Tips for Living Healthy
How would you answer the following questions?
Do you frequently choose fried foods?
Does your food always have butter or margarine on it?
Do you salt your food before tasting it?
Are you a picky eater?
Do you regularly pass by the vegetables and salad bar?
Is fruit something you only look at?
Do you usually drink pop or punch instead of milk, water, and juice?
Do you skip breakfast most of the time?
If you answered yes to any of these questions,
it's time to re-evaluate your eating habits.
Tips for Healthy Living
- Be sure to drink plenty of water, at least eight cups daily. Water is a necessary
nutrient, suppresses the appetite naturally and helps the body metabolize stored fat.
When the body does not get enough, it perceives this as a threat to survival and holds
onto every drop.
- Be sure to get an adequate amount of physical activity and exercise. It helps you
feel good, improves your metabolism and depletes stored fat. Choose an activity
something you enjoy! When you start exercising, you may not initially lose pounds
because of the gain in muscle tissue, but you will see and feel the difference. More
muscle burns more calories. Since muscle weighs more than fat, you could weigh more
than charts suggest and still be healthy.
- Take your time when you eat, savor every bite. (Did you know it takes about 20 minutes
for the brain to receive a signal from the stomach that it is full?)
- Avoid skipping meals. It is healthier to eat within an hour of rising in the morning
and have at least three meals a day plus an evening snack that is nutritious.
- Choose plenty of whole grain breads and cereals with 3 or more grams of fiber per
serving, fresh fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy foods, fish, lean meat, poultry,
and side dishes without gravy or fried in fat.
- Get adequate rest. Most people need 7 to 9 hours of sleep daily to keep alert and
increase the body's ability to fight colds and flu.
- If you drink alcohol, limit consumption to one drink per day for women and two drinks
per day for men.
