Let's be honest; eating healthily isn't always as easy as we'd like it to be. We're constantly bombarded with junk food ads on TV and in the street, and unhealthy options in the supermarket all compete for our attention and encourage us to spend our hard-earned cash on things that aren't so good for us. And sometimes, at the end of a long day, a pizza just seems more appealing than a salad. We're all human and sometimes we fall off the wagon.
But that doesn’t mean we have to stay off the wagon. If you've committed to a healthy eating regime but are starting to feel a bit demotivated, here are seven ways to get yourself back on track and keep it interesting:
1. Mix things up a bit
Try eating foods that you've never tasted before, look out for new shops to visit that may just have opened or take a trip to your local farmer's market – the variety of fresh, colourful fruit and vegetables on display should get you excited about eating healthily again.
2. As well as trying new foods, experiment with different recipes
Don't eat the same things day in, day out – that's guaranteed to get boring. Invest in a few healthy recipe books or just check out Pinterest and Instagram for inspiration. Healthy eating can be and should be fun!
3. Banish junk food from the house
Stock your kitchen with healthy foods and prepare them as soon as you get them home. That way when you fancy a snack you can open the fridge and take your pick from fresh fruit salad, greek yoghurt with honey, vegetable sticks with houmous, nuts with dried fruit, hard boiled eggs etc, instead of wrestling with your conscience because you really want that last slice of chocolate cake that's staring at you from behind the cheese.
4. Prepare yourself
If you have a busy life or work a lot and don't have much time to make healthy meals, start preparing lunches and dinners on a Sunday for the week ahead and stick them in the freezer. Then, when you get home from a long day at work you’ll be less likely to grab the phone and order a takeaway because you'll already have a meal waiting for you – all you have to do is heat it up.
5. Eat little and often
This will help keep you full. When you haven't eaten for hours and hours and are feeling ravenous, you're more likely to make poor food choices and eat more than you usually would.
6. Surround yourself with people who motivate you
Keep away from negative people who try to criticise your healthy food choices. Some will feel threatened by your new healthy way of life and try to put you down. This is nothing to do with you and everything to do with their insecurities, so don't let them bother you.
7. Keep reminding yourself how far you've come
Maybe you've lost weight, have more energy or are just enjoying life more. Maybe you had a health condition which has improved since you started taking care of yourself. Do you really want to go back to the way things were before you started?
At the end of the day, sticking to a healthy eating plan is all about your attitude. To stay motivated, make it fun, don't think of it as a punishment and do allow yourself the odd treat every now and then so you don’t feel deprived. Most importantly, remember that it's not a quick fix or a miracle diet - they don’t exist - but your way of life now. Keep going!
Do you have any tips for tricks for helping people stay motivated? Leave them in the comments!
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