1. Cut out liquid calories.
- Unless you are drinking 100% freshly squeezed juice, eliminate all "fruit juice," fruit water," or "fruit tea" that comes in a can/bottle/whatever. Minute Maid, Juicy Juice, Ocean Spray, AriZona, Vitamin Water, whatever the brand. Basically get rid of colored liquid. Goodbye. The packaging may make it seem healthy (as most packaging tends to do) but these drinks are often LOADED with added sugars. Natural sugars in freshly squeezed juice is obviously fine, but any added sugars are just going to sneak up on you and ruin your drink. So double check the sugar content and if it seems unnaturally large, check the ingredients.
- Abandon your beloved daily caramel macchiatos/vanilla lattes/frappucinos, or order them skinny/sugar free. Again, loaded with sneaky sugars. I was STUNNED at the amount of sugar I was consuming in a simple soy vanilla latte, and I switched to skinny in a snap. It's a known fact that a lot of Starbucks' fancier products are full of sugar, but pay attention. Ask for sugar-free syrups and sweeteners, or better yet, just order plain coffee or tea. Sugar free usually means chemical full. (This is so hard for me - I am addicted to caramel macchiatos.)
- Soda/pop. Need I say more? STOP DRINKING IT! It's disgusting and either loaded with fats and sugars in the regular versions, or chemicals in the "diet" versions. Just ditch it. It's gross.
- Drink water, tea, coffee, or fresh squeezed juice. This is all you should drink ever. (Green smoothies are ok too, but only homemade ones.)
2. Get more sleep and wake up earlier.
- Getting more sleep just makes you a happier person! I know the internet is most interesting at night (does anyone actually know why? It's so true) but if you go to sleep even an hour or two earlier than you're used to, I promise you will feel better in the morning. Getting up will be so much easier.
- That being said, for the past few months I have been waking up much earlier than necessary (between 6 and 7 AM), even on days when I don't have class till 1 PM. Sometimes I make it to the gym, and sometimes I don't, but either way I am much more productive. I am able to eat breakfast and lunch at the appropriate times, and I simply have more energy in general. It's so magical. I know it sounds like quite a nightmare, but I swear by it. Even giving myself more time to relax makes me feel healthier.
- Getting more sleep and waking up earlier will help you form a routine. Routine is so important when committing to a healthy lifestyle. If you don't stick to something, you'll never form a habit out of it. If you make the most out of the hours in the day, you're going to have more chances to make healthy choices.
3. Plan your meals and snacks.
- People often ask me how I manage to eat healthy all the time (I don't eat healthy ALL the time guys! I'd say about 80% of the time) but my secret is easy: I plan my meals and snacks the night before.
- It might seem like a tedious waste of time, but it makes it SO much easier for me to just make healthy food rather than standing in my kitchen and staring at all the food available. If I just go straight into it knowing what I'm going to make, it makes it a lot easier for me to not even have time to think about switching to an unhealthy option!
- I also just like researching healthy snacks and meals online, and then I get so excited to make them the next day. Doing research can be fun! If I find a snack or meal I want to make, I write it down on a sticky note and put it in my kitchen so it's right there the next day before I go to the grocery store to pick up ingredients or before I start rummaging through my cabinets. It's a little reminder that helps me stay on track.
- Planning also helps make solid habits. It takes about three weeks for a habit to form, so if you start planning and stick to that plan, you're also making a habit out of eating healthy! Win-win.
What other little health tips/habits do you swear by?
