Hi, thanks for sharing, I checked the Green smoothie...
about a hour ago
7 Steps for Improving Your Health
By Talia Marcheggiani • November 10th, 2012 • 8161 Views
While health magazines and other marketing campaigns often make it sound so complicated, the secrets to good health are simple: consume good food, drink water, exercise and reduce stress! We all intuitively know that obtaining great health is not found in a bottle, fad diet or the latest exercise craze. Achieving perfect health is a tricky balancing act, and most of us need help along the way. Most of these tips you've probably heard already, but allow me to lay them out for you all at once.
1. Eat 10 servings of fruits and vegetables each day. You´ve heard it so many times and yet it continues to be the number one diet recommendation of all time. It seems so simple and yet how many vegetarians, Paleo book thumpers, or other diet-obsessed individuals, actually follow this sacred pillar of good diet? No matter what food they call for you to avoid, all good diets have one thing in common: they emphasize fruit and vegetable intake.
The Canadian Food Guide recommends 5-10 servings a day, however most health experts will tell you to aim for 10 servings, which is roughly the equivalent of 10 handfuls, or 5 cups, of fruits and veggies a day. Try to consume a variety of fruits and veggies by eating different colours and making 6 out of those 10 servings come from vegetables, which have less sugar. Rather than obsessing over fad diets, calorie-reduced snacks or eliminating certain foods, increase your intake of fruits and vegetables. Consuming enough will reduce your incidence of heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, among other common chronic diseases, as well as help you maintain a healthy weight.
2. Exercise every day. Make your body move for a minimum of 20 minutes every day. My clinical nutrition professor, Dr. P, says, "if I could invent a pill that does everything that exercise does I would have the money to retire and everyone who is remotely related to me would never have to work a day in their lives." Exercise benefits every system, from our bones, muscles and cardiovascular system to our mental health. Simply moving doesn't have to be an activity that involves paying gym memberships, buying a special outfit or signing up for the latest fad exercise class. It could involve (and, for me, almost always does) lacing up comfortable shoes and going for a brisk walk outside. Go for...
Tags : healthy living tips, 7 Steps for Improving Your Health, Talia Marcheggiani, reducing stress, eating healthy, achieving perfect health, tips for better health, secrets to good health
Author - Talia Marcheggiani
Location: Toronto, CA
Talia has a bachelor of science in Life Sciences from Queen’s University and is a fourth year naturopathic clinic intern at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM) in Toronto, graduating class of 2014. From Toronto,...
The Whole Health Programs have
been enormously helpful. I lost 2 lbs this month and have eaten less
and more thoughtfully from the info., videos and compassionate,
inspired atmosphere of...
Talia
@aruffini Thanks for reading and commenting! Ideally, eating more fruit than veggies and trying to aim for whole sources of fruit and veggies (so, not dried, which decreases the water content and sometimes adds in other undesirable ingredients, such as sulfates or preservatives) is your best bet. However, fruit is still incredibly nutritious, full of fibre and low in calories. Rather than eating less fruit, I would try to increase the amount of veggies you eat. (I'm not sure if you need to do this, you may already eat tons of veggies, but it is a universal suggestion). As for the water vs. tea. Herbal (non-caffeinated) teas do count as servings of water. Especially now that it's cold, drinking warm liquids is actually beneficial for digestion and creating heat in the body, so, 2-3 thermoses of herbal tea sounds good! I personally recommend herbal rooibus chai teas (without caffeine or black tea) for their warming spices - like ginger and cinnamon - and delicious taste! Thanks again for reading!
about 6 months ago in Toronto, CA
aruffini
I start each day with at least 2 to (sometimes) 5 servings of fruit. I do not let this replace my veggies because I still eat plenty of veggies either throughout the day or with dinner. I still eat dry fruit sometimes during the day, if not, I bring an additional fruit with me. So, should I be cutting down on the amount of fruit I eat? Also, another question that nags at me is whether or not having tea actually counts as having water? Sometimes I don't bring water with me, but I refill my tea thermos at least 2 to 3 times during the day. Is that sufficient? Any insight would be appreciated, thank you!
about 6 months ago in Montreal, CA