1. Plan Ahead

​

One thing that will help you as you begin is to plan the meals you'd like to make in advance. Plan out each day and each meal and write down the groceries associated with each recipe.

​

Get inspired by browsing recipes on the web, by reading recipes from healthy lifestyle bloggers or by scrolling through pinterest. Pick a couple of your favorites, print them out and give them a try!

 

Try to choose recipes that have similar or overlapping ingredients. This can help cut down on spending and save you time on meal preparation.

​

Go to the grocery store with a plan. This prevents you from buying food outside of your plan, which reduces food waste and saves you money. Writing your plan in advance allows you to check your pantry and refrigerator for ingredients you may already have before going to the store. This prevents you from buying ingredients you already have and you can plan your meals around these ingredients.

​

Besides buying ingredients for your recipes, it is a good idea to have items like brown rice + quinoa in your pantry along with beans and nuts. These items are able to be stored for longer periods of time and are available in a pinch. You may also want a couple bags of frozen vegetables for convenience.

​

2. Be mindful of your plate:

 

Daily Servings

Vegetables: 3-4 servings

Fruits: 1-2 serving

Grains: 1-2 servings

Fats and nuts: 2 servings

Protein: 1 serving

​

Half of your plate should be made up of vegetables.

​

A serving of fruit is one cup of raw fruit, 1 cup of 100% fruit juice or 1/2 cup of dried fruit. One serving of strawberries is only 49 calories and does not put you off track. 

​

Stay away from processed foods, especially processed grains like white bread. Choose unprocessed grains like oats, brown rice or quinoa.

​

Fats should be healthy fats like avocado and nuts. Other healthy fats include oils like olive oil or grapeseed oil along with coconut and coconut oil.

​

3. Eliminate + Replace

​

Eliminate common allergens and unhealthy ingredients.

 

Wheat/ gluten

 

Dairy

 

Refined Sugar

 

Alcohol

 

Soy and Corn

​

Replace wheat + gluten with brown rice and vegetable noodles like spaghetti squash + zucchini noodles.

​

Try dairy free options like almond milk and nutritional yeast.

​

Trade boxed and packaged foods for farm fresh fruits and vegetables. 

​

4. Stay hydrated:

 

Drink enough water so you use the bathroom a couple times a day.

​

5. Eat fiber-rich foods:

 

Include leafy green salad, beans, aloe juice, warm lemon water, or green vegetable juices.

​

6. Use probiotics:

 

This supplement helps restore healthy bacteria levels to encourage natural stress relief and healthy bowel movements. Probiotics are good bacteria that can help you digest food and alkalize your gut to a healthy environment. Purchase it at your local natural food store.

​

7. Meal Prep:

 

Designate an hour in the kitchen early each week (or the weekend before) to do all your food 'prep' – chopping veggies, grilling meats, cooking brown rice/quinoa, etc.That way dinner time is quick and easy throughout the week!

​