If you wish to get into shape or retain your shape you need to have a healthy diet. At the onset you should schedule an appointment with your doctor. Talk to him about your fitness levels. Go for a check up. Seek his guidance in drawing a suitable exercise routine. He will also tell you about the kind of diet you need to have.

A diet can be called healthy if it includes raw foods such as vegetables, fruits, seeds, nuts, and legumes. All these food contain easily digestible enzymes. This facilitates digestion and helps in maintaining good health.

Enzymes present in food get inactive when they are cooked over 118 degrees Fahrenheit. So after you eat cooked meal, your body has to produce more enzymes to aid in the digestion process. This explains why one feels tied after eating a cooked meal. So the bulk of your food has to be raw or less boiled.

However, at the onset, you may find it difficult to adjust to healthy diet. But once you change your eating habits and feel the health benefits it provides, you will feel encouraged to eat healthy food. You will even begin to grow a dislike for junk food. You have to put up with the change in taste till your new habits set in.

One good way to start is to break your goals into achievable portions. Changing your diet overnight can be bit hard. Instead you should begin by eating just one healthy meal a week. After a couple of weeks increase it to 2 meals, then 3. Slowly the new habit will fit into your system.

Once you get used to raw foods, you can soon feel the benefits. Your energy levels will pick up considerably. You won’t get fatigued soon. Moreover you will feel buoyant and active all day long. And with these basic things taken care of, you can rest assured of a disease free living.

Other healthy diet tips provided by doctors include:

Drink plenty of water. Eat smaller meals throughout the day. Avoid large meals. Eat slowly. Eat vegetable soups. If you break your diet, get back to it soon. Always cook healthy recipes

In order to achieve your goals, you need to have good health. For maintaining good health, healthy diet is absolutely necessary. Changing to raw food diet will be a turning point in your 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 benifits 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.

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.

NutriSystem is a wildly successful weight loss program that uses the Glycemic index to help you lose weight while still eating foods you love. Prepackaged meal options and a healthy approach to hunger and snacking can help even the most difficult dieter achieve success.

The NutriSystem program includes a meal plan with 120 delicious pre-packed options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and desserts! You select the foods you want online or over the phone and they are shipped right to your door, no cooking involved. All you have to do is add a few ingredients like fresh vegetables and fruits. After all, who has time to hunt down special ingredients for low-fat cooking, or to prepare one diet meal for yourself and something else for the rest of your family? All of the meals are perfectly portioned so there is no weighing, measuring, or counting calories or points. And if you have any questions, a counselor, nutritionist, and dietitian are a phone call or e-mail away.

The foods in the NutriSystem program are designed based on the Glycemic Index. They are low in fat and include the right amounts of protein, fiber, and good carbohydrates. This balance of ingredients makes each of the meals easy for your body to digest and turn into energy, without spikes in your blood sugar that can lead to energy crashes. Instead, you get to eat tasty meals five times a day that help you stay full and provide constant energy levels so that you have plenty of motivation to workout. Best of all, the meals aren’t standard diet fare. You get to have burgers, lasagna, pizza, and even chocolate desserts! It’s much easier to stick to a diet when you get to eat the things you love without feeling guilty.

More diet tips and diet reviews at www.dietsinreview.com and the diet forum