Improve Your Diet in the New Year with These Four Simple Resolutions

If you’re into making New Year’s resolutions, chances are one of your goals is to eat a more varied and healthier diet. Unfortunately, most of us know all too well how easy it is to forget about those resolutions soon after we make them.

Oftentimes we fail at keeping our resolutions because they’re unrealistic, and when we aren’t making the progress we’d hoped for we become discouraged.

The following four diet resolutions are achievable individually. And if you’re feeling up for a challenge, why not adopt a few? Or slowly add a new one into your life each month. Who says resolutions are just for New Year’s anyway?

Be mindful
Avoid watching television or using any other distracting electronic gadget while eating; breathe deeply before you dig in; give thanks for the food on your plate; and eat consciously by chewing longer, eating slower, and savouring the flavours. These mindful eating techniques will make you more aware of the food you are ingesting, a key pillar in weight loss.

Think low
Low on the glycemic index, that is. The glycemic index (GI) ranks different carbohydrates based on their affect on blood glucose levels. Foods low on the GI are ideal, producing the smallest blood glucose fluctuations. Choosing foods low on the glycemic index, such as fresh fruits and veggies, whole grains, and legumes, will reduce your risk of diabetes and potentially lead to weight loss.

Drink up
There’s a lot of debate about how much water one should drink. But a good rule to live by is to drink when you’re thirsty. If we do not keep ourselves hydrated, we may experience symptoms such as fatigue, disrupted digestion, achy joints, and dry skin. Plus, drinking more water may help to curb weight gain and even promote weight loss, according to a recent study.

Taste the rainbow
No, we don’t mean upping your intake of skittles, but rather the variety of colourful local bounty that each season brings us. Take for example fibre- and chlorophyll-rich greens such as spinach, kale, and collards. Or carrots, sweet potatoes, and cantaloupe, all brimming with health-promoting carotenoids. Generally speaking, the fruits and veggies with the darkest, richest colours are more highly concentrated with nutrients.