Five tips to eating well this winter | Now to Love – New Zealand – Now To Love
Winter brings with it it’s own challenges when it comes to maintaining a healthy diet. The cold weather often tempts us with comfort foods that may not be super nutritious, and the shorter days can take away our motivation to prepare healthy meals. However, eating well during the winter months is important for stayed energised, boosting your immune system, and maintaining overall wellbeing. We share five hacks to help you eat well this winter, ensuring you stay healthy even as the weather gets colder.
1. Eat with the season
Eating well and maintaining a healthy weight is about consistent habits all year round. But when we think of eating well, we can often think of summer salads! Comforting and warming foods are good for the soul – and don’t have to blow your calorie count! Think delicious plant-packed soups, warming stews and curries or tasty tray-baked seasonal vegetables.
2. Enjoy a little sunshine
Sunlight is the best form of vitamin D, which has a key role in optimal bone health, skin health and regulating our mood. The winter months are a good time to get sunshine safely. Head outdoors for 15-30 minutes and roll up your sleeves to soak in the rays. Vitamin D is also found in oily fish like salmon, eggs, lean meat and dairy.
3. Take a trip to the Mediterranean
The foods found in the Mediterranean diet are not only delicious – they do wonders for your health too. The secret? No single food – it’s about the combination of whole foods, mostly plants, which is nature’s package of nutrients and antioxidants to support your immune system through the winter months and overall health. Fresh Start by My Food Bag has five Mediterranean- inspired recipes to choose from each week, making it easy to follow the Medi diet, even in the colder months!
4. Boost your diet with colour
There are five colour categories of fruits and veg, and each has its own unique set of phytochemicals that help to protect your health. For example, lycopene is found in red/pink produce, and is a powerful antioxidant that helps to reduce your risk of cancer and keep your heart healthy. Even better? Leave the skins on veges like beetroot for an extra dose of fibre.
5. Keep up the fluids
It’s easy to forget to drink enough water over winter! We’re often not as thirsty in the cooler weather. Luckily, all fluids count towards your hydration requirements, including warming teas, soups and smoothies.
Fresh Start
Fresh Start by My Food Bag is the perfect way to stay on track this winter! Choose from more than 25 recipes each week. All calorie-controlled, nutritionist approved and packed with protein, veg and wholegrains to make sticking to your health goals easy.
