Healthy Resolutions You Can Keep

It's a new year - and we've all done it, myself included: make resolutions we've broken by the end of the week. Have you resolved to eating healthier? It seems to be a universal New Years goal. But what does it mean?

To set yourself up for success, take little steps towards health, rather than rehauling your whole diet on day one. Cleaning out the pantry on January 1 and promising dramatic change from this day forward is just a recipe for disappointment. Instead, slowly make a few simple changes over the course of the year and you will soon enough find yourself eating healthier and feeling better in no time flat. And because the change is gradual, you will be establishing good eating habits that you will KEEP for a lifetime.

Start with eating more dark green vegetables. Here's a rule of thumb - the more color, the more nutrients. All leafy grains are packed with vitamin K, folic acid, iron, fiber - they are the super food of the vegetable world. Eat at least one dark green daily as a staple. You can season them easily and healthily with Wildtree's Grapeseed Oils - perfect for tossing over any green vegetable and giving TONS of flavor, especially the Lemon Infused. And the oil has nearly half the fat of olive, if you also happen to be watching calories.

Taking away one weakness food is a realistic goal towards health, rather than deciding to "cut out sweets/snacks" altogether. And remember, when trying to establish a new habit, it's ONE DAY AT A TIME. If you have to, take it one meal at a time. Pretty soon, it will be old hat and you won't want the same foods you wanted before you resolved to eating healthier. Always replace the unhealthy choice (i.e., movie theater butter flavored microwave popcorn) with a healthier choice (corn fresh popped in Butter Flavored Grapeseed Oil) so you won't miss what you're missing!

Want to cut back on carbs? Instead of saying "no bread" or "no chips" - which is unrealistic, try something simple and manageable like adding good carbs, like quinoa to your diet. Quinoa has tons of amino acids and is high in protein AND gluten free. Mix with some black beans and Cajun Blend, or zucchini and Curried Garlic Blend - the possibilities are endless. (Roasted Garlic GSO is terrific on quinoa as well, mix in any vegetable, fresh tomato and fresh grated Reggiano...mmmm)

We all know salt can be bad when used in excess and it truly is one flavor that you notice is gone, when it's gone - especially if you are accustomed to using it on a daily basis. Instead of taking it completely out of your diet and leaving yourself feeling deprived of flavor, replace salt with herbs and spices. Wildtree is the perfect choice for lots of flavor - every blend is SALT FREE. Shake it on - no fear! And unlike salt, herbs and spices have tons of healing properties like antioxidants and anti-inflammatories.

One of my weaknesses is sauces -I love basting, dipping, pouring something on just about every food I eat. But sauces can be full of fats and sugars, so I really watch that and appreciate that Wildtree has no high fructose corn syrup or additives in any of their sauces, dressings and marinades. Check your sauce labels as well. You don't have to give them up just to eat healthier or shave calories. A simple change to ketchup, salad dressing or grilling marinade that is high fructose corn syrup free (avoid corn oils, too) could save you tons in calories, without cheating you of flavor.

Here's to a New Year of good healthy eating habits, one step at a time. It is manageable!