1) Whole wheat pasta--Have you been hearing lately that whole wheat is the way to go? It is the better option when it comes to pasta. Why? Let's talk about Rotini for a moment. Rotini and Whole wheat rotini both have 210 calories per 3/4 cup dry serving. They both offer 7 grams of protein and have 2 grams of sugar. But whole wheat rotini offers 5 grams of fiber versus the 2 grams of regular rotini. Whole wheat rotini also has no sodium in it. That's a big plus seeing as we consume way too much sodium! Small step tip:If you don't particularly like the taste of whole wheat pasta, you can mix regular pasta with whole wheat. Go half/half and slowly add more whole wheat each time you make pasta.
2) Spaghetti Squash--Like spaghetti but don't want all the calories that go with it? Need some extra nutrients in your dinner? Spaghetti squash has the look and consistency of spaghetti noodles but is so much healthier! It also doesn't really have a taste so it will taste like whatever delicious sauce you add to it. Small step tip: Just boil up a whole spaghetti squash. Open it up, de-seed it and use a fork to "spaghetti" the squash.
3)Water, water, water--You've heard it time and time again. Drink lots and lots of water. It really does benefit you! I personally don't drink coffee or soda so it isn't hard to choose water over other drinks. What is hard is getting enough water in. The more sodium we take in, the more water we retain. The more water we drink, the more toxins/sodium we flush out of our system. Small step tip: Try to drink 10 glasses of water a day. Why 10? 10 glasses is roughly 80 oz of water. Drinking 10 glasses will make sure you are getting enough water and keeping hydrated. Your body will thank you!
4)Vegetables--Vegetables these days are becoming less important, especially with all the easily accessible processed food. We don't have time to cook, so we grab something on the go. One week I noticed I ate hardly any vegetables. All my meals were a yellowy/orange color. They weren't rainbow colored like you are supposed to have in your meals (you know, like green salads and orange carrots and red bell peppers, etc). Vegetables are micro-nutrients. They offer vitamins that your body needs. We can't overlook vegetables! Small step tip: Add at least one vegetable to every meal (I don't just mean corn or potatoes, those are a starch. I mean broccoli or bell peppers or green beans, FRESH not canned). If you have a hard time eating things like broccoli I see nothing wrong with putting some cheese on them if you have to. You will at least be getting those nutrients in from the fresh veggies.
5)Walking-- Exercise is good for the soul. And the body too. You don't have to do an intense program like P90x or Insanity to get your body in better shape. Walking can do wonders. You can benefit from the fresh air, from your heart rate increasing. I know someone who lost 20 pounds just from walking. It doesn't take much effort and it can make you feel so good! Small step tip: Start by walking for 5 minutes a day. Getting your mail? Take a 5 minute trip to do it. Bringing in the groceries? Bring in one bag at a time to get those 5 minutes in. Gradually increase your time to 30 minutes a day if you can.
There is always more we can do to be healthier. Its is okay to take baby steps.
-Kate
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