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Day in the Life: Nutritious and Balanced Diet Edition

Eating well doesn’t mean you still can’t enjoy your favourite foods. Keep reading for some nutritious meals and tips for eating a balanced diet.

Eating well and feeling our best is all about balance. Making an effort to eat those foods that are good for us, but also enjoying the foods that make us happy is the key to living a happy and fulfilled life. Keep reading for a Day in the Life: Nutritious and Balanced Diet Edition.

Morning

Start your day off with a big glass of water. Tip: add lemon for extra flavour and a source of vitamin C. If you want to read more about why drinking water is important check out our recent blog post here.

Make sure you leave enough time to eat breakfast. Starting your day off with a nutritious meal sets the stage for making healthy decisions throughout the day. Often people are rushing in the morning, and breakfast is one of those things that get missed. If this is the case for you, make it easy in the morning by preparing breakfast in the evening. Some ideas for breakfast meals you can prep ahead of time are:

Overnight oats. If you are looking for some recipe inspiration check out this blog post by Life Made Sweeter with 9 overnight oat recipes.
Smoothies. Check out this blog post by Thriving Home for a bunch of tasty smoothie recipes. Tip: Put all your smoothie ingredients in a bag and then back in the freezer. Then in the morning all you have to do is just throw it all into the blender! This will allow for tasty smoothies without running around and gathering all the ingredients in the morning. The above blog post has tips for doing this.
Homemade Granola bars. These are a great item to make on the weekend and have as a quick breakfast or snack throughout the week. This blog post by Sweet Peas and Saffron features 7 granola bars that you can easily make at home.

Lunch

Whether you are on the go or have time to prepare lunch, eating a nutritious meal is important to stay motivated and productive for the rest of the day. Eating well often takes much more planning. It is easy to grab something fast, which can sometimes result in a less than nutritious choice. Lunch is a great meal to prep ahead of time and have it ready to go for the week.

If you are tired of your usual meals, check out the following 3 blog posts filled with tasty and nutritious lunch ideas:

Meal prep is a great tool if you have the time to complete the process. Sometimes this is just not the case, and it’s okay! Next time you’re grabbing something pre-prepared, do your best to make healthy choices. Order your meal with extra veggies, whole grains, or grilled food instead of fried. Even when eating out, take this opportunity to eat well.

Afternoon

Even after eating a nutritious and tasty lunch, sometimes an afternoon pick-me-up is in order. If you are craving a caffeine kick or a tasty snack, have items on hand that you enjoy. If you are craving chocolate or something salty, try having small ready-to-eat items nearby. This could be small sized chocolate bars or trail mix. Don’t forget to add your favourite healthy snack foods to your grocery list!

Tip: Keep filling snacks close. This will help to keep you feeling full and satisfied between meals without having to prepare a whole snack. You will be less likely to grab for something unhealthy if you have nutritious choices nearby. Also use your afternoon break as a time to get up and stretch throughout the day.

The afternoon is also a great time to check in with yourself to see if you have been drinking enough water throughout the day. If not, take this time to get a big glass now!

Evening

After a long day, cooking supper sometimes can feel like a big task, but it doesn’t have to be. Eating well doesn’t have to involve every dish in the kitchen (although sometimes it might). Check out the posts below for some ideas that are perfect for a busy weekday evening:

Eating a balanced diet also means sometimes indulging in those foods that might not be the best for us (from a nutrition standpoint). Whether you are celebrating a birthday, having your family over for dinner, running to an obligation or it’s just a Tuesday night, not every day will allow for a ‘perfect’ diet. This is where the balanced part of eating a nutritious diet comes in. Allow yourself to eat some of those less than nutritious meals when the occasion arises (or indulge in that tasty dessert).

Eating a nutritious and balanced diet is an important part to feeling our best. Remember to eat nutritious food when you can, but don’t forget to enjoy life’s simple pleasures as well.

Feel your best with a Personal Health Plan from Saskatchewan Blue Cross. Personal Health Plans offer coverage for Health Practitioners including Naturopaths, who an help you learn more about forming healthy habits.