If you’ve resolved to establish healthy eating habits this year, then you might have found that it’s much more difficult than it seems. This is because habits can require a lot of time and dedication to form, so it’s important to make sure you’re on the right track as you navigate the first few months of the year. Here are some steps to keep in mind as you find the healthy habits that work best for you.
Take stock of your lifestyle
Positive change doesn’t always happen immediately, so assessing your lifestyle and eating habits can be a great first step in creating new habits. Most importantly, this includes being honest about factors like how often you eat out, the kinds of foods you reach for when you want a snack, and the kinds of unhealthy foods you regularly stock in your kitchen. Then, you can begin to cut out the harmful foods and habits you find yourself indulging in. Not only can adjusting these factors be good for your body, but they can be good for your wallet as well.
Keep a journal
Although it doesn’t need to be extremely detailed, making note of your eating habits throughout the day can be helpful when beginning to address areas where you can improve. This provides a baseline for what negative eating habits you might have, including times of the day when you reach for unhealthy snacks, tendencies towards emotional eating, and how often you dine out. This can also be extremely helpful in tracking your progress and rewarding yourself for healthy habits.
Begin meal prepping
If you haven’t already begun this lifestyle, then a new year is a great time to start. Not only does this method help you eat healthy, but it can save a lot from your wallet and your schedule. The method includes preparing separate healthy, well-rounded meals to be eaten throughout the week so that cooking each day isn’t necessary. One obstacle to maintaining healthy eating habits is having to regularly prepare meals, which can be time-consuming and difficult with a busy schedule, leading to the tendency to eat out or reach for processed foods. Meal prepping can make it easy to access your meals and stick to a diet of healthy foods.
Schedule a Consultation
Changing your eating habits for the better can be very difficult and even more difficult to know where to start. Dr. Louis Balsama is a bariatric surgeon in the south New Jersey area who advocates for a healthy lifestyle with healthy eating habits. To begin discussing your options and goals, contact our office by calling or filling out our online form.
