Adopt A Healthy Approach To Carbs In The New Year
Two of the most popular New Year’s resolutions are to “get fit” and “lose weight”. Many people head into January really excited about these resolutions but after a few months they have reverted back to their old habits. I believe one of the main reasons that people fail with New Year’s resolutions such as these is that they don’t properly integrate the changes into their lifestyle. The good news is that today I am going to help you be successful with your New Year’s resolutions of “getting fit” or “losing weight” by adopting a healthy approach to carbs.
What Are Carbohydrates?
If you are up to speed on the latest diet plans you have probably heard all about carbohydrates. One minute we should be avoiding them at all costs and then the next minute we should be filling our faces with them. But what do they actually do?
Carbohydrates only role in the body is to provide your body with its preferred source of energy. If you don’t eat any carbs your body can get energy from dietary fats or protein. However, carbohydrates are much easier to break down into energy so if they are available your body uses them first.
In addition to this, certain carbs are also a very good source of health boosting vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. These are nutrients that your body requires in very small amounts. They have a long list of health benefits in the human body but overall they promote optimal health and ensure that everything inside your body is running as it should be.
Which Carbohydrates Are Healthy?
As I mentioned above, there are plenty of conflicting opinions when it comes to carbohydrates. So which carbs are healthy? The answer is – natural carbohydrates.
For example, a bar of chocolate contains carbohydrates but is not very healthy at all. A banana also contains carbs but is a much healthier choice. The key difference between the two is that chocolate bars are highly processed whilst bananas are all natural.
Natural carbohydrates sourced from fruits and vegetables are normally much lower in calories than processed carbs. Plus, they contain lots of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients which are often stripped out of processed carbs.
How Can You Eat More Natural Carbohydrates?
The simple answer is to eat less processed products and eat more fruits and vegetables. However, it’s one thing to say it and quite another to actually do it. Here are a couple of tips that should help you along the way:
1) Make Sure Every Meal Contains At Least 1 Piece Of Fruit Or Veg:- If it’s breakfast time make sure you are having some fruit with your meal. If it’s lunch time make sure you’ve got some salad or steamed vegetables included. If it’s dinner time make sure you are fully incorporating vegetables into the dish. Doing this will supply your body with a healthy stream of natural carbohydrates right through the day.
2) Substitute An Unnatural Carbohydrate For A Natural Carbohydrate Each Day:- If you eat a chocolate bar and a bag of crisps every day, ditch one and replace it with an apple or an orange. Doing this will cut some calories out of your day and also increase your intake of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.
3) Find Fruits And Vegetables That You Like:- A lot of people make the blanket statement that they do not like fruits and vegetables. In a lot of cases this is simply not true – they have just not tried enough different types. So if you think you don’t like fruits and vegetables make a real effort this year to find fruits and vegetables that you do like. There are thousands of different fruits and vegetables out there so the chances that you cannot find at least one which you like are pretty slim. Once you have found some fruits and vegetables that you like follow the two steps above so that you are giving your body a regular supply of natural carbohydrates.
Summary
By adopting the healthy approach to carbohydrates discussed in this article you will achieve your New Year’s resolutions of “getting fitter” or “losing weight”. Natural carbs boost your fitness by giving your body the energy, vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients it needs to perform at 100%. They also help you lose weight as they are much lower in calories than processed carbohydrates. So fill up on the fruits and veggies, avoid the chocolate and soda and make this New Year the healthiest one ever.
