Implementing healthy lifestyle changes can be overwhelming. Changing everything at once can be difficult, often leading to diet burnout. By starting with simple changes to commonly consumed foods, you can easily begin the process of overhauling your diet.
Coffee Creamer
Replace artificially flavored creamers with vanilla almond milk to slim down your morning coffee. This easy trade will cut calories and provide nutrients lacking in most sweetened creamer options. Even fat or sugar-free creamer options are often little more than oils and thickening agents.
Cereal Add-In
Instead of milk, opt to mix low-fat Greek yogurt with your cereal. Greek yogurt offers double the protein of milk, making this an easy way to boost your protein intake. As an added bonus, protein makes you feel full longer, making the energy from your morning meal go further.
Sandwich Spread
Swap out mayo for hummus on sandwiches. Not only will you significantly boost your fiber intake, but you’ll also cut calories. Hummus has around a quarter of the calories contained in full-fat mayo.
Salad Topper
Skip the empty carbs from croutons and add sunflower seeds, toasted walnuts, or chopped almonds for crunch. Chunks of crisp apples or chewy cranberries can add texture to your greens. These options all provide a nutrient boost not provided by grain-based toppings.
Rice
Instead of white rice, go with brown or wild rice. While white rice is refined, both brown and wild rice are whole grains, meaning that they contain the bran and germ, which have been removed from white rice. While this won’t cut calories, whole grains provide additional fiber that keeps you full for longer and added vitamins and minerals.
Noodles
Forget the white noodles and go with a healthier option. Zucchini or spaghetti squash noodles are a healthier way to go. You’ll boost nutrient intake and cut calories. But if you simply have to have your pasta, at least be sure to go with a whole-grain variety to boost fiber intake.
Through simple swap-outs, you can save calories and boost nutrient intake. Once you’ve made these changes a part of your lifestyle, work on making additional changes. By focusing on a few areas of your diet at a time you can eventually make major overhauls without feeling overwhelmed all at once.