As we work our way into the bitter coldness of wintertime, we know exactly how tricky it can be to feel motivated to want to prioritise taking good care of your health and fitness. During the spring and summer when it’s a bit brighter and warmer, it’s a lot easier to maintain a healthy and balanced diet, but during the winter it’s just simple to want to settle down under a big blanket with some quick, easy, and hot comfort food.
The problem is that wintertime tends to bring along some other negatives alongside the weather, namely coughs and colds, so making sure that you eat right is vital to support your immune system. If your immune system starts to suffer because you aren’t treating it well during the cold weather, then you will know about it when you start to get unwell. The good news though is that making the right choices for nutrition during the winter doesn’t mean that you have to lose out on comfort and flavour, you just need to make sure you’re picking the right foods.
Fruit and vegetables are packed full of natural antioxidants that work wonders for the body, including decreasing inflammation and providing energy boosts. They also contain tons of nutrients, vitamins and minerals that are perfect for keeping your immune system nice and strong. The main one for your immune system is vitamin C, so citrus fruits, cauliflower, leafy greens and broccoli are perfect for keeping it in tip top shape.
The one thing that you need to be aware of when you’re out shopping though is the distance that your fruit and veg has travelled before it has got to you, as fruit and veg that has travelled long distance is generally lower in nutrients. Locally grown produce that is in season is always your best bet to ensure you’re maximising the nutrients that you’re eating, so squash, parsnips, mushrooms, potatoes, blackberries, plums and apples are a good bet.
A simple way to incorporate fresh fruit and veg into your diet is soup, it’s a perfect winter warmer dish and there are recipes for dietary requirements of all kinds.
Spices are a great way to add a bit of flavour to your food, whilst providing you with some pretty impressive health benefits at the same time. Turmeric, for example, has many benefits and is proven to help prevent things like heart disease and certain types of cancer. Then you have other things like garlic which contains antimicrobial properties which help fight away viruses and lower your chances of infection.
As an alternative to adding spices to your food, you could take a look into juices or juice shots that contain them. While these juices are packed with everything you need to boost your nutrient levels, they’re also a perfect way to get a winter morning started and set you up for a brilliant day.
The cold weather does more than just make us shiver, it makes us tired and makes us hungry. When we’re tired and hungry, that chocolate bar that you’ve been staring at starts to look really tempting. While we’re not saying “you’re not allowed chocolate”, it’s really easy to fall into the habit of overeating (especially when it’s the wrong types of food). To keep up your energy (and keep it healthy), stocking up on hunger busting snacks is perfect.
Nuts are a perfect winter snack, they’re packed with healthy fats which act as natural anti-inflammatories and contain serotonin, which is know as a “happy hormone”, so they can even help to provide a bit of a “pick-me-up” when it’s cold and gloomy outside. They also contain a high amount of B vitamins and magnesium so they can help you to fight away winter tiredness.
Rather than deciding what you want to eat day by day, you should start to plan ahead for your week in advance. Make a list of meals for the week coming up, split it into the ingredients that each of them need and stick to your list during your regular weekly shop. Not only will you feel the benefits of a healthy and balanced diet, but you’ll notice the bonuses elsewhere too.
Your bank balance will look healthier, you’ll end up wasting less food and you’ll buy less takeaways and comfort food for snacking on. If you’re smart about it, you can even plan your meals around your leftovers from the day before to make sure you’re getting the most value for your money, keeping you and your pockets fuller.
Hopefully our list of tips can help to keep you eating right over the winter period. Obviously Christmas is a time that people associate with chocolates and treats and we aren’t saying that you can’t enjoy yourself, but you do need to make sure that you’re making the right choices to keep yourself in good health too.
To find out more about how The Nantwich Clinic can help with your nutrition and health, contact us today on 01270 627118 to book a lifestyle analysis appointment with us today!
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