Tips That Will Help You To Cook Healthier - Starting Today

 

Do you want to try and eat healthier? Then this guide will tell you everything that you need to know in order to get started.

Make a Plan

If you do not have a plan for what you are going to eat, then you may find that you draw blanks when it comes to cooking dinner or lunch. For some people, planning out meals means writing down a menu or even a shopping list for the week. For others, it may be something as simple as having a few sticky notes with things like “pasta night” or “taco night”. Either way, it doesn’t matter what your process is because it helps to have a plan so that you can figure out what you want to make. This will help you to set yourself up for success, and it will also help you to avoid going for a takeaway just because there’s nothing in you fancy.

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Eat More Vegetables

Did you know that on average, only 14% of adults eat the right amount of fruit or vegetables? This means that over 80% of people are not getting enough fresh produce. At the end of the day, fruit and vegetables are very rich in antioxidants, and they are also very rich in fibre and minerals too. It’s highly recommended that you eat around 2 cups of fruit and 3 cups of vegetables a day. This can seem difficult, but when you think about cooking, you just need to make sure that your fresh produce is the star of the show. This may mean that you need to make a fruit smoothie in the morning or that you need to have a big salad for lunch. You might also want to stuff a squash for dinner, or use vegetables as noodles. You can do this by using a spiraliser. If you want to really take things to that next level, then you can look up the best herbs for improving health with ease.

 Choose Whole Grain

You need to do everything you can to pick whole grains over refined grains. If you can do this just 50% of the time, then you can easily boost your health. At the end of the day, whole grains such as brown rice or even bulgur wheat are ideal as they keep the bran intact. This means that they have much more fibre and vitamin B. They’re also packed with magnesium, zinc and various other nutrients. If you can, you need to try quinoa, oats, wheat pasta and barley as your side dish. If you are a fan of soup, then you can easily incorporate this into them.

Mix up the Protein

Meat is a fantastic source of protein, but the problem is that it is usually served in very large portions. A serving of protein is around 3oz cooked, or around 4oz if it’s raw. At the end of the day, this isn’t much more than a pack of cards. You don’t need to go hungry though because you can easily fill up your plate with healthy fruit and vegetables. There are tons of vegetarian proteins out there if you want to add more protein to your existing diet.

Cook with Flavor

Believe it or not, some of the healthiest diets in the world are actually Mediterranean and Japanese. They are very rich in vegetables, and they also tend to skip out on packaged foods. If you don’t want your food to be bland, then you can easily use spices such as curry powder. You can also use herbs such as basil or thyme. Limiting your salt intake is also a very good thing to do. Thai cuisine and Greek salads are very good for you and they are very easy to make at home. If you haven’t explored the idea of cooking foods like this, then you will certainly want to give it a go if you can.

Keep your Portions Reasonable

Even healthy foods, when you pile them onto your plate, are not always good for you. You don’t need to measure out every single bite that you put in your mouth, but you do need to have a good idea of what a healthy portion is before you even begin to plate up your meal. You also need to make sure that you are not eating more than you intended.

Add Some Healthy Fats

One misconception that a lot of people have is that fat is bad for you. This isn’t true. Low-fat diets are not always healthy for you. Fat is very filling, and it also helps you to absorb things such as Vitamin A, E, D and K. On top of this, it tastes very good. If you can, you need to try and opt for unsaturated fats. This can include olive oil, avocado or even nuts.

Limit Sugar or Salt

Most people eat way more sugar or salt than they should every day. If you have too much of either, this can put you at a huge level of risk. You may find that you experience high blood pressure and that you also experience heart disease too. If possible, you need to eat less than 6 teaspoons of sugar a day. This includes maple syrup, honey, brown sugar and white sugar. Check the labels on your food and also make a special effort to use any sweeteners sparingly whenever you cook. For salt, you have to make sure that you don’t eat more than 2,300mg of sodium a day. Sodium tends to be in processed foods the most, so make the effort to avoid foods like this if you want to reduce your intake. This will help you to be healthy, and it will also make it much easier for you to live a much healthier lifestyle. If you need some help with your salt intake, then cook from scratch and use spices so that you can add flavour to your food without reaching for the sodium. This will help you to be way healthier in no time at all.