The 4 Essentials for Becoming Healthy - Essential #3 Diet - How to Look Good All the Time Just Like Me!

I am sure you have heard it 1000 times and it is very true. You are what you eat. So here is how you eat right.

The importance of a good diet:
Diet is everything when you are talking about being healthy. What you eat is how you fuel yourself and you need to watch make sure that you are consistently filling your body with good fuel.

It is not easy today with our crazy schedules and junk food everywhere. But it is called junk food for a reason. It is made for taste not nutrition and your body needs nutrition to cope with your crazy schedule.

If you are not eating properly, it is really important to modify your diet to take into account what your body needs on a daily basis. The thing about diet is that you cannot see its affects immediately. People eat junk food thinking that they do not feel bad, but the damage always happens from the inside out. By the time you actually see the problems, they have been happening a long time inside of you.

Also, a healthier diet helps you with lowering stress and healing yourself and it makes your skin and hair healthier too. There are no bad reasons for eating right.

You should aim for a balanced diet that includes foods from the three main food groups. Lean proteins, fats and carbohydrates. You need each to make your body function properly. Here is a link to a good site that talks about eating a balanced diet. https://www.healthline.com/health/balanced-diet#Whattoeat4

Dieting:
I am not a big fan of diets because they are short term fixes that rarely work out in the long run. However if you are really overweight you might need to diet until you can get to a manageable weight. But remember it is not about finding the newest and hottest diet each week, it is about changing your lifestyle to a healthy one that you maintain forever.

Here are a few tips for you to follow to help you eat healthier:

Lower your food intake. The reason so many people are overweight is simple, we eat way too much food during the day and especially at one setting. You should use a smaller plate and each time you go to refill it ask yourself if you are still actually hungry anymore. It will take some time but if you keep asking and you are honest and then only eat more when you are hungry, you will eat much less food. Also when you eat more fruits and vegetables you feel more full and eat fewer calories. Try salads if you never have (but watch the dressing which is often filled with fat, salt and sugar).

Stay away from fried and processed food. The simple truth is that when you heat oils to the temperature required for frying it turns into poison. That is a fact and it does not matter eat type of oil you fry with. It all turns to poison. Olive and coconut oils are great, but not for frying. Do not eat fried food.

Steam or quick fry your vegetables in water. You should eat much more vegetable that are not overcooked and filled with oils and fat (yes I understand it is all around you and tastes delicious), and eat fruits in abundance.

Switch Salty or Sweet snacks for fresh fruit This is a tough one. I love Lays potato chips and other salty snacks sold at 7/11. I have to fight with myself sometimes to pass the isle. The truth is I do not always make it. I give myself a little bit of room to cheat but I do not make a habit of it. Eat fruit instead because it will make you feel great and give you energy.

Stay away from too much red meat. Red meat is very hard to digest and stays in your system too long where ti can turn rotten and create cancers. Lean instead toward fish and chicken which is easier to digest. Speaking of lean, lean is the right approach in terms of meat. Cut off the fat and save your life.

Stay away from Starbucks! Ok now you hate me. But the truth is that everything in these coffee shops is not good for you filled with fat and loaded with unnecessary calories. Ok not everything but when you go in there you will be lured into buying something called a Café Chaa Latte Cream Fluffy Chocolato and although it will sound and look wonderful the bottom line is that it has than 1200 calories which is more than you should be eating in a whole meal. So stay out of Starbucks! If you cannot avoid it, at least walk while you drink the thing so you can get some exercise like I talk about in my last post here: https://steemit.com/exercise/@thaicryptokitty/the-4-essentials-for-becoming-healthy-essential-2-exercise-i-make-it-easy-and-promise-you-will-look-like-me-too

I am really fortunate because there is so much fresh fruit and vegetables in Thailand, where I am so it is easier for me. Not sure how things are where you live, but do your best and it will definitely improve your heath and make you feel better too.

Here are links to a few other really healthy things you should consider consuming on a daily basis and why:

Apple Cider Vinegar - http://www.naturallivingideas.com/drinking-apple-cider-vinegar-benefits/

Tumeric - https://authoritynutrition.com/top-10-evidence-based-health-benefits-of-turmeric/

Cinnamon - https://draxe.com/health-benefits-cinnamon/

Grapefruit Pectin: http://www.livestrong.com/article/270531-what-are-the-benefits-of-grapefruit-pectin/. I can personally attest to this food. My mother had very high cholesterol and when she started taking this in a powder from her bad cholesterol went down 30% within 30 days. It comes in a powder you mix with water and drink. It is not available everywhere. If you cannot find it, eat grapefruit or pomelo.

A common discussion point when you read about these foods and that is that they battle inflammation. This is a major problem for many of us and we must be aware of it and how to deal with it. http://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-disease-overview/ask-the-doctor-what-is-inflammation

Eating foods like the ones above helps our busy to fight of inflammation. By the way, everything listed in this section is food and should not interfere with any medications you may be taking. You can also consume pretty good amounts of each with no issues. There is information on how much to take available where you buy it.

Let me say in closing that eating healthier is not easy in the beginning but once you start it , it is a lot of fun and you will feel better and discover how easy it can be over time. The key is to stick with it and if you fall of f the wagon, get back on and start all over. Remember every day is a new day to start a new you. You can do it. I believe in you!

By the way, here are the first two articles in the series. Catch up on them if you have not already:
https://steemit.com/health/@thaicryptokitty/the-4-essentials-for-becoming-healthy-essential-1-drink-water
https://steemit.com/exercise/@thaicryptokitty/the-4-essentials-for-becoming-healthy-essential-2-exercise-i-make-it-easy-and-promise-you-will-look-like-me-too

Eating healthy is a major part of how I stay looking so good. Any you can look even better!

Thanks and as always if you find this article helpful upvote, comment and resteem so others can enjoy. Stay beautiful!

Love ThaiCryptoKitty