If you have started to get interested in improving your diet and you don’t know how to start, the tips we give you today on how to make a healthy eating plan will be of great help. What should I eat and when should I eat it? What foods can I mix? How many times can I eat each food?… Surely these are questions that have been plaguing you. But don’t worry, we are going to give you the answer to each one of them. Take note!
Most people think having a meal plan for a whole month is outrageous. What, are you insane? Some even find it difficult planning for just two days, how conceivable would it be for them to plan for an entire month? What’s more, for what reason could you need to?
All things considered, old buddy, meal planning is your pass to saving food, time, and cash, just as a decent lot of the pressure that happens when you or those you love begin to get hungry. Drafting a healthy monthly meal plan can help you stretch your assets—be they some staple goods you have close by, the time in your timetable, or the cash you spend every month to purchasing food.
How To Make a Healthy Month Meal Plan
To start with, you will have to carefully consider these few tips underlisted, before pulling out your own personalized healthy month meal plan.
Tip 1: Buy healthy foods.
The first step you need to take in order to follow a healthy month meal plan is to avoid rotten or decayed foods. Make sure that the foods that are part of your diet are healthy and fresh. This will make it much easier for you to create a healthy meal menu for the whole family and avoid the temptation to eat unhealthy foods.
Tip 2: Incorporate veggies.
We are sure you won’t be surprised if we tell you that vegetables should be part of a balanced diet. They are very rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber. Make sure they are, at least, in your main meals. There is no vegetable that is better or worse than another. Each one will provide you with specific nutrients, so variety is the key. Make sure your dishes are full of color and you will be able to take advantage of all their benefits.
Tip 3: Make fruits your companion.
Another classic that cannot be missing in a healthy and balanced diet are fruits. Try to eat 2 or 3 pieces of fruit a day. Just like vegetables, fruits will also provide extra vitamins, fiber and minerals to your diet. You can eat them between meals, as a dessert or as part of a main dish such as a salad🥗.
Tip 4: Add cereals and its derivatives.
Cereals and their derivatives are a source of carbohydrates, whose main function is to provide energy. It is important to choose whole-grain versions over refined ones and avoid processed products such as cookies🍪, pastries or sugary cereals.
Tip 5: Don’t neglect healthy fats.
Fats have long been labeled as “unhealthy”. However, there are healthy fats, unsaturated fats, that should be part of a healthy diet. Some foods with healthy fats that should be part of your diet are nuts, seeds, olive oil or avocado🥑. On the other hand, try to limit the consumption of saturated fats present in fatty sausages, industrial pastries, salty snacks, etc.
Tip 6: Incorperate legumes and tubers.
Legumes are often forgotten in our diet, but they are an excellent choice of vegetable proteins. If you do not have time to cook them, you can buy jars of cooked legumes. In 5 minutes you can have a delicious and nutritious salad. Root vegetables such as sweet potato or potato are also a good option to get different flavors and textures in the kitchen.
Tip 7: Add diary and vegetable equivalents into your healthy month meal plan.
Dairy is a good source of calcium and quality protein, so it can be part of a balanced and healthy diet. Vegetable equivalents such as vegetable drinks or calcium-enriched vegetable yogurts are also a good option if you cannot or choose not to consume dairy. It is important not to include in this group dairy desserts such as custards, puddings, ice creams… which are very rich in added sugar.
Tip 8: Meat, fish, seafood and eggs are important in every healthy month meal plan.
These food groups will provide good quality protein to your diet. Try to make them part of your main meals and try to avoid processed products of less nutritional quality such as nuggets, fish🐟 sticks, frankfurters, etc. unless they are homemade.
Never forget that healthy eating starts with healthy food shopping.
Are your dishes balanced?
Once you have made sure that the food you have at home is healthy, you should also make sure that the dishes that make up your main meals are also healthy.
To do this, we suggest you follow the plate method. This involves dividing your plate into three parts:
One half of the dish, made up of greens and vegetables. Vegetables will bring fiber, vitamins and minerals to your recipes. The more variety of vegetables you incorporate, the more variety of nutrients you will be able to obtain.
A quarter of the plate is made up of quality protein foods: lean meats, white fish🐟, oily fish🐟, eggs, legumes and tempeh, tofu, seitan.
A quarter of the plate should be made up of carbohydrate-rich foods: cereals and whole-grain derivatives, tubers and legumes. Remember that carbohydrates are our main source of energy, do not forget to incorporate them into your main meals.
Here are some ideas of dishes that follow the healthy plate method and that you can incorporate into your diet:
Arugula salad🥗, cooked lentils, cherry🍒, tomatoes🍅, grated carrot🥕, radishes and sautéed chicken🐔 breast cubes.
Baked sea bream with baked potatoes🥔companied by a mixed salad🥗.
Sautéed spinach with chickpeas and skewers of turkey🦃 and vegetables.
Vegetable ratatouille with textured soybeans and whole wheat pasta spirals.
Sample of a Healthy Month Meal Plan
Here is a guide on how you can draft your own healthy month meal plan inline with above listed tips.
Bonus: water is essential for the health. It helps to keep the body hydrated. Don’t wait till you get thirsty before drinking water. Endeavor to keep the body hydrated at all times.
To help you further break down and simplify your meal plan, check out our recommended healthy meal plan for a week.
