Protein Diet Plan

One of the most frequently cited reasons that diets and attempts at healthy eating fail is boredom. Many people simply do not know how to keep a healthy diet interesting day after day, and it can be quite a challenge.

Given the huge variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, meats and other healthy foods at the local grocery store, however, it is definitely possible to create exciting, nutritious meals that will keep boredom at bay.

You’re Key to Healthy Eating

The key to the success of any plan for healthy eating is to eat what you like, but to exercise moderation when it comes to the less healthy foods. Improving your level of health and fitness does not mean forgoing that piece of chocolate cake, for instance. It does mean, however, limiting you to one piece. A healthy diet contains all types of foods, including carbohydrates, proteins, and even fats. The key is choosing foods that provide the best combination of taste and nutrition. After all, if your diet consists of foods you hate, you will not stick with it.

The revised USDA food pyramid contains five major food groups – grains, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy, and meat and beans. When choosing foods from these groups, it is important to eat a wide variety of foods from every food group. Doing so will not only give you a great deal of variety and keep boredom from setting in, but it will provide the best nutritional balance as well. In addition the widely known micronutrients, such as vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin C, etc. all foods contain a variety of macronutrients, like fats, proteins, fibre and water. Though present in extremely tiny amounts, micronutrients are vitally important to good health. That is why a healthy, varied diet is so important.

In addition, when choosing foods from within the various food groups, some choices are naturally better and healthier than others. For instance, choosing skim or 2% milk instead of full fat whole milk is a good way to cut down on both fat and calories. And choosing poultry or lean meat is a great way to get the protein you need every day without extra fat, cholesterol and calories.

Likewise cereals and breads that carry the whole grain label are healthier than those who do not. Even in the world of fruits and vegetables some choices are better than others. For instance, peaches packed in heavy syrup add unnecessary sugar to the diet; while those packed in water or juice provide only good nutrition.

There has been a trend lately to add vitamin fortification to food, and this can sometimes be a good way to maximize nutrition. It is important to remember, however, that proper nutrition comes from a healthy diet, not from vitamin supplements. It is fine to buy calcium fortified cereal, but the bulk of your calcium intake should still come from milk, dairy products and green leafy veggies.

Choosing the Best Foods

Knowing the five major food groups and how much of each to eat every day is only part of the picture. The other part is choosing the best foods from within those food groups. That means things like choosing the leanest cuts of meat, using egg substitutes instead of whole eggs, choosing the freshest fruits and vegetables, etc.

Even with fruits and vegetables, some choices are better than others. Some fruits, such as avocados, for instance, are packed with fat and calories. It is important to check the nutritional qualities of the fruits and vegetables you buy, and not simply assume that all fruits and vegetables are equally healthy.

One way to maximize nutrition while minimizing cost is to buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. Fruits and vegetables that are in season are usually quite a bit cheaper than those that must be shipped hundreds or even thousands of miles, and they are generally much fresher too. Of course, depending on where you live, there may be varieties of fruits and vegetables that are not available locally, so the northerner in search of citrus fruits will just have to watch the sales and buy accordingly.

There is so much confusion about exactly what a healthy diet really is these days. Eat carbs or avoid them? What about meat? There are so many fad diets available that it could even confuse a nutritionist. Today let’s look at a healthy diet in general without considering the thought of weight loss. A healthy diet will lead to weight loss and optimum health.

In the earliest years of school we all learned about the food pyramids – the most basic steps of healthy eating. Somewhere along the way, we forgot about that pyramid because we embarked upon soda, potato chips, greasy burgers, pizza, and French fries. Now in order to maintain a healthy diet we must go back to the pyramid again.

When the food pyramid is followed and if eaten in the right amounts, it will form the basics of a healthy diet. When you observe the pyramid, at the base where it is wider are the foods that should be eaten most often. The foods at the top of the pyramid where it is much narrower will be eaten less. See, that wasn’t so hard now, was it?

The basic concept of the food pyramid is to eat plenty of fruits, whole grains, and vegetables. Limit the amount of saturated fat, trans fat, and cholesterol that you eat. Limit salt and sweets, try to avoid alcohol, limit the amount of calories that you consume by watching your portion sizes, and exercise daily. The food pyramid categorizes food so that you have an easier time making wise food choices. Since there is no one food item that can give you all of the nutrition that you need, you do have to eat a variety in order to make sure that you get all of the necessary nutrients.

Continuing to follow the food pyramid you should eat at least three servings of fruit per day, four servings of vegetables or more, four to eight servings of carbohydrates per day, protein and dairy should consist of three to seven servings. Limit fats to three to five servings per day, and no more than 75 calories per day of sweets.

You should eat a variety of fruits and vegetables each day and consume one thing from each food group so that you get your carbs, fruits, vegetables, protein, dairy, and fats. The key though is to consume the most vegetables and fruits and stay away from the fats as much as possible. This will be the beginning of a healthy and nutritious diet that will provide you with long term optimal health.

1. Everyone is on a diet. Healthy dieters choose a diet that will bring them closer to their life goals.



Diet is a not dirty word. You are on a diet every day, and making it a healthy diet is not as challenging as you may think. It is not about starvation. It is not about being deprived. It is about being able to breathe in your jeans. Even more than that, it is about living your best life. It is about having integrity in your actions.

2. Healthy dieters intentionally plan their diets.

Without intention and planning, most people will eat what they’ve always eaten; whatever is convenient; whatever is marketed to them—just like the rest of society. Unless you want to look like the rest of society looks and want the body you currently have (or the one you’ll have after the next five pounds, or the next . . .), then you can’t continue to eat like the rest of society eats, and you certainly can’t continue to eat what you’ve always eaten. Instead, you must deliberately plan and pursue a healthy diet.

3. Healthy dieters don’t make excuses.

There is no one-size-fits-all diet. There are untold ways to cut calories, get more exercise, and improve the healthfulness of our diet. It is important not to argue for what you can’t do, but instead search for what you are willing to do to achieve a healthy diet that fits your life and goals.

4. Healthy dieters don’t whine about the effort it takes to eat a healthful diet and are willing to spend time planning and preparing.

Dieting is hard. Dieting is easy. Either of these could be true, depending on your attitude. The truth of the matter is, dieting just is. Ever since Eve plucked the apple from the tree, the cavewoman rubbed sticks together to roast the bear, grandma strung a string bean, the Irish boiled the potato, or the Koreans pickled a cabbage, we’ve had to put effort into having a healthy diet. Modern, successful hipsters that you are—you do not escape this reality just because you can order Chinese takeout.                               

5. Healthy dieters base their diets around a weekly planning routine.

Diets are not a one-time decision. Just as soon as you get comfortable in your routine, you’ll remodel your kitchen, go on vacation, sprain an ankle, hit hormone hell, or simply get bored. Part of having a healthy diet means having the flexibility to roll with life’s changes.                                                                                                               

6. Healthy dieters embrace dieting from the top down, expressing curiosity about the whys and wherefores of eating habits.

As babies, the first comfort you received was at the breast or bottle. You are hardwired to eat for comfort. You also eat to socialize, to procrastinate, and out of pure habit. There are a myriad of reasons for eating that go far beyond nutrition. Sorting those out, exploring alternatives, and finding ways to enjoy a healthy diet for any of these reasons—without sabotaging your health and well-being—is an interesting process.

7. Healthy dieters combine the top-down approach with the bottom-up approach to dieting and understand they have to impose some structure to change their deeply ingrained habits and learn new behaviors.

Calories in/calories out, keeping a food diary, making a meal plan, devising a strategy for getting to the gym, or going grocery shopping with a list are just some of the practical, bottom-up approaches that might be used for diet accountability and information gathering, all of which are necessary for healthy dieting.

8. Healthy dieters use the inside-out approach to dieting—using diet as a means for self-inquiry and as a catalyst for personal development and spiritual and emotional growth.

Life lessons are learned through difficulty. No one would choose to have a rocky marriage, credit card debt, or an illness, but savvy men and women learn valuable lessons from the curves life throws them, and that includes the need to diet. Healthy dieting is one of the easier curves through which you get an opportunity to learn life lessons—at least it is something you can control.

9. Healthy dieters spend five minutes each day setting their intentions and planning their diet direction. They commit five more minutes to reviewing their day, noting their accomplishments and opportunities to self-correct.

Demanding perfection will give you an excuse not to “diet” at all. The truth is that you’ll sometimes stray off of your ideal course, but part of healthy dieting is learning to make those detours less drastic and frequent.                                                                                              

10. Healthy dieters get the support and motivation they need to succeed—and understand this support goes beyond “getting to goal weight.”

Changing something so ingrained in your own personal psyche, society, families, and workplaces can be a major undertaking. Healthy dieting requires a support system to help you when the challenge seems particularly daunting.

11. Healthy Dieters learn to normalize their relationship with food and their body so they can spend their time and energy being more present in the world around them.

The healthy dieter understands that there is more to life than dieting—much more!

So what this says to me is that we may think we are eating healtIf you want to lose weight then it is important that you learn how to follow a healthy diet. There are plenty of diet plans on the market that will tell you what to eat, but if their plan doesn’t include a variety of healthy foods, then forget it. You can lose weight and eat healthy at the same time.

A healthy diet should consist of all the foods in the food pyramid. Our bodies are designed to pull energy and needed nutrients from the variety of foods offered in this pyramid. But you have to remember that in order to lose weight you have to learn moderation.

Eating healthy is the best thing that you can do for your body and to increase your chances of losing weight. However, you also have to incorporate a little self-discipline. You still have to watch how much you eat. This means eating your meals a little slower and stopping when you start to feel full. Do not overeat! When you start to feel satisfied, get up and move away from your plate.

Fruits and vegetables are a very important part of a healthy diet. But you should probably choose organic grown fruits and vegetables. These should be free of pesticides and other chemicals. If you cannot find organic foods or cannot afford them because they do cost quite a bit more, buy a bottle of fruit and veggie wash. Wash all of your fruits and vegetables in this solution before you eat them. It will help to remove the residue from pesticides and other chemicals. I have my own personal experience to share with you to let you know that it works.

I have always had an allergic type reaction when I would attempt to eat fresh fruit. Just eating one strawberry would make my throat start to itch, my lips tingle, my ears itch and my nose would start to run. I always thought that I was allergic to fruit. One day I decided to try washing the fruit in veggie wash. The results were amazing. I was able to enjoy a fresh bowl of strawberries with no reaction at all!

hy but we are actually ingesting some possibly dangerous chemicals into our bodies when we eat fruits and vegetables. I recommend always washing your fruits and vegetables thoroughly with some type of natural veggie wash before eating them.

A healthy diet should also consist of healthy beverages. Drink plenty of water and cut back on the sugary drinks.

So if you are struggling to lose weight, give up the junk foods. Start a healthy diet that consists of a variety of foods in moderation. Try to eat six small healthy meals a day and you will not go hungry. If you follow this plan, you will find that the excess weight will start to disappear!

There are many reasons why you should have a healthy diet, the most important being that it will improve your overall wellbeing. Healthy diets reduce a person’s risk of heart disease, cholesterol and diabetes, whilst providing you with more energy! Here are some great new ideas and tips that will help you to achieve healthy diets, and work your way towards better health.

The first thing to a healthy diet is not so much what you put in your mouth, but how you consume the food that is in your mouth. Sounds complicated? It is actually very simple and intuitive.

Instead of rushing through your meal and swallowing everything in a hurry, take the time to chew your food carefully and enjoy the taste. By chewing your food thoroughly, it will also help your saliva to break down the food and digest the nutrients. Pay attention to the signals that your body is sending you. When you feel full, it is time to put your utensils down. It is not necessary to finish everything that is put on the plate in front of you. Eating slowly will help you to gauge best when your stomach is feeling full, and you can avoid overeating. Lastly, eat regular meals. Instead of snacking in between meals, eat three full meals a day: Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Alternatively, you could employ 6 small meals a day instead if you are a small eater.

That said, the emphasis on a balanced diet implies that you need food from at least 6 food groups to obtain the nutrients for your body. These 6 are whole grains such as brown rice and oatmeal, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy products, protein and lastly, oils. It is a common misconception that oily and fatty food is bad for health, but there are also good oils and high quality fats that provide fatty acid needed by your body for healthy diets. Foods such as avocados, coconuts, and olive oil are a good source of this.

In the fast paced reality that we live in, we seldom have the time to prepare a home cooked meal with the necessary foods that our body requires. Hence, it is important to have healthy diets, even whilst eating out. Fast food outlets should be avoided as they contain high sodium and fat contents, and lack nutrients. Avoid buffets where possible, as the temptation to eat more even though you are full can be difficult to ignore. When dining with friends or family, share your food to obtain the selection that you crave without having to over indulge or overeat. It is wise to order healthier food options, but bear in mind that salads are not always healthy, unless you eat it without the dressings, for example. Ask for water or fresh milk when dining out, instead of ordering a soda, which contains a lot of sugar and calories.

Lastly, vitamins are a viable supplement to having healthy diets. Drinking 8 glasses of water a day will also help to keep your body hydrated and flush out the toxins. A well balanced diet will usually provide your body with all the nutrients necessary, and vitamins should not be used as a substitute for food.

Everyday, people are faced with a wide selection of food options. Your local grocery store has hundreds of food offerings. You will find several aisles with numerous food options. A local restaurant can offer several pages of dishes that you can choose from. Indeed, you are bombarded with numerous food choices on a daily basis. It’s not surprising why some people cannot plan a healthy diet regimen very well.

On top of this, people have to deal with an onslaught of information from various media. You would find advertising promoting McDonalds or Pizza Hut. Every ad is designed to convince you to give in to your sweet cravings. On the other hand, you get nutritionists and health gurus warning you of the dangers of junk foods. You would also find health experts promoting one form of healthy diet after another.

With many options and contrasting information, it is not surprising that people are having difficulty figuring out what a healthy diet exactly is. People are constantly having problems controlling their weight and their eating habits. If you are having the same problem, you are probably giving in to indulgences and you are likely overeating. However, the importance of a healthy diet cannot be overstressed. To help you achieve a healthy diet, you need to arm yourself with vital nutrition information that will help you determine proper food choices.

Moderation is the Key to a Healthy Diet

If you want to maintain a healthy diet, you really don’t have to forego chocolates, ice creams or cakes as long as you eat them in small amounts. You need to practice moderation when it comes to eating. Overeating is the number one cause of obesity and moderation is actually the essential key to maintaining good health. But how do you this?

Basically, eating food in moderation comes with attention. You need to pay attention to what you are eating and to the amount of food that you have eaten. One of the many reasons why people tend to overeat is that they fail to notice whenever their bodies are telling them that they have had enough food. It is important that you learn to eat slowly. You need to be aware of how much you have consumed, so that you would know when you have had enough food.

To eat in moderation, you should avoid second helpings. You should opt for regular sized meals instead of the largest items in a restaurant. You should be particularly conscious of the amount of food you have consumed when you are eating “junk foods”. Again, you don’t have to avoid it altogether, but you need to be a conscious eater. If you are going to eat cookies, don’t eat directly from the box. Often people will only discover that they have eaten a lot once they have realized that they have finished the whole box.

Be Conscious of When You Eat

Aside from controlling your food intake, you should also be conscious of when you eat. This is part of ensuring a healthy diet. Generally, people are better off eating 5 to 6 small meals per day. This is because the body is unable to process or handle large meals. It tends to convert the food into fats. On the other hand, if you eat small meals a day, your body will be better equipped to handle small amount of foods.

It is also very important that you avoid late night snacking. Your stomach should be empty 3 or 4 hours before you go to sleep. It can be tempting to have a large sandwich at midnight but this habit will take a toll on your weight and health. Your body will merely store the food as fat while you sleep. There’s nothing like waking up with an empty stomach and enjoying a healthy breakfast with your family. Speaking of breakfast, this is one meal that you should never skip. Skipping out on a heavy breakfast will make you crave food the entire day.

Do Not Starve Yourself

Many people think that by starving themselves, they would lose weight. Unfortunately, this rarely happens because once the hunger kicks in and they give in to it, they would likely end up eating huge fatty meals. They also tend to become more obsessed with food and they end up consuming large amounts of food.

Basically, having a healthy diet means eating foods rich in nutrients, eating foods in moderation and being conscious of your eating habits. By adopting a healthy diet, you will live a much better life.

There are many reasons why you should have a healthy diet, the most important being that it will improve your overall wellbeing. Healthy diets reduce a person’s risk of heart disease, cholesterol and diabetes, whilst providing you with more energy! Here are some great new ideas and tips that will help you to achieve healthy diets, and work your way towards better health.

The first thing to a healthy diet is not so much what you put in your mouth, but how you consume the food that is in your mouth. Sounds complicated? It is actually very simple and intuitive.

Instead of rushing through your meal and swallowing everything in a hurry, take the time to chew your food carefully and enjoy the taste. By chewing your food thoroughly, it will also help your saliva to break down the food and digest the nutrients. Pay attention to the signals that your body is sending you. When you feel full, it is time to put your utensils down. It is not necessary to finish everything that is put on the plate in front of you. Eating slowly will help you to gauge best when your stomach is feeling full, and you can avoid overeating. Lastly, eat regular meals. Instead of snacking in between meals, eat three full meals a day: Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Alternatively, you could employ 6 small meals a day instead if you are a small eater.

That said, the emphasis on a balanced diet implies that you need food from at least 6 food groups to obtain the nutrients for your body. These 6 are whole grains such as brown rice and oatmeal, vegetables, fruits, milk and dairy products, protein and lastly, oils. It is a common misconception that oily and fatty food is bad for health, but there are also good oils and high quality fats that provide fatty acid needed by your body for healthy diets. Foods such as avocados, coconuts, and olive oil are a good source of this.

In the fast paced reality that we live in, we seldom have the time to prepare a home cooked meal with the necessary foods that our body requires. Hence, it is important to have healthy diets, even whilst eating out. Fast food outlets should be avoided as they contain high sodium and fat contents, and lack nutrients. Avoid buffets where possible, as the temptation to eat more even though you are full can be difficult to ignore. When dining with friends or family, share your food to obtain the selection that you crave without having to over indulge or overeat. It is wise to order healthier food options, but bear in mind that salads are not always healthy, unless you eat it without the dressings, for example. Ask for water or fresh milk when dining out, instead of ordering a soda, which contains a lot of sugar and calories.

Lastly, vitamins are a viable supplement to having healthy diets. Drinking 8 glasses of water a day will also help to keep your body hydrated and flush out the toxins. A well balanced diet will usually provide your body with all the nutrients necessary, and vitamins should not be used as a substitute for food.

Healthy Diet: 3 Easy Steps to a healthy diet. Learn easily what health nutrition can do for you

Are you currently living a healthy lifestyle? Do you follow a strict healthy diet? If not then starting such a healthy eating plan can be very difficult. But it is important to remember that such a plan is exactly what you need to maintain vital bodily functions. It might be difficult to break your bad habits, but it is necessary to do so if you want to lead a healthy life, and reduce your risk of disease. Below are three easy steps you can follow to healthy eating.

Three Steps to healthy eating

Step1

A good place to start your healthy diet would be in your own kitchen! Start by getting rid of all the unhealthy beverages, sweets, snacks and other foods which fall into the “unhealthy” category. This is done to curb your temptation to snack unhealthily as it will be a lot more difficult to get your hands on such snacks when it is not readily available. Replace these unhealthy foods with more healthy snacks such as carrot sticks, fresh or dried fruit, yogurt or whole wheat crackers.

Step2

Simply put, knowledge is power! Take your first week of eating healthily and take notes of all the foods you have been eating. Then go and learn about their nutrients, and how they affect your body. This is one of the most important steps, because if you know the actual function of the different nutrients in your body, you are much more likely to make healthy eating choices. We all know that fresh fruits etc are healthy, now go learn why! It might also be worth noting the nutrients and their effect of your old, unhealthy diet!

Step3

The next step is to take a conscious decision on your eating times. Do not eat randomly as you will be much more likely to eat fast, junk food. Plan ahead! Grabbing something quick for lunch is out of the question! Consider taking a healthy packed lunch to work which includes a fresh fruit. When you get home at night, do not eat within3 hours of going to sleep. Give your body at least 3 hours to burn off dinner before going to sleep; else this will just get turned into fat!

Eat breakfast, then a light snack at about 10am or 11am then have Lunch, then again a light snack at about 3pm or 4pm then dinner at about 6.30pm. It’s important to note that your snacks could simply be an apple, or banana or even some dry fruits or nuts. The idea with this way of eating is to keep your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) as high as possible. This is the rate at which your body burns calories while not being active. When you wait too long between meals, your body instinctively goes into “Starvation” mode and lowers its BMR to store energy for future use and survival. Think of it as stoking a fire.

If this all seems too much to jump right into, start with baby steps and slowly ease yourself into the above mentioned situations. Replace just half of the soda you drink with water. Or instead of eating fast food every day for lunch, eat it just half the week; this alone will drastically reduce your calorie intake. This method will not take such a knock on your body and you will not feel like you are replacing all the foods your love. It might take some time for you to get used to the new foods, and to learn about their nutrients and its effect on your body (Remember, knowledge is power!) It is VERY important to remember though; that you must slowly better you’re eating habits and move towards the above mentioned steps.

It might also be worth checking out a professional’s eating plan, like the 10 day master cleanser diet from Raylen Sterling. His plan was mentioned on Oprah Winfrey’s show, and Beyonce Knowles used his method to loose 20 pounds.

Many of us don’t pay enough attention to our eating habits until it becomes and issue and our health is affected. This may come as quite a shock to some who are unaware that their eating habits are not providing them with the right vitamins and nutrients to maintain a healthy body. So many people think they are subscribing to a healthy diet but are gaining weight rather than losing it. For some weight isn’t the problem, yet they are not enjoying optimum health. Maintaining a healthy diet is easy if you have a variety of healty cooking recipes

Eating from a choice of healthy cooking recipes can only enhance your way of life even if you always go to the gym everyday. If losing weight is the problem then healthy eating recipes will certainly help to shift stubborn excess weight. And because healthy eating recipes focus on healthy foods and variety, the chances of sticking to a healthy eating plan are much higher as there are so many healthy cooking recipes to choose from.

For anyone who has tried to maintain a diet which is low in fat they will know how boring it can be because of the lack of flavour and limited choice of foods. The variety of healthy cooking recipes is endless and you can be sure you are getting a balanced intake of fruits and vegetables. Many healthy cooking recipes have included fresh or dried herbs for extra punch, which are beneficial to our bodies in so many ways. The types of food contained in healthy eating recipes promote healthy happy bodies. You will eventually become aware of how much more revitalized you feel and will experience a feeling of wellbeing.

Healthy cooking recipes are certainly topical as more of us strive to maintain and healthy lifestyle and diet. There are so many books and articles dedicated to healthy cooking recipes. Surf the internet and you will be aware of the vast amount of information relating to healthy cooking diet and nutrition there are. And if you are willing to take the steps to find a healthier lifestyle and eating habits the internet is certainly a useful resource.

Narrow down your search for healthy cooking recipes by finding ones that are really of interest to you and that you know you will enjoy using every day of your life, the more information you have the greater your choices are if you are committed to improving your health and, therefore, quality of life.

So much has been written on the subject of how best to look after the body by following a healthy lifestyle. What types of food are good for us and what vitamins and minerals they contain and what should be avoided because it may be detrimental to our health. Healthy cooking recipes like education and information are great but we must put what we have learnt into practise so that we can enjoy a long and healthy life

Wikipedia defines “A healthy diet is one that is arrived at with the intent of improving or maintaining optimal health”. “This usually involves consuming nutrients by eating the appropriate amounts from all of the food groups, including an adequate amount of water.”

The main benefits of a healthy diet are:

1. Improves your immune system

2. Increases energy levels, vitality and alertness

3. Decreases your risk of heart disease and diabetes

4. Helps you cope with stress

A healthy diet is essential to live a healthy lifestyle. Having the correct nutrients can have a significant effect on your energy levels and vitality while decreasing the risks of disease. A healthy diet consists of meeting your daily calorie intake of the five major food groups with portion control of each food group totalling your necessary calorie intake.This will help you follow a healthy diet and lose weight at the same time.

The five major food groups are:

1. Fruit

2. Vegetables

3. Lean meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts, legumes

4. Bread, cereals, rice, pasta

5. Milk, yogurt, cheese

A healthy diet is also made up of portion control. The portion control of these five food groups are as follows:

Carbohydrates: 6 - 8

Protein: 1 – 2

Fats: 1

Dairy: 2 – 3

Fruit: 2

Vegetables: 5

Water: 6

What constitutes a serving size for these food groups to achieve a healthy diet?

1. Carbohydrates (6-8 serves daily)

One serving should contain about 0.5oz (15g) of carbohydrates. Examples of this include:

Bread 1 slice

Tortilla, roll, or muffin 1

Bagel, English muffin or hamburger bun 1/2

Rice, pasta, cooked cereal, grits 1/2 cup

Ready-to-eat cereal 3/4 cup (flakes or round)

Pancake, waffle 1 (4.5in diameter)

2. Protein (4-6 serves daily)

One serving of protein should contain about 0.5oz (15g) of protein. Examples of this include:

Cooked lean meat, fish or poultry 2oz- 3oz (60g – 90g)

Egg 1

Peanut Butter 2 tablespoons, 1oz (30g)

Cooked dried peas or beans 1/2 cup

Cooked dried beans 1/2cup

Nuts, seeds 1/3 cup

3. Fat (1 serve daily)

One serving of fat should contain about 0.2oz (5g) of fat.  Examples of this include:

1 tsp vegetable oil

1 tsp butter

1 tsp peanut butter

8 ripe olives

1 tbsp salad dressing

4. Dairy (2-3 serves daily)

One serving of dairy should contain about 0.01oz (300mg) of calcium.  Examples of this include:

Milk 1 cup

Yogurt 1 cup

Cheese 1 slice, 1oz (30g) (1.5oz cheese is about equal to 1 cup milk)

Cottage cheese 1/2 cup

Pudding 1/2 cup

Ice cream 1/2 cup

5. Fruit (2 serves daily)

One serving of fruit should contain about 0.5oz (15g) of carbohydrates. Examples of this include:

Chopped, fresh fruit 1/2 cup

Grapefruit 1/2

Cantaloupe 1/4

Canned fruit 1/2 cup

100% fruit juice 3/4 cup

Raisins or dried fruit 1/4 cup

6. Vegetables (5 serves daily)

One serving of vegetables should contain about 0.2oz (5g) of carbohydrates. Examples of this include:

Cooked vegetables 1/2 cup

Chopped, raw vegetables 1/2 cup

Raw, leafy vegetables 1 cup

Vegetable juice 3/4 cup

7. Water (6 serves daily)

Glass of water (10fl oz)

Vitamins and minerals

Many people believe that they can eat what ever they like and can make it up by having vitamin and mineral supplements to make up for this, however this is not the case. Your body absorbes the nutrients in foods are more effectively than in supplements. Furthermore, a majority of supplements on the market are mainly made with fillers you urinate very quickly.

A few things to remember:

1. Try and keep your BMI (Body Mass Index) in a healthy range

2. Try and eat plenty if fibre.

3. Have 8 glasses o water a day. A lack of water is the most common cause of tiredness

4. Limit alcohol and caffeine consumption

5. Reduce sugar intake

Maintain these tips to maintaining a healthy diet and healthy lifestyle and you will be amazed at how good you will feel.