If you’re a picky eater or know a few out there, be it friends or family, you’ll be well-acquainted with the difficulty they have not only choosing foods but how agonising it can be to watch them always go for the unhealthier or blander option.
You heard right, bland.
Many people see “healthy food” as somewhat bland but if that’s the case then you have been depriving yourself the wide array of foods out there that are not only nutritious but taste delicious as well.
Eating healthy is not only easier than you think, but has many other benefits such as giving you more energy during the day and helping to protect you from long-term diseases, essential for your overall health.
There is more than one way to “learn” how to eat better as well.
You don’t have to wake up tomorrow and start a vegan diet or replace all the foods that you love with foods that you hate. Starting small and expanding your food choices is a good place to begin, and you’ll also find that there are many foods out there that, even if you think you wouldn’t like them, you’ll actually really enjoy. Your palate has a tendency to become more cultured as you age, so foods that you may have found unattractive when you were younger won’t necessarily have the same effect on you today.
Another reason why you may not enjoy certain foods is that they were cooked in ways that were not tantalizing for you. Vegetables, for instance, can be eaten raw, cooked, boiled, roasted and so on, and through experimentation while also adding meal enhancers such as salsa, peanut butter and chili sauce to your meals, you should be able to find a balance of foods you like and dislike, as well as how you enjoy food being prepared.
Everyone is different, and so everyone will have different preferences, but it is highly unlikely that, even at your pickiest, you will be able to reject half the food available to you. On the topic of experimentation, this is the surefire way to find healthier food alternatives that you actually like. Yes, no one’s telling you that you have to love spinach, but have you tried it raw, creamed and sautéed? Chances are that you’ll fall in love with one if not all of the ways to prepare it.
But if you still find this difficult in the beginning, then you can also “trick” yourself by hiding healthy foods in your normal recipes. This includes substituting white pasta for whole grain pasta and adding a few peppers, mushrooms, olives and avocado into the mix. You can also do the same in bakes, roasts, and in smoothies and porridge for breakfast. The opportunities are endless and making healthy food is normally quick and easy to prepare.
Foods to make:
- Smoothies
- Potato dishes
- Tacos – buffet style
- Fruit salad
- Soup
- Porridge with fruit and berries
- Wraps
- Lean meat or chicken with a veggie side
- Stir fry
- Pasta with added extras!
The choices are endless and you shouldn’t let the idea of eating “rabbit food” or healthily put you off the selection of tasty and nutritious foods out there. More and more we are understanding how what we consume has a big impact on our health and there is a collective effort to make all of these foods accessible to the general public. The advice mentioned above is not only for you, but can be harnessed to educate your friends and family members better of the joys of eating and making your own food.
Find out why you're so picky when it comes to food with Diet Fit, a plan that helps you eat for your genotype.
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