Who doesn't love a good life hack? We are always looking for ways to become more efficient and effective here at Bondi Coffee and improving our eating habits is no exception to that! We love fuelling our body with fresh, nourishing foods but sometimes we find ourselves slipping back into some of our not-so-healthy routines.
To prevent this, we have pulled together some of our favourite healthy eating hacks from internet users all over the world in the hope that you will pick up a few tips that you like and can implement into your daily life too.
Don’t forget the easiest way to kickstart back up your healthy habits is to incorporate a daily cup of Bondi Coffee Lean-Green Blend to ensure you are getting a hit of our favourite superfoods that will keep you energised all day long as well as give your body essential vitamins and nutrients.
- Drink a large class of water 10 minutes before every meal and always have a glass of water next to you while you eat, this helps your body to recognise when you are full.
- Track your calories. This isn't for everyone, as some people find calorie counting to be restrictive however calorie counting can give you a really good idea about how much you are consuming, and how those little bites and snacks throughout the day can really add up. This is also a great way to see if you are hitting a good amount of protein each day and if you are getting enough of the essential vitamins and micronutrients your body needs to perform at its best.
- Is there certain comfort foods or high fat meals that you absolutely adore? One Redditor gave the advice to start challenging yourself to "healthify" your favourite meals. If it’s a big bowl and mac and cheese that you crave, try to create a cauliflower or greens mac that will still fulfil the craving but nourish your body at the same time.
- Swap out white starchy carbs for vegetable alternatives. Throw in some cauliflower rice into your next stir-fry or try out some spaghetti squash, you just never know which variation you might end up liking even better than the original!
- Prepare a big batch of salad or roasted vegetables on a Sunday night. By doing this you always have pre-prepared healthy options on hand to compliment your favourite protein sources. If it’s already made and ready to go in the fridge you are much more likely to use it,
- Plan out your meals. This doesn't mean you have to know exactly what you are eating for every meal each week, but by taking 10 minutes to have an idea of a few meals you want to create that week and planning your shopping list accordingly, it means you will minimise your food wastage and be less likely to throw unhealthy alternatives in the trolley when you get to the shops.
- Aim for 1-2 servings of vegetable at every meal. By focusing your meal around fresh vegetables, you will as a result make better decisions throughout the day. If you can swap out unhealthy snacks for fruit and vegetables, you will already be ahead of most of the population!
- If you usually find yourself short on time for breakfast, one working professional said to cook up a big batch of steel cut oats with a little bit of honey or protein powder mixed in and your favourite add ins. Let the mixture cool and spoon them into muffin tin (don't forget to spray with some oil) and put them in the freezer. Then take 2 of these frozen 'muffins' out and add to the microwave to save you having to cook porridge on the stove every morning- genius.
- Follow some healthy cooking accounts on Instagram. This will give you some cooking inspiration and subconsciously make you crave the type of foods you are seeing. If your feed is filled with cheat meals and burgers rather than sweet potatoes and salads, you’re going to be more likely to crave the highly saturated fatty foods because that is the content you are consuming on a daily basis.
- Go to a nice spice store and treat yourself to some pre-made rubs and spices. Most people don't like eating healthy because they think it's bland and tasteless. One student said having nice spices and marinades helped him to transition into a wholefoods diet.
- Don't buy sweets/ junk to keep in the house. Instead leave it at the shops and tell yourself that if you have the craving for it that you will allow yourself to buy it only if you are prepared to walk to get it. Usually the effort to go to the shops is stronger than the craving. The same notion applies with ordering out- delete Uber Eats and instead tell yourself that if you don't want to cook you have to walk up to get your takeaway. Nine times out of ten you’ll just end up whipping something up.
- Add your favourite vegetables instead of carbs to bulk up a meal. If it's a stir-fry, load it with veggies such as mushrooms, peppers and spinach. If you are having an omelette instead of just sticking to bacon and cheese add in some rocket or courgette. This will help you to easily get in 3 servings of vegetables a day without even noticing the difference.
- If you eat out a lot a great way to reduce this is by downloading the menu of a few of your favourite restaurants and trying to copy the dishes at home! Not only is this a fun way to improve your cooking and experiment with different dishes but it will also save your bank account.
We are sure you had an "ah-ha" moment when browsing through these healthy hacks - we know we did! Try to incorporate a few of these tips into your week and see if it makes a difference.
Don’t forget you can always come back to our blog section to refer back to!
Happy healthy eating Bondi Coffee Tribe.