If you have been trying to eat healthier as a lifestyle change to lose weight, gain energy, improve focus, etc., but aren’t seeing the results, you may not be eating the right kinds of foods. Are you confident that your fridge and pantry is stocked with healthy food? How can you be sure? Let’s address these issues and questions one at a time.
What Are the Right Kinds of Food?
Healthy foods are foods that are dense with nutrients. If a food is nutrient dense that means that there is a high amount of vitamins and minerals per the total serving of calories. Foods that are highest in nutrients are WHOLE FOODS such as animal meat (including organs), fruit, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. If a food is naturally vibrant in color, it’s most likely dense in healthful nutrients.
What Are Junk Foods?
On the flip side, I’m sure you’ve heard the term “empty calories,” right? Empty calories mean the food has calories but does not have any significant nutritional content. These are also called “junk food.” Some examples of junk food would be chips, pretzels, candy, and soda. They all have carbohydrates but only processed ingredients with little to no vitamin or mineral content.
You might be thinking, “I know what a “junk food” is and I don’t have any of that in the house and I still can’t seem to lose weight, have energy to stuff, or focus on important things. Well… you might have some sneaky junk food pretending to be “health food” without realizing it.
Even foods that are labeled as “health foods” can be highly processed, with added sugar, artificial ingredients, and preservatives, all of which are associated with weight gain and other side effects.
Rule of Thumb
If it comes in a bag or a bag within a box, it’s most likely not healthy.
How to Identify what IS Healthy
We established healthy foods are foods that are high in nutrient content and are WHOLE FOODS. Whole Foods are in their natural form and have not been broken down into separate ingredients or have any added ingredients. For example, an apple is a fruit. Nothing taken out, nothing added. No nutrition label because an apple is an apple and that’s it.
What other Healthy WHOLE FOOD Options are There?
Since we’re talking about the most nutrient dense foods as your healthy food options, there are some other packaged foods you can buy that still have whole food ingredients, you’ll just have to look at the nutrition label.
What to Look for on the Nutrients Label
The INGREDIENTS LIST is the best indicator of whether or not your food is actually healthy. If there are ingredients included that you wouldn’t purchase and eat by itself, it’s not the healthiest thing. Choose convenient foods that have real whole food ingredients.
Did This Help You? Then Check Out My Video Below
If you liked the content in this article, you should check out my training video on how to stay fit on-the-go for busy professionals.
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