Here are a few guidelines I like to stick to on eating healthy. Some of them you might have not heard before. Here we go:

DO!

• Eat Breakfast
  • Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You need to feed your body nutrients and energy for the day. Plus, you have probably been asleep for the night which is 6, 8, 10 hours of NO NUTRIENTS. (p.s. if you are skipping breakfast to cut calories, you are hurting yourself out because you did not jump start your metabolism for the day.)
• Include All Food Groups in Meals
  • Every food group offers a number of nutrients and enzymes to benefit your body. You want protein, vitamins, minerals, carbs, and fat to build/repair muscle tissue, cleanse your system, fight viruses, provide energy, digest foods, etc.

• Drink Water Throughout the Day
  • Water is very important for digesting, cleansing, flushing, and hydrating. Drink 2 cups of water when you wake up to help start your system, a cup before and after meals, as well as throughout the day. (p.s. I read drinking a cup of water 10 mins before your shower lowers blood pressure.. so I do that haha)
• Choose Whole Grain & Wheat Over White
  • Don’t just eat empty calorie bread. Wheat and whole grain breads offer fiber which is vital for digestion. Fiber also gives a sense of fullness which is good for you snackers. (p.s. more fiber = more water intake)
• Consume Protein Within 30min After Your Workout
  • The first 30 minutes after your work out, you are in the Anabolic Window. This is the time your body needs fast protein. Whey protein is very helpful because it’s fast to make and fast acting (20-30min)
• Stick Towards Raw Produce Rather than Cooked
  • When you cook your produce, you are not just cooking the food. You are also cooking out some of the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals the produce had when you first bought it.
• Eat the Skins
  • Save time! I have seen this all the time when I was little and still want to smack someone when I see this happen today, (children). Foods like apples, pears, nectarines, peaches etc. have skins that harbor most of the vitamins and minerals IN THE SKIN! It tastes just as good and you are keeping your fruit from oxidizing as fast AND getting the most out of your food.

DON’T

• Eat Out
  • I don’t need to explain this one, right? Cool
• Choose Cereals w/More than 12grams Sugar
  • I stick to this because of a study I read a few years back where high sugar cereals provoke acne activity. I feel like it is also a good rule to stick to because you are not eating cereal for dessert or as a treat. It’s a snack or meal that provides fiber, carbs, vitamins, and with milk, calcium. Stay on track and stick to some awesome Cheerios! Doesn’t have to be that bland but also spice it up with some banana slices, sliced fruit, maybe a little drizzle of honey.
• Buy Foods w/High Sodium Content
  • Sodium is bad for our body in excess. Packaged foods, quick meals, microwave meals, and preserved foods are full of sodium to keep the food fresh/edible. The amount of sodium and probably fat, sugar, outweigh the nutrients advertised on the front of the box.
• Eat Foods w/More than 30% Fat
  • This honestly is a rule I learned in middle school and went with and have heard it in future health classes.
• Drink Soda
  • This is like eating out. It’s just bad. The sugar content in soda is so high and bad for your body. People go as extreme as to only drink water and milk because of the sugar content in juice. If you are a big soda drinker, cut it out for 2 weeks and see if your body has improved at all.
• Drink Energy Drinks
  • Energy drinks are just as bad as soda in the sugar category, only energy drinks contain harmful chemicals and chemicals that in high doses are bad for you. For instance, the high sugar breaks down bone structure and muscle tissue. The amount of niacin for energy kills your creatine levels which are vital for building and repairing muscle tissue.

• Start the Day w/Poor Food Choice
  • Starting the day with a bad meal or food choice influences and raises the chance for another poor food choice later in the day. Before you know it, you ate one good food choice and the rest BAD. That was a little over exaggerated, but watch yourself when you are cheating. You will end up finding the worse excuses and feel bad later in the day.