Balancing your diet and your busy professional life can be a difficult task. Considering how you're spending most of your time at work, you have little time for your nutrition and diet. But good health is necessary to live; how can you then make time to pay attention on your diet?
Actually you don't need to, not much anyway as there are a few ways that you can modify your diet. These are very small and it takes almost no time to make these changes. Here are three small but very useful dietary modifications you can make:
Avoid Cooked Breakfasts
First thing in the morning the body is still in cleanse mode. As such it is important to avoid heavy, cooked breakfasts first thing as this is going against what your body naturally wants to do. Eat light breakfasts such as fruit first thing in the morning, which lines your stomach and may result in you eating less.
Alternatively, try eating something like porridge with flaxseeds or pumpkin seeds. Both of these seeds are a good source of omega-3 (another source of which is fish) which is good for the joints and can help prevent depression, and brain conditions such as Alzheimer's and Dementia. So avoid cooked breakfasts in the mornings and opt for something that's easier on your digestive system.
Reduce your portion sizes
You tend to lose track of what you eat and how much you eat when your mind is preoccupied. You're worried about deadlines, presentations and meetings at work, so you don't pay attention to how much you're eating. You can, however, easily rectify this by simply reducing your portions sizes. Reducing your food intake means you don't overeat, and you'll be consuming only what your body really needs.
Overeating is one of the most common causes of obesity, acidity, high cholesterol and diabetes. By eating smaller portions you reduce the risk exponentially of ending up with one or more these conditions. In addition to reducing your portion sizes, try to eat more slowly so you can more easily recognize when you're full, as well savouring the flavour of your food.
Drink more water
While caffeine may be beneficial in the short term by keeping you awake and alert, the extra sugar dosage you get from it is not. Avoid coffee if you can as it is an artificial stimulant. If you absolutely need it, try to skip the sugar or reduce the amount. In addition, increase the amount of water you consume throughout the day by keeping a water bottle with you and taking periodic sips from it. The water will keep you hydrated and refreshed throughout the day and reduce the need for coffee and other stimulants.
These small but simple dietary modifications will allow you to live a much healthier and more nutritious lifestyle. Contrary to popular belief, the key to a healthy lifestyle does not require big changes. Small modifications, much like the ones discussed in this article, can make a huge difference to the quality of your health and life. The challenge is to stick with them, not give in to temptation and be consistent.
