Having an unhealthy diet causes approximately 678,000 deaths in the US each year. Pairing this with a lack of physical activity leads to premature death. If you’re concerned about your nutrition habits or simply would like to better them, then here are some useful methods that can help you plan out your diet so that you are able to live a longer and healthier life.
Include All of the Food Groups
All of the food groups are important to maintaining your overall health. They provide the nutritional balance that your bodies need. The five food groups are thus:
- Grain
- Vegetables and Legumes/Beans
- Fruit
- Dairy
- Protein (meat, fish, eggs, nuts, etc)
In fact, it is so important that many people go on diets every year. Now, some diets allow you to maintain a good balance of all of the food groups. However, some do not. Keto, for example, is completely grain-free, leaves out most fruits, and legumes. Although many people reap the rewards that come from dieting—such as losing weight or positively altering their overall health, there may still be some negative factors.
One such negative factor is the causation of exhaustion and being lethargic. If you feel this way while dieting, the reason is that you aren’t eating the right fuel sources for your body to continue to function. You may even feel this way even if you aren’t dieting if you are simply not eating a balanced diet. Without the fuel sources that come from all five food groups, your body will start to break down. This can lead to the development of many health problems. Your immune system may weaken, causing you to be vulnerable to a variety of diseases. You may even start to have issues with your insulin and end up with type-2 diabetes.
Calculate Your Calorie Needs
Eating right also needs to be paired with increased physical activity. Calculate the number of calories that you need to consume each day in order to reach a healthy weight. This goal needs to be realistic in order for it to be successful. If you’re already at a healthy weight, you just need to maintain it over time. This means that you need to cut out the empty calories from your diet. Junk food may taste good, but it isn’t doing anything for your waistline. With the help of a calorie-counting app, the process of keeping track of this type of information is easy.
Monitor Your Sodium Intake
You can eat all the healthy food that you want but still, have health problems. Too much sodium in your diet is thought to be causing the epidemic of high blood pressure. Many types of processed foods have sodium added to them as a preservative. Eating fresh foods is one of the best ways to avoid having too much sodium in your diet. Another common problem may be your sugar intake. Consuming too much sugar may contribute to the development of diabetes.
Look Into Meal Planning
You may be struggling with creating your own meal plan. Consider using a meal planning service, like Plan 7 Coaching, to help you with your endeavor. They can give you advice and provide you with the assistance that you need. There are lots of meal plans that are available online. Search around so that you can find something that will work with your lifestyle. Your nutritional needs won’t necessarily match the needs of someone else. Take this into account when you’re developing your meal plan.
Don’t be like the thousands of other Americans that are struggling to maintain their weight. Take control of your nutrition planning so that you can live your life to the fullest.
