Whilst there are many things we can do to make us look and feel great, few are as simple as making healthy choices. Eating well does not have to be complex or confusing. By following these 3 simple steps you can supercharge your diet and your looks.
1. Eat more plants
We live in a world where healthy convenience food is considered a muesli bar, rice cakes or diet coke – and not an apple or a handful of nuts. But the truth is that glowing, supermodel skin is within reach if you are willing to eat your veggies.
Vegetables contain plenty of the good stuff like fibre, antioxidants and vitamins which actively work to rejuvenate and detox your entire body – from you intestines to your skin.
At least 50% of your diet should come from plant-based whole foods like vegetables and fruit. The current recommendation is for Aussie’s to eat a whopping five serves of veg per day. That is a huge amount of vegetables when a serve is the size of your fist! So if you missing vegetables at more than one meal time, chances are you are not eating enough plants.
Extra hint: Want to live longer and be leaner? Studies show that people who manage to chow down 5-10 serves of vegetables per day live much longer and leaner than the rest of us.
2. Count colours, not calories
Forget what you have previously been told. When it comes to nutrition, it is far more important to count the number of colours on your plate than the calories on a packet.
The colour of food hints at the nutrients inside. For example, the nutrients packed inside an orange are very different from the nutrients in spinach leaves. By aiming to get at least three different colours at each meal, you can help ensure you are filling up on all of your nutrients.
If you’re looking to lose weight, then the best thing you can do is pile your plate high with loads of colourful vegetables. Colourful food like fruit and vegetables tend to have less energy than colourless junk food like hot chips.
3. Actively love your body
Does your best friend often complain that you are too fat, ugly or stupid? Does she remind you that ‘you shouldn’t be eating that piece of cake’ because you are getting a bit chubby?
Fingers crossed this is not the case. Chances are you are too savvy to hold onto any ‘friend’ who talks smack about you like that. So let ask you, why do you still talk to yourself like that?
We all have an inner mean girl dialogue. This inner voice plays on our insecurities, reminding us of our imperfections and knows how to hit us where it hurts.
Let’s get something straight, sister. Your inner mean girl is sabotaging your health and your good looks by constantly focusing on the negatives. The result is either guilt, sadness or anger – emotions that make us vulnerable to emotional eating, poor willpower and cravings. Truth is that people who feel happy and confident are far more likely to achieve their health goals.
Just like your friends and family need to be told that they are loved, your body also needs to be told that it is fine – just the way it is. Next time your inner mean girl decides to speak up, acknowledge her presence and then tell her you have decided to accept your body (even if it is imperfect). Decide to think other thoughts and then actively praise your body.
Accept that your body is flawed and always will be, but love it anyway.
Lyndi Polivnick is The Nude Nutritionist, a dietician and nutritionist based in Sydney, Australia. She is also a proud supporter of a world-wide movement in promoting back to basics cooking for the next generation, through her work as one of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution Ambassadors. Her approach to health and wellness is fad-free, utilising wholefoods, moderation and Health At Every Size (HAES). As an expert in nutrition, body image and weight loss, she is regularly quoted by the media on a range of topics.
