I am sure when you hear the word “nutrition” the idea of diets come to mind. You are already starting to resent all that work you need to do because you have done it before. That is how you know that there will be a lot of pain, work and food restriction ahead of you.
To be honest with you, you are correct. There will be work and your discipline muscles need to be strong but there is a way to make the work sustainable. Imagine a life where you know what foods to eat and never have to second guess if what you’re eating will derail you from your goal.
There is nothing wrong with having a meal plan but as you know, it can get boring. If your food gets boring you tend to leave it. Just like any relationship, if your friend becomes boring eventually you find other people to hangout with. This is the same with your food.
Now the question is “How do we keep food exciting but still stay on track with our goals?”.
When I first started with my nutrition I was like you. Following the same meal plan almost every year because it worked...until it didn’t. I was in this cycle of fit to unfit then fit again. I wanted to get off this ride but I still desired to live healthy so I came up with a set of rules.
These rules I follow became a big part of my foundation of fitness. Now I am able to eat what I like and never have to eat bland food again.
And here they are. The 3 rules that will keep you on track.
1. Change your environment so it supports your goal.
Do you ever just have chocolate bars or snack lying around in your home. You walk pass by it any you have to use will power to resist. Guess what? That will power you used is extra energy that you could be using to think of healthy recipes or other important things like family time. If that snack was not there in the first place then you would be conserving energy throughout the day.
Action Step: Clear your home of foods that do not support your goal. Get them out.
2. Always have a serving of veggies.
Vegetables play a big part in our daily intake. Not only are they rich in vitamins, which will keep your bodily functions well to do work, but they keep you satiated. The main reason why we reach for unhealthy foods is because our bodies lack vitamins. Having a serving of vegetables in each of your meals is a grate practice to adapt so you don’t have to use will power to say no to food that don’t support your goal.
Action Step: Pick 1 vegetable you love and add it into one of your daily meals.
3. Be prepared.
You have heard of the saying “If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail”. Think about it, if you do not have the food prepared then when you come home from work you will be inclined to go to a fast food joint. The reason being is because your brain is tired and requires vitamins. The next best source of vitamins will be from a restaurant since it does not require you to cook. Cooking takes energy which you lack after work.
Action step: Prep your food so when you come home from a long day of work it will be there for you. Now that you know the last I want you to be is an information junkie. Information is powerful but if unused it is useless. Take action, implement these rules in your life. Only by applying will it become it become permanent and that is what a habit is.