5 Tips for Eating Clean

Eating clean means making sure you choose the healthiest option in each food group. In order to eat clean, you need to know what your food is made of, and if possible, making sure you consume it in its natural form. In case you want to start living healthier, but aren’t sure exactly what to change in your diet, here are five great tips for eating clean.

Stock Up On Fresh Produce

The type of diet that you’re following doesn’t really matter, you’ll always need to stock up on fresh produce. This is the golden rule of proper nutrition, as your body needs fresh fruits and vegetables in order to function properly. You can’t get this amount of minerals, vitamins, and other crucial nutrients from other types of food. Not to mention that eating fresh produce is much healthier and more natural than taking supplements. Many people don’t eat as much fruits and veggies as they should. In order to make sure that you do, you’ll need to bring some variety into your dishes. The best way to do this is to learn when certain fruits and veggies are in season, since that’s when they’ll taste better. If you have a garden, you can also plant some herbs and spices. This will not only provide you with a fun, new hobby, but it will also help encourage you to eat healthier by giving you the option to consume foods straight out of your garden.

Limit Processed Foods

It can be pretty hard to avoid processed foods. Almost all of the snacks you can purchase in your local supermarket are filled with too much fat, sodium, and sugar. Processed foods are basically any foods that have been altered in some way, either for convenience or safety reasons. The main difference between eating processed foods and preparing something at home from scratch is that when you’re preparing something, you know how much sugar and salt you’re adding into the food. However, it’s important to note that just because a food is processed doesn’t mean that it’s unhealthy. For example, milk has to be processed (more specifically, pasteurized) in order to remove harmful bacteria from it. However, when excess fat, sugar, and salt gets added to foods in order to make them tastier and prolong their shelf life, it may cause you to develop some health problems. Consuming a large amount of unhealthy, processed foods can lead to a higher risk of heart disease or cancer.

Focus On The Nutrients

A lot of people make the mistake on focusing on calories instead of nutrients when they start dieting. However, you need to remember not to get caught up in the numbers game too much. Instead, focus on the nutritional value the food you’re eating holds. Just because a certain food is low in calories doesn’t make it healthy. Although you should make sure you’re not consuming too many calories, it’s much more important to pay attention to the nutritional value of foods you’re eating. One surefire way to consume all the essential nutrients while keeping your calorie count low is to stock up on fresh produce.

Don’t Be Too Strict

Remember that it’s completely okay to have a cheat meal sometimes. If you’re diet is too strict, then you might end up dreading all of the meals that you eat. In order to keep them on the right track, many people take one day out of each month to indulge in some unhealthy food that they enjoy.

Drink More Water

Drinking water is all you need to feel better sometimes. By drinking 8-10 glasses of water each day, you will feel healthier and energized, which will motivate you to eat clean. Unfortunately, many people consider water ‘boring’ due to the extremely high number of flavored drinks that are available. However, it is an essential nutrient that should never be overlooked.