety of foods when trying to eat healthy is to plan your meals so that you know you’re using as many different options as possible. If you combine those items of meats, fruits and vegetables, and whole grains then you know you can have different and interesting meals every time and every day.

As advised by doctors, having a lot of choices for foods is essential for good health and to avoid boredom. Remember that different foods contain different nutrients, so consuming those different foods is imperative for good healthy. One tends to go against their diet when one feels bored or deprived of their favorite foods.

Consuming foods you like is not bad, it’s just that you should eat them in moderation and use balance. You might call good nutrition a trade off, like so many other things in life!

And of course you should get foods from the five major food groups each and every day as well. The groups, as identified by the USDA, are as follows meat and beans, dairy products, fruit, veggies, and grains. Each item in these groups contains different nutrients, so if you have a combination of foods you can make sure you’re getting the right nutrition for your body.

Just choosing food items from the five food groups isn’t going to ensure good health on its own. You can’t have bacon, ice cream, avocados, sweet potatoes, and a big slice of cake and expect to be healthy even though each item is from those food groups! Obviously no one would say that those are healthy food choices even though all five food groups are represented. When you are opting from these five groups be sure to choose the healthy choices from each of the groups.

As an example of this, think of choosing lean meats to get the protein you want without the extra fat and calories of fattier portions of meat. Trimming fat from roast beef or even removing the skin from chicken can aid you with this issue.

As for grains, meaning breads and cereals, you typically want to choose whole grain options rather than refined products. Refined products tend to have their nutrients taken from them when they are refined.

Many bread and cereal products have also been fortified with vitamins and minerals as well. Having fortified products can help your nutritional needs but of course they should never be used in place of a proper diet overall. These products provide great source of calcium to help you bones, teeth, and folic acid that helps women when they are pregnant.

One of the main ways to have a progressing diet is to opt for healthier foods. It is advised that you choose leaner cuts of meat because that is the healthier option. Doing this you will gain the most nutrients and yet still have great tasting foods.

Whatever your reasons for wanting to be healthy and to have a healthy diet, and whatever your goals are as far as fitness is concerned, make sure you understand the basic principles of nutrition. When you completely understand the food groups you will have no problem with staying with your diet. If you want to train for a marathon or boxing match, lose a few pounds or just have more energy, remember that you can use what you know about nutrition to help you for the rest of your life.