To keep your figure while remaining healthy, it is important to avoid going through phases of weight gain followed by phases of extreme restrictions and potentially dangerous diets. Because, as you can guess, play yoyo with your weight is bad for your health. It is therefore preferable to find a balance, which is good for your figure and your health, by adopting good eating habits. Here are some tips that will help you achieve this, provided through 11 points:
1. Follow the 80/20 rule
The principle is to have an 80% healthy diet and keeping a small 20% for dietary deviations and to treat yourself from time to time. This helps limit the frustrations linked to a diet that is too “strict”. The 80/20 rule can also be applied as follows: eat only 80% of the usual ration. Which means you should stop eating before you are completely full. You will thus be able to keep in line more easily, by making a small effort which remains very reasonable.
2. Limit your consumption of sugar and salt
Reducing industrial sugar in your diet is a good way to keep fit and stay healthy. To succeed, eat more fruit and less processed foods. You can also replace sugar with natural sweeteners such as Stevia or Agave syrup. As with sugar, it is advisable to limit your salt consumption. On the one hand, salt is responsible for water retention problems and can lead to problems with cellulite. On the other hand, eating salty whets the appetite, as you can see with appetizers which often contain a high level of salt.
3. Consume almonds, hazelnuts or walnuts regularly
Almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts are what we call “miracle foods”. Several scientific studies have demonstrated their benefits. Consuming it regularly reduces your risk of dying prematurely (young) by 20%, protects you against cardiovascular diseases (heart), type 2 diabetes, respiratory diseases and cancers.
Almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts are also excellent appetite suppressants, which makes them the foods of choice for your snacks and to calm your little cravings.
4. Favor fish and lean meats
Did you know that the fattest fish you can find is still even less fatty than any meat ? Furthermore, the little fat present in fish, called Omega 3, is very good for health. However, to vary your diet and eat a little meat alongside fish, choose lean white meats (chicken, skinless turkey) which are less fatty than red meats.
5. Chew well and know how to stop before satiety
It’s harder to feel full and satisfy your hunger when you don’t chew your food enough. In addition, this does not facilitate the work of the stomach, which will be more difficult to digest and break down food. Starches for example (bread, potatoes) are predigested by saliva, then transmitted to the stomach for the next stage of digestion. If you don’t take the time to chew properly and swallow whole, saliva can’t do its job properly.. This results in digestive disorders and heaviness in the stomach. To stay in shape, you must give your body the means to better process the signal of satiety, by eating slowly and taking the time to chew food well. This is also why we recommend eating in peace and avoiding watching television!
6. Limit fatty foods (bad fats)
Prefer steamed potatoes, or mashed potatoes, to fries or crisps. In both cases you get the taste of potatoes and their nutrients without the bad fat and excess calories. Likewise, it is better to eat a fillet of sole than fried fish. The accumulation of bad fats in your body can not only lead to overweight problems, but it leads, in the long term, to very serious health problems: bad cholesterol, venous and vascular problems, heart risks, obesity, etc.
7. Drink water at the right time
Water is life ! It hydrates the body, eliminates toxins, and it also has the advantage of settling the stomach and preventing small hunger pangs between meals. Ideally, we should all drink 1 to 1.5 liters of water per day (4 to 6 glasses of water). But you also have to do it at the right time. It would be better drink before or during your meals. On the other hand, it is not recommended to drink water for 20 minutes after the end of a meal. This is so as not to dilute gastric juices and slow down the digestion process. Also note that drinking one or two glasses of water before eating helps reduce the feeling of hunger and thus avoid eating more than necessary.
8. Stock up on fruits and vegetables
I imagine we don’t teach you anything on this point, but a little reminder doesn’t hurt! To be healthy, you need to eat fruits and vegetables. Stock up on fruits and vegetables! Fruits and vegetables, through their contribution of fiber and vitamins, reduce the risk of developing certain cancers – particularly colorectal cancer – while allowing limit the risks of being overweight.
9. Plan and prepare your meals in advance
To eat well, and to eat healthy as often as possible, good organization is essential. Indeed, you are more likely to make deviations and neglect your diet from the moment you have no idea what you are going to eat, you are hungry, and everything seems appetizing to you. Learn to cook, buy large quantities of fruits and vegetables, prepare your meals in advance and store them in the freezer. You will save money and you will be much healthier. Several scientific studies have revealed that cooking and investing time in preparing meals allows you to eat healthier, be healthier and of stay in shape.
10. Go shopping on a full stomach
By shopping on a full stomach, you will be less prone to compulsive purchases, to gluttony, and to bursting, under the influence of hunger, on foods that are not necessarily good for your health. Going shopping on an empty stomach is also the best way to blow your budget and to buy everything except what we needed when walking through the door of a store or supermarket.