Four Tips For Spring Cleaning Your Diet
Our dietitian Alexa has shared some tips for spring cleaning your diet. Here are some ways to eat healthy without breaking the pocket book.
- Get moving: If you do not yet have an exercise routine, this is a great time to get one into place. Exercising regularly offers up many benefits — from helping us shed pounds, boost our moods, and even keep our minds sharp. In the springtime, we have the added benefit of great weather and more sunlight, a perfect time to get moving outdoors!
- Go Green: Springtime is a great time for green vegetables! Spinach, kale, salad greens, broccoli, you name it, and if it’s green, it is most likely healthy! One of my favorite springtime produce is asparagus. Asparagus is chock full of fiber, folate, vitamin K, and iron. It’s a nutrition powerhouse.
- Find hidden sugar lurking in your favorite foods: For the first time, the dietary guidelines call out added sugar, and advise us to limit our intake to no more than 10% of total calories. While we know that soda and candy are full of added sugar, we may not pay attention to the sugar lurking in our favorite salad dressing or whole grain cereal. Many food products on the shelves contain sugar yet call it by a different name. Be on the lookout for the following terms which are other names for sugar: sucrose, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, honey, dextrose, and evaporated cane juice.
- Eat more healthy fat: Healthy fats include olive oil, nuts, seeds and avocado. Nuts make for a great snack as they contain heart-healthy unsaturated fats, protein, and fiber. Because fat contains more calories than carbohydrates and protein, practicing portion control is key.