Secretly we all want just a few things in life, none the least of which is to live a life that is healthy and energetic. One way to accomplish this is to eat a well balanced diet that fuels the body to take on life’s challenges.
Did you know that one of the best things you can do to improve your overall health and well being is to eat a diet that is well rounded and nutritious?
Diet can make the difference between feeling great and feeling just o.k. But how do you know which foods will propel you to health and well being?
Proper nutrition is easy. In fact, all you need to do to ensure your health and well being is follow five simple steps, outlined below.
Top Five Tips for Maintaining Optimal Nutrition
- Eat a well balanced diet. This means you have to incorporate foods from each of the four food groups.
- Adopt the phrase moderation. At no time should you consider some foods ‘bad’ and other foods ‘good’. Rather, all foods can be nourishing if they are eaten in moderation. Chocolate cake will not make you fat if you don’t eat it every day for dinner!
- Take a multi-vitamin. Even the healthiest dieter may not get all of the vitamins and nutrients they need from diet alone. Why? Our bodies aren’t always able to absorb nutrients efficiently from the foods we eat. Thus it is important to take a multi-vitamin and mineral supplement daily.
- Get enough sleep. Sleep deprivation can wreak havoc on your diet, and even contribute to weight gain.
- Exercise daily. Even 10 minutes of routine exercise can help your body maintain its peak fitness level.
Excessive consumption of alcohol can also wreak havoc on your diet. Alcohol inhibits the body’s ability to absorb vital nutrients, such as calcium. In addition, alcohol in the evening can interfere with your sleep cycle.
Other things you can do to improve you nutrition include incorporating lean proteins and fish into your diet. Fatty fishes including salmon provide key nutrients called “essential fatty acids” which help your brains abilityto function properly.
Nutrition is a choice. For you to be the healthiest person you can be, it is vital that you make choices that are good for you and your well being. Adopting just a couple of the strategies above will help you tremendously on your journey toward optimal health.
Secrets to Healthy Weight Gain
There is so much emphasis on weight loss in todays culture that it is easy for people to forget that many out there are actually people out there trying to gain weight, not lose it.
Childhood Obesity
Along with the increase of obesity in adult, childhood obesity is on the rise. Around 15.5 percent of adolescents in the United States, aged 12 to 19 are obese. Even more alarming, about 15.3 percent of children ages 6 to 11 are obese. These children are developing Type II Diabetes and high blood pressure at an early age. They are placing themselves at increased risk for heart disease and other obesity-related diseases. Their weight also makes them the target of bullies and children who insult and taunt them about their weight. This can ruin their self-esteem and put them at risk for depression.
Calculating Your Calorie Needs
In order to eat fewer calories than you need, you have to determine how many calories you actually need. Adults can calculate their approximate energy needs using the following formula:
