A balanced diet is one the keys to losing weight, being healthy and keeping excess weight off. The main principle behind a balanced diet is consuming the right amount of different foods from each of the five main food groups.
The five main food groups are; carbohydrates, proteins, fruits and vegetables, milk and dairy foods, and foods high in fat and sugar.
The most vital aspect to remember when choosing your meals each day is that each of these five groups is not equal. You really shouldn’t consume a diet of which one fifth is fatty and sugary food!
The largest part of a balanced diet should be the carbohydrates group, making up around one third of your daily intake for the average person. (Carbohydrates can be thought of as like fuel or gas for your body. So a sports person, or possibly someone with a very active job and lifestyle, may need to increase the percentage of carbohydrate that makes up their overall diet).
Fruit and vegetables should make up approximately another third or so of a healthy diet, with the remaining third being divided between proteins and milk and dairy foods. Only a very small percentage of what you eat each day should consist of fats and sugars – this is the part that requires discipline.
We can look in more detail at the types of foods that fall into each of the five food groups. First of all, the carbohydrates group is occupied by foods like bread, rice, potatoes and pastas which are high in starch. Foods like these provide the fuel for your body to operate on day by day and it is important that high quality carbohydrates make up 30% of your diet, as a minimum. Wherever possible, it is recommended that whole grain bread, rice and pastas are chosen as these contain far higher levels of nutrients and fibre than their white counterparts, as well as having the effect of making you feel fuller more easily.
The fruit and vegetables food group is the one which many people seem to be neglecting in their busy lifestyles. Everybody should really aim to eat at least 5 pieces of fruit and vegetables per day. This can sound like a large number but it should be remembered that fruit and vegetables can be consumed in many ways and this doesn’t have to mean eating bananas or carrots or other examples as they come. There is another important thing to be said about fruit and vegetables. Putting to one side the benefits eating them can have in terms of a balanced diet and being healthy, there is considerable scientific evidence to demonstrate that they can help to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. What does this mean? Well, in blunt terms, it means than regularly eating more and fruit and vegetables can mean you are less likely to suffer a heart attack.
Moving on to the protein group, this can really be rolled into one with milk and dairy foods as both combined they should provide around 30% of your diet. Protein for most people comes primarily from eating meat, fish and egg, however, if you are vegetarian or vegan there are numerous other plentiful sources of protein such as nuts, pulses and seeds which ought to play a large part in your daily diet.
Now, the dreaded word for a lot of people; ‘exercise’. In order to lose weight, become healthier, and generally feel better everybody should ensure they lead an active lifestyle involving some regular exercise. The amount of exercise that we should undertake is commonly recommend to be 30 minutes or more of light/moderate physical activity, around five times a week. This doesn’t have to mean that you must go for 30 minutes runs every day to be fitter. In actual fact the 30 minutes may be divided into three 10 minute periods and it may just be an activity like taking the dog for a brisk walk or carrying out some home maintenance like mowing the lawn. The general idea is to be regularly doing something that makes you a little warm, makes you start to perspire and causes you to lose your breath a little, but nothing more strenuous than that is required. The key point to remember with exercise is that it doesn’t have to involve changing into shorts and running shoes or going to a local gym. In actual fact, it can be best to find an activity that you enjoy, so that way you will continue doing it on a regular basis and really start to feel the benefits of the new healthy you!
