What is the worst part of sticking to a diet is to give up on our favorite foods. That thought alone makes us cheat on our diets. And once we start biting the bait of tempting foods, we kind of lose our resolve and keep eating the foods we are not supposed to eat. Regular consumption of junk foods is not at all okay. It may make us put on the pounds and make us susceptible to scores of lifestyle diseases.
So, how can you stop yourself from eating the unhealthy stuff and get hooked to eating right? The first thing that bothers us about healthy food, is it is way too boring. And junk foods are really interesting. However, we can change things around and make healthy food interesting.
You’ll stop feeling guilty about eating junk and eat your piece of a sumptuous cake without an iota of guilt. So, here goes some tried and tested formulas that make binging a little less burdensome and more awesome!
Switch it Up With Veggies
The trick to make an unhealthy dish healthy is to switch up some of the most unhealthy ingredients. Sometimes adding a few healthy ingredients can do the trick. Say you are craving a pizza, you can make it at home with a cauliflower base or a healthy gluten-free base, say almond flour, and add lots of veggies on the top. Adding a lot of veggies invariably makes the dish healthy. Since you add a lot of fiber to your dish through these veggies and vitamins and minerals. Add protein in the form of tofu, chicken, and mushroom as toppings and there you have a perfect unhealthy dish made healthy.
The Flour Magic
Most of the baked goodies you get in the market are full of refined stuff. Refined flour is bereft of any vitamins and minerals and fiber. It can send your blood sugar levels into a tizzy. You can instead swap the refined flour with something healthy and nutritious, such as gluten-free or whole wheat flour.
Baked goods are often hard to digest because of the usual suspects, the refined flour and the transfats. However, you can certainly make it healthy with flours such as almond flour, coconut flour, and other healthy alternatives. You can try healthier fat versions such as coconut oil, olive oil, and grass-fed butter. Also, you can even make cakes out of sweet potato and pasta out of zucchini.
Switching is Good
If you are hit by cravings ensure you eat the good stuff first. Such as if you are craving chocolates have a dark variety that has little sugar and contains 85% cacao. Also, your craving chocolates may also mean you are magnesium deficient and that a better way to cater to your craving than have a handful of nuts.
Sometimes when you are craving something spicy or salty you may have fewer potassium levels and in order to fulfill that, you may need is a banana. It does not always mean you’ll have to trade a salty pretzel with that of a banana but 80% of the time stick to something that is healthy and leave the 20% time to cater to your unhealthy food cravings.
Eat Right and at the Right Time
While the world is hooked on intermittent fasting, not eating for a significant amount of time sends our cravings into a tizzy and we end up eating more than we ever intended. So, do not skip meals, eat small portions at regular intervals. Also, healthy snacking is important, a fruit with a spoonful of nut butter or veggies with yogurt. The more you fill up yourself with the right stuff, the more you’ll stop craving for the wrong stuff.
Treat Yourself From Time to Time
Eating junk is also a psychological thing. We crave for the things more when it completely becomes off limits. A little indulgence here and there can satisfy your craving and keep your junk food craving taste buds happy. But you should also know just when to stop. Four pieces of pizza is a no-go. But sometimes that one or two pieces do not a diet plan ruin. As long as it makes you happy and you do not continue to chase unhealthy foods to satiate yourself. Moderation being the operative word here.
So, there you go, eat right, eat junk ( just sometimes), and make your meals healthy most of the time and you’ve cracked the code of healthy eating.