By Brent Botros Tree House Staff
I am constantly working on sharpening my diet habits. Initially, the idea of macronutrients and micronutrients, serving sizes, basal metabolic rate measurements, activity level factors, and specific diet types overwhelmed me. The idea that my diet had to look a certain way was daunting. When trying to recondition your lifestyle and develop a healthy diet, all of these stressors can be overwhelming and just flat out unnecessary. As I’ve become more knowledgeable about healthy eating habits, I have learned one of the most, if not the most, important rule of thumb, which is to keep it simple. Don’t stress yourself out about macros, or BMR measurements, or specific diets. Create a few habits for yourself that you can follow. These habits are listed below:
- Eat every 2-4 hours: this will not only create consistent energy flowing into your body, it will also keep your metabolism moving at a higher rate, helping to prevent the storage of unneeded fat.
- Eat 2 servings of veggies with each meal: I like to go with deep colored veggies like kale or spinach… or broccoli or asparagus.
- Eat whole protein with each meal: women get 1 serving (20-30 grams); men get 2 servings (40-60 grams).
These are just 3 out of 5 of the healthy eating habits that the International Sports Sciences Association recommends. Now, I’ll get into a bit more depth on what I find helpful. A few of the tools I use are:
- Set diet goals that help you identify specific limiting behaviors that need to be worked on. The behaviors can be controlled, but the end result cannot.
- Write your schedule out in detail, including times you go to the gym, and fill in the blanks with well-balanced meals, which follow the three habits listed above.
- Develop a grocery list based on your meal plan which you developed based on your schedule.
- If you need to post your goals or even keep a mantra on the wall or mirror for you to see each day to keep you focused, do it.
- Keep it simple!
- Stay consistent!
By following these healthy diet habit recommendations, you should be on the path to success soon enough!
Tree House Recovery is a men’s treatment program located in Portland, Oregon. Creating sustainable recovery through sustainable change, our programs help men learn how to live sober with adventurous lives. Call us today for information: (503) 850-2474