12 Insights & Tips for a Nutritious Diet Make-over

Fueling your body with healthy nutrients makes you feel better--inside and out--even if you slip up from time to time. Here are 12 insights and tips to help meet your goal.

1. Don't be too hard on yourself at the beginning. Unhealthy eating habits run deep. Take one meal at a time, and don't expect overnight changes. Feeling guilty all the time about what you're eating is dangerous and leads to eating disorders. Remember, eating is a pleasure and a privilege. Tip: Many health-conscience people allow themselves one cheat day per week.

2. Some healthy food options may not appeal to your pallet... Now let me rephrase that: "At first, some foods may not appeal to your pallet." For example, if you are a whole or 2% milk drinker, drinking non-fat milk will taste like you're drinking a watered down version-at first. Yuck, right? Here's the good news, if you really want to eat or drink healthier and continue eating or drinking that "tasteless thing," your taste buds will eventually change. You'll actually begin to like the taste of "watered down" milk. How many of us liked a black cup of coffee the first time they tried it? (Milk tip: In some cases a gradual change works best. Example: Go from whole milk to 2%, 2% to 1%, et cetera.)

3. Know what makes a food unhealthy. Can you define junk food? The answer "not good for you" isn't good enough. Here it is. Memorize it: Any man-made, digestible or partially digestible food that does not provide adequate enzymes to breakdown the host substance; therefore relying upon (and taxing) the body to create its own enzymes for digestion. (In other words... slowing your metabolism.) Doesn't a definition like that, with words like man-made, digestible or partially digestible, make junk food a lot less appealing.

4. Know what makes a food healthy. Did you memorize the definition of junk food yet? Health food is simply the absolute opposite: Any digestible, natural occurring substance that contains adequate enzymes to breakdown the host substance. You really are giving your body a break by feeding it with natural foods.