Nutrition Goals

One of my goals this year is to focus on living a healthier lifestyle – both in terms of fitness and nutrition. If the past year has taught me anything it’s that taking care of yourself is incredibly important, and what better way to start taking better care of myself than through planning nutrient filled meals. 

Keep reading to see how I plan on eating healthier this year, and find a few simple healthy recipes that I plan on making again in the coming weeks.

Speaking to professionals

To start my healthy eating endeavour, I plan on making an appointment with a nutritionist, or naturopath to learn more about what works for my body, and what foods I should be adding into or eliminating from my diet. You can head to Innovative Fitness North Vancouver to speak with their awesome nutritionist Dalerina (in-studio or virtually), and if you’re looking for a Naturopathic Doctor, there is a team of experienced and caring professionals at Restoration Health Clinic in Lynn Valley if you’d like to give them a call to learn more about how they can help you with your health goals!

Water

I admit, this is not my strong suit, but I am determined to change that. Water is so important for your overall health and can contribute to skin health, digestion, increase your mood, and brain function according to healthline. Needless to say, it’s important! The recommended daily water intake changes from person to person, but on average healthline suggests 2.7 litres for women and 3.7 litres for men. This will be a huge adjustment for me as I typically have 3-4 cups of tea or 1-2 cups of black coffee a day, and maybe 1/2 a cup of actual water – I know, it’s a rough start!

Fruits & Vegetables

The second tip I’m trying to include in my daily routine is adding more fruits and vegetables to my meals. According to the CDC, only 1 in 10 adults eat enough fruit and vegetables; they recommend 1 ½ cups of fruit and 2-3 cups of vegetables per day. 

I’ll be focusing on eating fruits like apples, berries, and oranges to increase my fruit intake – I’ve sourced some great recipes on Yummly that incorporate these fruits into salads so that should be a great solution for this department!

P.S. I highly recommend downloading Yummly – this application is perfect for everything from preplanning nutritious meals, to plugging in what ingredients you have left over in your fridge and having a delicious recipe pop out that you can most likely make in under 30 minutes.

Snacking

Snacking between meals is something I do quite a lot of, and while I have no interest in giving up snack time, I do plan on being more prepared and intentional with my snacks – I’ll be having snacks like hummus, carrot sticks, and nuts on hand rather than boxes of Hedgehogs. 

Plant-based Options

Implementing more plant-based options into daily life is another tip that many experts suggest. I plan on trying to make at least 2 days of my week plant-based days and exploring proteins such as tofu, tempeh, & beans and substituting a plant-based milk in my morning coffee. If you haven’t tried Oat Milk yet, I promise it won’t disappoint!

Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is factor that I will be lightly implementing into my routine. In the past, I have done intermittent fasting and loved the way it made me feel – however it’s important to not go overboard with fasting and ensure during your intervals of eating you are truly getting your days worth of nutrients. Intermittent fasting can look different to everyone, so it’s important to do your own research and speak with your health care gurus to make sure it is suitable for you.  

Recipes

As we all know, the journey to healthy eating can be daunting, so here are some EASY recipes to help you kickstart your healthy eating journey. 

Homemade Hummus

There are thousands of hummus recipes on the internet, and you can get as fancy or as simple as you like, I love sticking to this simple and easy hummus recipe that can be made in 10 minutes, check it out!

Tofu Poke Bowl

Bowls are a great way to add lots of fresh veggies and protein. I love this recipe because of how versatile it is, use whatever vegetables you have on hand! 

Tip: Throw in some fresh fruit like mango and mandarin oranges. This will help you ramp up your Vitamin C intake for the day also!

Overnight Oats

Overnight oats are perfect for busy mornings, and the flavours are endless. 

Check out these 6 overnight oat recipes!

I hope these tips and recipes are helpful for you when it comes to your 2021 nutrition goals. Please feel free to comment below if you have any great recipe suggestions – I’d love to try them out in the coming weeks!