During these days of quarantine, it is extremely important that you take maximum care of your diet. It is very easy to fall into the consumption of unhealthy foods, whether due to stress, anxiety or pure boredom in confinement. In order to keep your immunity up and to stay healthy during the pandemic, it is imperative that you maintain a healthy diet. Use the steps below to help yourself stay accountable.
- Plan your menu
Organizing what you will eat every day is one of the best ways not to over consume unhealthy foods. In addition, this will help to avoid food waste, which is beneficial if your local supermarkets are experiencing food shortages. Having a plan in place will lower the amount of time you spend inside a grocery store which is ideal during a pandemic.
To eat healthy you can use a visual and easily understandable model: “The Healthy Eating Plate“, from Harvard University. Thanks to this tool, you can plan your menu weekly or even biweekly with a wide variety of foods and combinations. If you are looking for healthy ideas, you can also take a look at their wide selection of healthy recipes.
- Do not let processed foods enter the house
These days it is much easier to fall into the temptation of processed snacks, those foods that have poor nutritional quality and high caloric density. Therefore, it is important to control these impulses. A simple strategy for avoiding these foods is to simply not buy them.
- Control the size of your portions
Overeating is a major cause of weight gain. One of the most important aspects of maintaining your weight and staying healthy while you are stuck inside is to control your portions. Eating the correct portions a meal calls for goes a long way in your diet. One way to do this hassle-free is to utilize companies such as Box Lunches or Hello Fresh that provide you meals with the correct portions to your doorstep
- Eat more vegetables and fruits
Controlling the size of the portions does not have to be synonymous with starvation, since if you increase the total amount of green in your dishes, be it fruit, vegetables or legumes, you will be able to eat more and be full without all the extra calories and fats.
As for dessert, you must prioritize the consumption of fresh fruit over sweets. The adequate intake of vitamins and minerals is key these days, so it is only necessary to use different types of plant foods in all our meals.
Focus on eating fresh fruits and vegetables as much as possible. If you are having a difficult time finding fresh food from your grocer or having them delivered during the pandemic, canned and frozen vegetables is a good substitute.
- Snack smart
When boredom lurks, you are likely to take more than one unnecessary trip to the pantry or fridge to grab an unhealthy snack. In general you should prioritize your more hearty meals throughout the day. Breakfast is essential to not only getting your day started, but to keep your appetite satisfied. If you do need a snack in between meals, whole grain snacks, nuts, apple slices, and celery sticks are all good options.
- Eat canned food of good nutritional quality
Canned food has become a fundamental resource during these days of quarantine, since prioritizing the purchase of food with a longer shelf life is needed to combat the anxieties of not being able to get food during the pandemic because of panic buying and shortages.
However not all canned foods have good nutritional value. Canned vegetables are a safe bet, since most of them are preserved naturally with water, salt and perhaps a little citric acid as an antioxidant.
