Making Eating Healthy Simple

Simply, it is most important to understand what your body needs to get from the food you eat. If you can get the balance right, it’ll be easier to maintain a healthy lifestyle and fuel your training, work, home life and social life. 

To eat healthy, there are three things to consider: the types of foods you eat, how much, and how often you should eat. Once you understand the best way to eat for yourself, you can be confident that you are providing your body with optimal nutrition to fuel your daily activities, as well as your training. 

Variety is key

Eating healthy means including a wide variety of foods, from each of the five food groups.  

Choosing a variety of nutritious foods throughout the week can help to ensure sufficient intake of all the macronutrients and micronutrients the body needs. Eating a variety of foods will provide you with the energy to get through your day, increase your quality of life and even help you to live longer as it reduces your risk of developing chronic diseases.

So what are the five food groups? Vegetables and legumes (beans and lentils); fruit; grains (ideally wholegrain or high fiber varieties); lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts and seeds and legumes/beans; dairy and alternatives.The groups represent foods that provide similar amounts of the key nutrients the body needs to be healthy. For example, vegetables provide lots of vitamins and minerals as well as fiber for very little calories, and dairy foods (and their alternatives) are a good source of protein, calcium and vitamin D.  

Depending on your age, basal metabolic rate and activity levels, you’ll need different amounts of each food group. However, generally speaking, most of us need roughly 2 servings of fruit, 5 servings of vegetables, 4-6 servings of grains, 2-3 servings of protein and 3-4 servings of dairy each day. 

The simplest way to eat the correct amount and serving is to focus on balancing your plate and portion sizes. Ideally, each meal should obtain a protein, carb and fat source. By doing this, you will be able to obtain the nutrients you need and be on track to meet your goals. 

“A healthy outside, starts from the inside.”