Eating healthy can help you lose weight and have more energy. It can also improve your mood and reduce your risk of disease. Yet despite these benefits, maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle can be challenging.
Here are 4 ways to stick to a healthy diet.
- Start With Realistic Expectations
Eating a nutritious diet has many benefits, including potential weight loss. However, it’s important to set realistic expectations. For example, if you pressure yourself to lose weight too quickly, your plan to achieve better health may backfire.
Researchers found that obese people who expected to lose a lot of weight were more likely to drop out of a weight loss program within 6–12 months.
Setting a more realistic and achievable goal can keep you from getting discouraged and may even lead to greater weight loss.
- Think About What Really Motivates You
Remembering why you’re making healthy choices can help you stay on course. Making a list of specific reasons why you want to get healthier can be helpful. Keep this list handy and refer to it when you feel you need a reminder.
- Carry Healthy Snacks
Sticking to a healthy diet can be tough when you’re away from home for extended periods. When you get too hungry on the go, you may end up grabbing whatever is available.
This is often processed food that doesn’t really satisfy hunger and isn’t good for you in the long run.
Having healthy high-protein snacks on hand can help keep your appetite in check until you’re able to have a full meal.
- Exercise And Change Diet At The Same Time
You may have heard you shouldn’t change too many things at once when trying to improve your health. In general, this is good advice.
Still, research shows that when you make both dietary and physical activity changes at the same time, the results tend to reinforce each other. In a study in 200 people, those who began eating a healthy diet and exercising at the same time found it easier to maintain these behaviors than those who started with either diet or exercise alone, then added the other later.
Source:Healthline.com
