Throwing away old habits and adopting new, healthy ones can be overwhelming. It can feel like there are so many changes to implement and new habits to follow. I know when I first started following the Paleo Diet at age 15 to help with my chronic knee pain, there was an abundant amount of information that I didn’t know where to start or how to process it. To help navigate the abundance of information one can receive on healthy habits, follow the 5 tips below to decrease your stress.
Tips:
- Start small and do not make big changes right off the bat. Make easy, under 30 minute recipes that do not require a lot of ingredients. By doing so, it will avoid the stress one can feel when trying to make the super healthy meals that take forever to make.
- Grab an accountability buddy. Tell them about your goals and set a schedule or method to check in on implementing healthy food habits.
- Be kind to yourself and allow yourself to eat sweet treat as a reward once a week.
- When you are following a new recipe, you do not have to follow it to the tee. You can be creative, frugal, and only include what you know you like. For example, organic ingredients included in the recipe may be too expensive, so substitute with conventional. Generally, if the fruit or veggie has a skin on it that you won’t use, it is okay to buy it conventional.
- Track your progress so you can see the positive results of making healthier food choices. Some ways to do this is to keep a weekly journal and write about how your body feels and how you feel about your body. You can record what you eat each day, or you can create a table in excel or word to “X” off the days you implemented healthy habits.
Benson's Lifestyle 