Healthy Eating Tips From For Everyday

This was originally published on A Complete Waste of Makeup on June 29th.  I am currently hanging out on Neely's sidebar.  Go check out her blog!

As a Pilates instructor and fitness trainer I get asked all the time for recommendations on a healthy diet. Thanks to 24 hours television, the internet, magazines, e-books and blogs we get a nearly steady stream of diet advice, tips and tricks.  Just a quick glance at my Twitter feed at any given time and I would see advice to go vegan!  Cut carbs!  Paleo for the win!  No fruit, no wheat!  All produce and grains!
Phew.  It is enough to confuse anyone.  So, that is why, when I am asked, I recommend a healthy, balanced approach:

Eat smart
Monday - Friday eat a healthy diet of mostly fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, lean protein of your choice and, if you like, healthy grains.

Saturday and Sunday remain on the same healthy track but if you want a cookie crumble frappucino or sushi or a steak dinner, go ahead.  One meal will not set you off course.  I don't mean a weekend spent eating anything and everything in sight, just a little more relaxed than during the week.

Eat real
If it grew at one time, eat it!  Stay away from anything pre-packaged.  When eating packaged food, read the label.  If it has more than 5 or six ingredients and/or ingredients you would have to Google to know, don't eat it.

Stay hydrated
Drink 1/2 ounce of water for every pound you weigh.  Example: if you weigh 150 pounds, drink 75 ounces of water each and every day.

Cut out soda
Ouch.  This one was hard for me.  I love bubbles.  And I still indulge in a good, old Coca-Cola Classic every now and then.  But it is once or twice a month rather than once or twice a day.  How did I do it?  Every time I crave a soda I drink a glass of water first.  Then I think really hard about it.  If I am tempted to stop at a gas station, I tell myself to wait and then, while driving, think about all of the negatives of soda.  I usually am able to talk myself out of it.

Cut our the fake stuff
This is really important.  Don't drink diet sodas.  Don't drink or eat diet anything.  Google the names of all sugar substitutes (aspartame, stevia, xylitol, sucralose, sugar alcohols, etc.) and STEER CLEAR of them!  I tell my clients that real sugar is better than fake.  Not that you should eat sugar all the time, but on your 20% day(s) have a cookie made with real sugar rather than a chemical-filled "sugar-free" cookie. Sugar substitutes have been linked to things like bloating, headaches and even some cancers.  It just isn't worth the risk.

Pack snacks
I am hungry quite often.  I am also on the go all of the time.  The number one tip I have is to never leave the house without a few healthy foods.  When I go to work I take celery, carrots, grapes, berries and nuts.  I like to keep a Larabar or small bag of nuts in my purse at all times.  This way, when I am out and about and starving I have something healthy to grab and will not be tempted to go through a fast food line or grab a bag of chips.

For more tips on healthy eating, workouts to do at home or anywhere, and more, visit me at
Forward From The Heart!