THREE SIMPLE STEPS IF YOU’RE TRYING TO EAT HEALTHIER

If you are trying to lose weight, or even eat healthier, one of the BEST options is cooking at home yourself. 

That would be recommendation Number One.

You can control the ingredients (and if you’re a picky eater like me, that’s a VERY important key!). For example, I’m not a fan of avocado. I’ll eat it, especially if it’s “hidden” in other foods (think guacamole in a 7-Layer dip), but I’m not going to go out of my way to add avocado to my diet.

You get a LOT more bang for your buck (more food for less money). For what ONE meal costs my family in a sit-down restaurant, I can get 3-4 days’ worth of groceries.

You don’t have to get fancy and sometimes less really is more (you can throw a bunch of healthy stuff in a crockpot and LET IT GO!). It might be that you and your spouse/partner are having a healthy crockpot meal while the kids are munching on frozen pizza or mac and cheese, and that’s TOTALLY FINE! Everyone is fed, you can feel good about what you ate, and the kids are happy and alive and that’s all that really matters, especially on VERY BUSY weeknights!

With inflation and prices being outrageous on certain items, it can feel impossible to eat healthy and not bust your budget.

I understand.

That’s why recommendation Number Two is STOCK UP ON YOUR SPICES!

They add TONS of flavor to any dish you’re making and can help you stretch a meal and your budget. One of the BEST side dishes I’ve EVER eaten was a side of steamed broccoli that had been DRIZZLED with lemon-garlic olive oil. I’m talking 1 TEASPOON worth, tops! And it was so delicious that I completely forgot about my main dish and ate the entire serving on my plate before I even TOUCHED the other food. Broccoli!

You don’t have to buy extremely expensive spices unless you just want to, or if you want to grind your own or whatever. Spices can be very expensive (saffron), or super cheap (salt, pepper, garlic, onion, cinnamon, etc.), depending on where you buy and what you’re buying. But unless you have something VERY specific in mind, most of the time you can get away with much cheaper spices/blends without sacrificing the flavor.

Putting different or plenty of seasoning in your food will go a LONG way toward satisfying your hunger. And if you’re not used to cooking at home a lot, you’re probably going to need to experiment a bit to get the flavors and amounts correct. Following recipes definitely helps with this (and that’s where I get in trouble because I tend to just try and “wing it” and end up over- or under-seasoning).

And my Number Three recommendation is to switch out your vegetable oil and GO WITH OLIVE OIL FOR ALL YOUR COOKING.

Baking is the one area I’m still hesitant and will still use vegetable oil, but for everything else I cook almost exclusively with olive oil.

Now, olive oil – the REAL stuff – can be more expensive than your plain old, generic vegetable oil.

BUT!

The health benefits of using olive oil are an entire list on its own, it is SO GOOD FOR YOU! Study after study after study of some of the healthiest people on the planet found that OLIVE OIL is a part of their diet every single day. And not just a tablespoon here and there. We’re talking CUPS of olive oil per day. I’m not necessarily recommending anyone start drinking it by the cup-full, but I AM saying that using a healthy fat like olive oil (or avocado oil if you need a higher smoke-point oil) is a good way to FEEL MORE SATISFIED! That’s right! The oil adds a richness to your food and basically “tricks” your body into feeling fuller, faster, with less consumed (satiety).

And that’s it!

Those are the first 3 recommendations I would make if you want to try eating healthier – cook more at home; use more spices for flavor to help cut back on processed foods; and switch to olive oil rather than vegetable oil, butter, or shortening to add richness (satiety) and the health benefits of olive oil itself.