Variety, Moderation and Balance

Variety
Eating a Variety of Healthy Foods
First, understand why variety is important. Varying your food provides a much greater range of nutrients. Eating the same foods day after day supplies your body with the exact same vitamins and minerals over and over again. Although you might be consuming the recommended daily allowance of many beneficial vitamins and minerals, you miss out on a lot of good stuff that your body needs. Furthermore, variety can make your meals much more interesting. Try new recipes, wherever you find them. (Take a look at our recipe archives.) Make a list of different fruits, vegetables and grains, and try something new each day. Pick one day a week to create a meal that you’ve never had before. Your taste buds won’t believe what they have been missing.

Moderation
All Foods in Moderation
We need to place greater emphasis on healthy foods and downplay the not-so-healthy ones. All of us should have a naughty treat occasionally. That’s why on your Super Slim plan we allow you a daily treat allowance. A lot of people impose too strict limitations on their diet which can actually cause over- indulgence when you give in. Take care of your mind as well as your body: If you feel absolutely desperate for chocolate, then you should have the pleasure of eating it every so often. Obviously, you shouldn’t eat high-fat food all the time, but most things can be eaten in moderation. Eating in moderation also means controlling the size of your portions. Proper planning will ensure that you are eating balanced meals in moderation and meeting your daily requirements.

Balance
Balancing Your Meals with Various Food Groups

Many people eat excessive amounts of food from one group and completely forget about other groups that offer important vitamins and nutrients. For instance, have you ever watched someone reach for a couple of bread rolls from the bread basket and then polish off a huge plate of pasta? The meal probably tasted delicious, but that’s a lot of carbohydrate without much of anything else. What happened to the fruits, vegetables, protein and dairy? Once in a while, a meal like that is fine, but as a general rule, incorporate different food groups onto your plate at each meal. For example, choose a salad, pasta with chicken and broccoli in tomato sauce and some parmesan cheese. This balanced meal offers a significant amount of nutrition. Use your diet to its full potential and you will achieve this naturally.

Schedule Time For Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
What kind of an eating schedule are you on?

Do you make time in your day for breakfast, lunch and dinner ; or do you run on empty until dinner and then pig out from starvation? Everyone has their own eating regime, some better than others. You should be fuelling your body throughout the day when you need the energy.

Breakfast with a Bang !
You’ve heard it a million times before: Breakfast is important! Think of your body as a car: It needs fuel to run properly. When you wake up from a good nights sleep, your body has been fasting for about eight hours. Breakfast in the morning helps kick your system into gear by supplying food energy to your system. Without food, you feel tired and sluggish. Incidentally, breakfast helps you control your weight: Eating a smart breakfast can help regulate your appetite throughout the day so you eat in moderation during lunch and dinner. Have you ever skipped breakfast to “save calories” only to find yourself so hungry by lunch that you overeat? So much for that diet. Start your day by making time for breakfast!

Fuelling Your Body All Day
Remember, breakfast alone won’t help. Your body needs to be constantly energized throughout the day to help keep you going. You don’t necessarily have to eat three square meals a day. In fact, some prefer six mini-meals. Do what suits your schedule and eating style best, but be sure that you eat a sensible diet.