If you’re currently not eating an overly healthy diet, it can feel difficult to start. However, healthy eating, along with running, is very important for maintaining good bodily functions and living a disease-free life. If you struggle with healthy eating, then you know that breaking the unhealthy habits can be the most difficult part of the process. Therefore, if you genuinely want to live the best lifestyle possible, it is important to follow these tips to start eating a healthier diet.

Now I know we’ve all heard this one, but truly the first step when you want to start eating your way to a healthy lifestyle is to rid your home of all temptations that will distract you from following better eating habits. Ideally it would be a wise course to keep junk food and beverages out of your house so as not to be tempted to snack during the day. If you’re worried about getting hungry, keep healthy snacks like carrot/cucumber/capsicum sticks, yoghurt, fresh fruit, or wholemeal crackers on hand. If you find that you just cannot bear to toss out the sweets, try keeping something on hand, like Lindt 80% dark chocolate, or Peak Chocolate. Eating a few, (emphasis on few) of these won’t ruin your diet but also will give you that little sweet fix you crave.

Another great step to healthy eating, when you’re first starting the process, is to take a few moments to learn what foods are the healthiest for you and how they work within the body. To start eating healthily we must begin by thinking healthily. Most people understand that fruits, vegetables, and quality meats and dairy products are good for you, but few people understand why. The key is learning about nutrients. When you understand how specific nutrients work and why you need them, it becomes more reasonable for you to make healthier choices for your body. Knowledge really is power! Stay tuned for future articles that will cover all of this!

Preparation is a major key in commencing a new healthy diet. You must take into consideration your schedule for meals. If you often eat in a rushed hurry at odd times of day, you are probably more inclined to grab a rushed meal which will probably do more harm than good. So plan ahead! Instead of grabbing a fast food lunch on the go, take a prepped lunch to work, complete with a healthy wrap and some fresh fruit and vegetables. Remember not to forget your evening meal, a simple plan to have a meal ready before you get home would be perfect, but in our fast-paced lifestyle, sometimes this just can’t be done. One way to solve this problem is to plan out your evening meals for the week on the weekend. Perhaps just before you do your weekly shopping. Another warning: when going to the shops, do not venture there hungry because if you're anything like Ron, you can convince yourself that one or two chocolate bars won’t hurt! That becomes the first break in your healthy eating. If you want help, I can plan all of your meals and snacks, complete with recipes. Click here<< to find out more!

Initially some may find it difficult to make these necessary changes to healthier eating. Along with the difficulty of change, you may not feel well for a short period of time. Usually this is normal as your body is adjusting to your new and improved lifestyle and is cleansing itself from the unhealthy toxins built up from poor eating habits. However, if this feeling continues or you are worried a visit to your doctor would be the correct thing to do.

Start with baby steps. Even if you only replace one soft drink a day with a glass of water, you are really improving your health. If you eat fast food every day for lunch, try replacing that half of the time with better quality foods. When you start by taking small steps you aren’t cutting out all of the foods you love all at once. By taking your time to learn about your eating habits and slowly replacing them with better meals, by taking the time to learn and understand why you should be doing that and making the necessary changes in an orderly fashion, you will feel much better within yourself physically, mentally and emotionally and well on the road to becoming as healthy as you can be.