A healthy diet is more than a convenient way to optimize your weight; it can also lower your cholesterol and blood pressure, increase your energy, and decrease your risk of type 2 diabetes and other chronic diseases. Despite all the benefits, sticking to a healthy diet can be challenging because of our perception of how it tastes. In some cases, our palates are also conditioned to crave overly sweet and fatty foods instead of the real thing.
If you want to make the most of your diet and eat better for health and wellness, there are plenty of ways to do it. Here's how to get started making your healthy food options taste amazing.
Reframe What Healthy Food Means
Work on eliminating thoughts around guilt for what you "should" or "shouldn't" eat. If you're stuck on the idea that healthy food is "good" but also bland or lacks indulgence, it's time to reframe your thoughts.
Healthy foods can still pack in the flavor but are more about the nutrition and the fuel they bring your body. You can still reach for the cherries, but maybe not the cherry pie to give you a pick-me-up during the day. Think about which foods make you feel incredible and help energize you throughout the day. You can also think of "unhealthy" foods as sometimes food and your healthy options as options to eat any time you want.
Rely on Healthy Meal Plans
Healthy meal plans help take the guesswork out of eating and provide the nutrition you need to succeed. Of course, not all meal plans are created equally.
FitTrax meals are made from scratch by a professional chef with organic ingredients, including grass-fed meat or vegetarian options. Our meals are also macro-friendly to fit athletic to busy lifestyles to meet your needs.
Add Some Flavor
Just because you want to eat healthily doesn't mean you have to skimp on the flavor. You can still add some salt and pepper to improve the taste of your meals and reach for bolder ingredients like garlic and ginger to add some pizazz to your food.
Some healthy foods pair well together to make the most out of their flavor profile. Consider adding sunflower seeds and cranberries to a fresh salad to add an extra crunch with a satisfying sweetness.
Get Creative
There are always creative ways to make your meals look more colorful and add flavor simultaneously. Chive blossoms, lavender, thyme, and red clover are lovely to look at and add unique flavor to your dishes. Make sure any herbs or flowers you add to your food are safe for consumption, as not every part of their plant may be in the clear.
Find an Alternative for Your Favorite Go-To Foods
There's always another option to satisfy your cravings for unhealthy food. Lightly salted kale chips and crunchy celery sticks can often satiate your palate instead of potato chips. Dark chocolate teems with antioxidants and is still a satisfying treat. You'll also find the flavor of healthier brown rice doesn't differ much from its white counterpart, especially when paired with a suitable entree. The more you experiment, the more you view healthy eating as your go-to option.
Turn Unhealthy Food Into a Side Dish
If you have difficulty eliminating unhealthy options from your diet, give them a demotion on your plate to a side dish or small appetizer. Your fried chicken dish can serve as a smaller portion of your meal with a heavier focus on fruits, veggies, and complex carbs. Over time, make the unhealthy option smaller and smaller until you don't even care if it's on your plate or not.
Next Steps
Take the guesswork out of eating delicious, healthy meals with our meal prep service. FitTrax creates macro-friendly meals and dishes with weekly to 21-day meals options. Or choose from our A La Carte option and bulk items to maximize your favorite flavors and nutrients. Get started today.