For most Americans healthy eating is not about eating adequately. If anything, it is just the opposite – we eat too much! Daily healthy eating plans will keep you fit only when you eat the right foods in the right quantity at the right time.

For many people, maintaining a desirable weight and body fat % can only be achieved through an integrated program of nutrition and healthy eating tips or balancing energy intake with energy expenditure. If you’re overweight, shedding pounds often results in reduced risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and other diseases. Even small weight losses can have significant health benefits

So let’s take a look at what serving sizes of food are right for us and what are these ‘right quantities’.

• Ensure you are eating at least 3 servings from each of the five food groups.

• Eating food that is high in fiber i.e. grains, fruits and vegetables are good for you. Apart from giving wholesome nutrients, it ensures you are not constipated.

• Combine your food with low-fat milk and low cholesterol cooking oil. Always prefer to use healthy vegetarian recipes.

• Make dramatic reductions in the quantum of salt and sugar (even sugar substitutes are dangerous because they serve to confuse the body due their ‘emptiness’.)

• If you must, then drink in moderation

• Eating all your healthy meals including healthy eating information is essential and have them on time Everytime.

• Eating tiny meals (fruits or nuts or sandwich) every two hours and reducing the portion sizes of your lunch and dinner is ideal.

• Eat and chew slowly concentrating on your food. Savor its flavor and taste.

• Using portion size plates and portion control scooper is smarter than using normal plates (except of course, when you have guests at the dining table). Use portion control plates for all your family members including your kids because portion control plates are about eating the right quantities of all foods.

• Unless you have taken less than the recommended quantum of healthy diet plan, don’t go for seconds.

• Bake, broil or grill food instead of frying.

• Obtain the bulk of your protein from vegetables rather than meats. And when it comes to meats, select fresh lean meat cuts from your local butcher.

Fitness:

Physical fitness was part of the human evolutionary process. For tens of thousands of years, traveling meant either walking or running from place to place. Humans hunted game for their food. Hunting in turn required tremendous stamina and energy. The level of physical fitness and portion control tools meant that our ancestors stayed healthy and strong. Today, we don’t even manually sharpen a pencil or move to switch on the lights. Everything is either automatically operated or remotely controlled. And what has been the result of all this automation and finger-tip technology? Our physical body has so degraded due to lack of exercise and fitness that it has resulted in serious health problems. In short, the advancement in science and technology was and is being used for the wrong purposes. This is not to say that we should begin hunting or ditch the car and start running again (though quite frankly, the latter would not be a bad idea). Instead, we need to ensure we have a certain minimum level of physical activity such as:

• Strollers and prams are okay but also let your infant roam around the house – let it use its arms and legs as much as possible

• Make sure your kids get to play outside for no less than one hour each day. Try and join them in their games.

• Plan weekly family outings such as rough terrain biking, swimming in the sea, badminton, baseball, tennis, and so on. Even hula hoops are good.

• If you have a jogging track nearby take your family for a jog thrice a week.

• Make physical activity a part of the family fun activities.

So let’s take a look at what foods are right for us and what are these ‘right quantities’.

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