Focus on Adding Instead of Subtracting

When it comes to making changes to your diet, most focus on cutting things out and on what not to eat.

Yes, it’s true that to have a healthier diet you will most likely have to cut back on junk food. (Not cut out).

But how about trying the complete opposite and focusing on what to add and not worrying so much about what to cut out?

Could it work?

When I am helping someone with their diet, I will ask them to do a 3-day journal of their current diet. I will then take a look at that with them and first look for ways to add foods to create more balanced nutrition and not be too quick to start telling them to cut things out. It’s a healthier way to look at eating and is more likely the client will do it.

Add More Protein.

Most of us are not getting enough protein. Protein helps build and maintain muscle mass which we need to accomplish our goals no matter what they are. Even if you are trying to “lose weight”, the goal is fat loss not weight loss. We want to keep our muscle mass.

Protein is also very satiating and keeps you feeling full longer. If you are more satiated, you will probably be less tempted to grab junk food throughout the day.

If you are having a hard time getting enough protein through whole food sources, consider a protein powder supplement to help fill the gap.

Try to build your meals around your protein source, always thinking of protein first. This will again make it less likely to overeat less nutritious foods during your meal.

Add More Vegetables.

Most of us can benefit from eating more vegetables. Try to make a point of adding more to your diet. The best part is most vegetables are very low in calories but high in nutritional value. So, you get to feed your body good nutrition without piling on excess calories, and you can eat a lot of them which psychologically is beneficial because you feel like you ate a lot.

Eat More Fruit.

Fruit can sometimes get a bad rap because of their sugar content. Fruits also have a lot of good nutrients we need. There is no need to give up fruit. Fruit is not the problem with most people’s diets. Try to use fruit to replace the unhealthy added sugars in your diet.

Carbs and Fats.

Now that you are building your meals around the protein first, then adding more vegetables, you can now add some carbs and fats. Let me first make the comment that carbs and fats are not bad. You need them and they are part of a well-balanced diet. They don’t make you gain weight. You gain weight from eating more calories than your body needs, which you can do with any food or nutrient. So, if you want pasta or rice or to put a bit of butter on your vegetables, you can. Just be more aware of the total caloric content of your meal and also try to stick to the least processed types of carbs and fats as you can.

Focusing on the total calorie content and quality of those calories will have the biggest impact on your diet.

When you prioritize adding the healthy foods into your diet first, the less healthy foods tend to fall away over time.

That’s not to say you never eat any junk food anymore. There is nothing wrong with enjoying a piece of cake or some ice cream once and a while. It’s about what you do most of the time, not occasionally that counts. But when you purposely eat more nutrient dense food you will have less room for the “junk”. It’s about learning and building healthy nutrition habits that you can stick to most of the time. Once you make healthy eating a habit, you will never have to diet ever again!