Living a healthy lifestyle seems like a challenge, especially when you are a busy mom, but it doesn’t have to be! When you make small changes to your daily routine, it will have a big impact on your health and the health of your family in the long run. You don’t have to go out for sweets, carbs, food, or go without any of your favorite foods to get results! In fact, I would argue that in order to be truly successful, you need to include all of these.
Below, I’m going to share with you some of the top tips I show my busy mom clients. These tips helped these modern mothers achieve their goals of leading healthier lifestyles, losing weight, and being the best version of themselves. You can do it too! With a few simple changes to your daily routine, you will see how easy it can be to achieve your goals.
Tip 1: follow the MyPlate method
This method is a great mealtime tool that will help you maintain a more balanced diet. Cover half of your plate with vegetables, a quarter with egg whites, and a quarter with carbohydrates. This is a great starting point for many trying to be healthier!
The portions vary from person to person because every body is different, all goals are different, and every starting point is different! However, practicing this method with meals is a great start to achieving your goals.
The best thing about this method is that it can be used on children too! With this method we can set a good example for our children when we achieve our goals!
Tip # 2: eat right
Eating out is fun and you don’t have to sacrifice that to be healthy. You can eat out, order your favorite foods and still pursue your goals. You no longer have to stick to just ordering salads. Salads are healthy and tasty, but if you crave pasta then order the pasta! I’ll show you how at the end of this tip! Here are a few different ways you can incorporate your favorite foods into your meals while you are still healthy:
Option 1:
You can share a plate with your friend, colleague or family member while you eat out. This will decrease your serving size, which in turn will decrease your calorie intake, decrease your fat intake depending on what you ordered, AND let you stand still and enjoy your favorite dishes. When eating out, a single dish can contain anywhere from 2 to 4 servings of food. So sharing is always a good idea!
Option 2:
You can order an appetizer that includes veggies like lettuce, edamame, cucumber-wrapped sushi, or Brussels sprouts, to name a few. This will help you finish your vegetable servings for that meal and increase your fullness so that you are less likely to overeat during the meal.
Option 3:
If possible, limit your eating to 1-2 times a week. While we are able to eat out and lose weight, home-cooked meals are always healthier because you can control what is in them. It’s important to remember that what we do more often affects our health. When we eat out every day, it becomes more difficult to achieve our goals. Eat and enjoy your favorite foods, just not every day!
Now back to the pasta example! If you are dining out with a friend, the options above let you order the pasta and the other a salad. Divide the dishes so that you can decrease your caloric intake, decrease your fat intake, and increase your vegetable servings, since pasta is usually not very vegetable. Now you can enjoy your pasta with no guilt!
Tip # 3: Lower the calories in your coffee
Sometimes your daily coffee contains extra or hidden calories. Plain black coffee can be boring. To lose weight and keep it off your diet must be fun or you will eventually want to stop. You have to enjoy what you eat and drink
so that you are successful in the long term! Here are some nutritious tips to make your coffee taste great and help you achieve your weight loss goals:
- Add 1 tablespoon of Coffee Mate low-fat vanilla milk jug for a delicious 25-calorie cup of coffee.
- Add one of the PRI squares of salted caramel manuka honey to a cup of coffee, stir while it melts in it, and enjoy a flavourful cup of coffee that’s only 36 calories and low in carbs. Manuka honey is a great low-calorie, healthy alternative to sugar or other sweeteners and is great for your everyday coffee!
- Add almond extract and vanilla to your black coffee to spice things up!
- Add 1-2 teaspoons of cinnamon and some steamed non-fat milk for a cup of coffee that is frothy and delicious.
Do A little change TODAY and see how easy it can be to get BIG results too!
We can all make 100 changes to our lifestyle or diet, but if you focus on too many at once it will be difficult to keep up with all of them, especially when you are already that busy with your kids. The biggest recommendation I can make is to focus on just ONE small change you want to make, master them by making it a new habit, and then picking your next small change.
That’s the secret to getting long-term results, the LAST! You can do that! Start now!
—————————————–
Author: Sandy Younan Brikho, MDA, RDN
Registered dietitian
The dish about nutrition