I was recently told by my doctor that I need to change my eating habits. I’m not the best at eating breakfast, and I enjoy far too many carbs. (Is there really such a thing as “too many carbs”? Apparently, the answer is yes.) My water intake has been zilch and my body runs on caffeine and sugar. Plus, I’ve never been very good at eating fruits and vegetables. In other words, my diet is awful. On top of other things, it has really started affecting my health. So now, with a goal in mind, I’m changing the way that I eat. I do the whole meal planning thing (which sucks), cook daily (which doesn’t suck as bad as it used to), and have found plenty of good recipes along the way (which very much does not suck). The biggest thing I’ve learned – other than that it actually can taste great to eat right – is that your diet truly affects everything else in your life!
Recognizing how food choices affect you every day can really help you make smarter decisions. Not only does it help your physical health, but it also benefits your mental health, productivity, and focus. Keep these three tips in mind to put into a place a plan that helps you not only at home, but also at work.
- Eat breakfast. They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day – and they say that for a reason! Starting off your day with 350-500 calories helps your brain get moving in the mornings and can improve mental clarity, retention, and focus.
- Eating better gives you more energy. Pack in lots of B vitamins throughout the day, especially if you note a midday slump. Many people get a wave of fatigue in the early to mid afternoon. Get a snack with some B vitamins to keep the ball rolling.
- Healthy eating helps with healthy sleep. We all know that a good night’s sleep is important: it is essential to every process in the body, including immunity, metabolism, and chronic disease risk. Lack of sleep also contributes to severe mental health issues. Healthy dietary choices affect both longer sleep duration and shorter time to fall asleep.
