Living Healthy and Happy: #1 Tip for a Healthy Weight

What is my #1 tip to being a healthy weight?

BALANCE!  (This is my feeble attempt at working on my balance, I hope to someday have more impressive yoga moves to show improvement). To balance your body, you MUST balance your food. 

I truly believe there really is no bad foods, just inconsistent balance and too large of portion sizes. There can be too much of a good thing. The one thing we eat way too much of is carbohydrate foods (all kinds, healthy and not-so-healthy). Yes, carbohydrates are good for you. They contain energy boosting B vitamins, fiber and many other vitamins and minerals. However, there are ones that are healthier than others. I will choose quinoa over rice, I would choose a sweet potato over a slice of bread, I would choose garbanzo beans over pasta. I will eventually get more in depth with carbohydrate foods in future posts. But the one thing I want you to know is that if you eat too many carbohydrates your body only uses a certain amount. After it hits that limit, the extra carbohydrates you eat turn to fat. And that is the unhealthy yellow fat below the skin my friends and mostly hits the midsection. 

To prevent yourself from overeating any food group, think the size of your fist (this works for all ages). You need to portion yourself to a fist size serving of each food group at all major meals. And that's a tight fist. If you have an apple, it should be the size of your fist. This goes the same for proteins and grains. Now for vegetables, you need a minimum of a fist and more is better or half your plate. These are for your water based vegetables (remember corn, peas, potatoes are nutritionally similar to grains). 

              

And the biggest key is to make sure you have all of the food groups. Please do not eliminate food groups. It is not sustainable for the rest of your life. When you have all the foods groups you stay satisfied longer and will tend not to get hungry as fast. It's so simple and is totally true. Balance is the key. You will be amazed how great you feel when you eat this way!  

For more information on how to start living YOUR healthy life and discuss an individualized plan for you, call or email me at 515.285.7266 | acundiff@hy-vee.com