Eating healthy doesn't mean you have to eat food that tastes like cardboard! There are so many tasty alternatives to unhealthy and junk food.
Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, and much more.
Teenagers and athletes should avoid carbohydrates high in sugar such as cakes, packaged cookies, and soda, as these carbohydrates contain simple carbohydrates. Consuming too many simple carbohydrates will have a negative effect on your blood sugar levels as well as take a toll on your mood as well.
Protein: Protein includes cheese, eggs, fish, nuts, pork, beef, turkey, chicken, seeds, beans and soy products such as soymilk, tofu, miso, and tempeh. Even if you a vegetarian, you can easily fulfill your protein needs by choosing soy products, beans, and nuts. There are many foods which you can still eat, just choose a different variety of that food. For example, instead of eating hamburger meat, choose to eat grass-fed beef. Instead of eating regular frozen chicken and farmed salmon, eat organic chicken and wild salmon. Instead of eating fish sticks and popcorn shrimp, choose to eat tuna fish. Instead of eating egg sustitute or regular eggs, eat organic DHA-enhanced eggs. Also instead of eating regular yogurt, eat organic, plain, European or Greek Yogurt because it is richer, has good fat, more nutritious and also lower in sugar. For vegetarians or anyone else, instead of eating tofu and "mock meats" eat tempeh. Instead of eating green beans and large, starchy beans such as kidney beans, great northern beans, and lima beans, eat high-protein legumes and grains such as lentils and quinoas. Last but not least, choose to eat almonds and almond butter instead of eating peanuts and peanut butter because almonds are less toxic and allergenic, however they still have around the same amount of protein.
Fats: Some think that fats are bad and lead to weight gain, however that is not so. There are so called "good" and "bad" fats that are helpful to your body.
Good fats consist of non-saturated fats such as polyunsaturated fat and monounsaturated fat. These types of fats are essential to your health because it helps to transport fat-soluble vitamins such as A,D, E and K through your body. Good fats also cushion and protect your vital internal organs. There are also fats called essential fatty acids (EFAs) that benefit your metabolism, immune system, and your heart. EFAs are also used by your body for electrical, hormonal, and structural functions. EFAs also
increase fat burn off and weight loss because it increases your metabolism. Last but not least, fat is important because it gives you it is your body's main source of energy. Good fat usually comes from vegetable sources. However the best fats come from unrefined vegetable sources and oily fish. Some tips for easily staying away from bad fat include using extra virgin olive oil when cooking and putting flax oil, soy oil, extra virgnin olive oil, canola oil, wheatgerm oil, hemp seed oil, or walnut oil on your salads. The oils stated above are excellent souces of omega-3, which is an essential fatty acid. Also, when you eat fish, choose to eat oily fish such as solmon, sardines, mackerel, and tuna.
Bad fats are called saturated fats. Saturated fats can be found in animal products, meats, and dairy foods. However that doesn't mean you shouldn't eat them, these foods should just be eaten sparingly. This type of fat is solid at room temperature, so be on the look out! Other "bad" fats are hydrogenated fats, also called transfatty acids. Hydrogenated fats are known to cause heart disease and certain types of cancer. Hydrogenated fats are usually found in packaged baked goods and margarines. Saturated fat can also be found in chicken skin, lard, butter, hard margarine, animal meats, cheese, whole milk, cakes, chocolate, biscuits, pies, and pastries. So stray away and consume mostly good fats.
Knowing how to eat healthy is one of the most important life skills one can acquire. The earlier one learns this skill, the healthier they will be later on in life. Eating healthy isn't about gaining or losing weight at all. Eating healthy is extremely important for a highly active teenager because it gives teenagers energy to enjoy and participate in physical activities such as sports. Eating healthy is also immensely important for teenagers because it supports teenagers' bodies while they're growing and developing. Athletes should always eat healthy because it allows their bodies to reach their full physical potential in sports and athletics. Eating healthy also keeps you in a good mood, helps you brain function properly, and helps to build muscles.
There are many different food groups, however the best and healthiest diet consists of one that balances foods from all the different food groups.
