With the new year, you’re probably bombarded with ads trying to convince you to start dieting. Rather than going on a diet, three specialists suggest good eating resolutions to adopt if you want to improve your habits healthily.
Warning: although it’s tempting after holiday meals, starting a diet is not the best thing to do if you care about your diet.
Starting a diet will often restore a feeling of control to the person, but the “honeymoon” effect of this diet is only “very temporary”, indicates nutritionist Claudia Houle.
According to her, starting a diet with the main goal of losing weight is not a good idea. If we want to have a real positive impact on our health, we can decide to integrate actions that are not directly linked to weight, such as integrating more fruits and vegetables into our diet, she suggests.
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It’s also better from a self-esteem point of view. “We are told that the worst thing that could happen to us is to be fat or to gain weight,” laments Loounie (real name Caroline Huard), at the helm of the podcast broadcast on OHdio Flat on your stomach: diet culture with Loounie.
The vegan food expert suggests that we question our intentions before starting a diet. Often, she insists, it is possible to replace a diet with less restrictive actions that will really have a positive impact on our diet.
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Nutritionist Karine Gravel, who wrote a book on intuitive eating, insists that, “in the majority of cases, the weight lost will be regained [après un régime]”.
“Even if we tell people who want to lose weight not to do so, it won’t change anything,” explains Claudia Houle, reminding us that “you can’t undo what you’ve eaten, you can only get back into good habits.” or add some”.
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Here are 8 food resolutions to adopt this year:
1. Cook more
Making your own meals allows you to discover new foods, and it is often good for our health.
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2. Make your kitchen more functional
We have more fun cooking in a well-appointed kitchen! Loounie recommends decluttering your drawers and pantry, sharpening your knives and leaving certain appliances, like the food processor, within reach.
3. Organize your fridge
Knowing what you have in the refrigerator helps you waste less. Preparing your vegetables in advance can also help avoid waste.
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4. Eat more plants
Loounie, who is herself vegan, believes that the new year is an ideal time – with the price of meat and grocery shopping baskets continuing to rise – to incorporate new veggie foods into your daily life.
Claudia Houle advises revisiting the way we eat our fruits and vegetables, like with a smoothie or soup.
5. Eat more mindfully
Eating your meals mindfully rather than wolfing them down in front of the TV allows you to appreciate more what you have cooked.
Adopting intuitive eating, that is to say eating when you are hungry and not out of habit, is a better option, says Karine Gravel.
6. Clean up your social networks
An influencer often talks about diets and weight loss on Instagram and it makes you feel bad? Simply unsubscribe. Pay attention to the information you see and don’t hesitate to question what seems questionable.
7. Enjoy nature
What’s more satisfying than enjoying a good meal after a day outdoors?
8. Write down your accomplishments
If making resolutions seems unrealistic for you, writing down your accomplishments and reviewing them at the end of the year can be a much less restrictive solution.
Note: a first version of this article was published in January 2022.