Fueling Your Best Self: Simple Nutrition Tips for a Healthier You

Fueling Your Best Self: Simple Nutrition Tips for a Healthier You

Finding a balanced fueling plan for yourself shouldn’t be difficult! Below, we shared some of our favorite tips to help you easily navigate building a balanced healthy eating pattern to fit your lifestyle! 

Build Balanced Plates

We often use the plate model when it comes to educating our clients on how to make a healthy balanced lunch or dinner plate. A balanced plate contains a few key components; a lean protein source, a heart healthy fat source, a fibrous carb source, and a fruit or vegetable. I will give examples of each of these types of foods below! When it comes to the portions of these components you need on your plate, that all depends on what your health goals are as well as your current activity level and many more factors!

Lean Protein:

Healthy Fat:

Fibrous Carb:

Fruit/Veggies:

• Chicken
• Fish
• Turkey
• Lean ground protein
• Tofu
• Eggs

• Oil
• Avocado
• Nuts
• Seeds
• Nut butters
• Full fat dairy

• Brown rice
• Whole wheat bread
• Beans
• Lentils
• Quinoa
• Whole wheat pasta

• Berries
• Broccoli
• Apples
• Spinach
• Orange
• Brussel sprouts

Make a Weekly Food Plan

Having a food plan for the week can be immensely helpful to support success of eating balanced meals. We are all so busy with life and work that if we don’t go into the week with a plan for meals it can lead to increased stress around mealtimes and a decrease in the number of balanced meals each week. 

 

A food plan is NOT a meal plan, it is simply just a general outline of meals you are going to make that week. Next, make a grocery list with the ingredients you need for the meals. This will help keep you organized so you don’t forget anything you need at the store. Last step, make the meals! 

 

Meal prepping is not for everyone. We personally like to just prep one or two individual ingredients for weekly meals so that cooking lunch or dinner is a little less time consuming during the week. This often means prepping a vegetable or protein source on the weekend. Prepping a vegetable can mean cleaning, dicing, and roasting broccoli or it can just mean clean and cutting up some cucumbers! You don’t need a complex meal every night, just remember the important components of a balanced plate we discussed above and make sure to include them in all your lunch and dinner meals

Stock up on Frozen Vegetables and Fruits

Even the best laid out food plan for the week can go off track due to lack of time to cook, or busy schedules, or you just don’t feel like eating what you prepped for the week anymore! This is when frozen fruits and vegetables can be very handy. They are non-perishable so you don’t have to worry about them hanging around in your freezer for a while and going to waste and they require limited to no cooking to prepare. You can often just heat them up and eat! 

 

We often recommend our clients keep the frozen form of 2-3 of their favorite fruits or vegetables on hand at all times. If you have nutrient dense foods like fruits and vegetables on hand and in a form that is easy to prepare the likelihood that you will eat them goes up! Frozen fruits and vegetables are just as nutrient dense as fresh fruits and vegetables. So you are not losing out on quality either!  

Stock up on Fiber & Protein Filled Shelf Stable Snacks

Going long periods of time without food or eating low fiber and protein snacks throughout the day can leave you feeling fatigued, lead to poor concentration, and lead to increased hunger later in the evening. Including protein and fiber rich snacks throughout your day can help to keep your energy levels up and keep you full and focused! 

 

Many of our clients are always busy and, on the go, so they need protein and fiber filled snacks that are shelf stable and safe to have in their car or bag for a few hours before they need consume it! There are plenty of fiber and protein rich snacks, however many of them require refrigeration. For our busy clients that won’t work! Below we have listed some of our favorite shelf stable protein and fiber filled snacks to keep you full, focused, and less fatigued throughout the day while you are on the go!

High Fiber & Protein Shelf Stable Snacks

• Chomp turkey jerky stick & orange  

• Dried edamame & almonds 

•Horizon shelf stable milk & apple 

•Dried chickpeas & clementine 

•Fairlife protein shake & banana  

Fueling your body with balanced meals and smart snack choices doesn’t have to be complicated. By building balanced plates, planning your meals, and keeping nutritious staples on hand, you can create a sustainable and healthy eating routine that fits your lifestyle. Small, consistent changes can make a big impact, so start by incorporating a few of these tips and see how they support your energy, focus, and overall well-being. Remember, the goal is to find what works best for you — nourishing your body should feel simple and enjoyable!

 

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