According to the Mayo Clinic and several other sources, there are several foods that are the ultimate as far as being nutrient dense and at the top of their game. Over the past few years, several sources have published their version of the “10 Healthiest Foods”. While many of these lists contain some of the same foods, there are slight variations. Because of their reputability and visibility online, I tend to like the Mayo Clinic’s 10 Healthiest Foods.

According to their list, those on top include: almonds, apples, blueberries, broccoli, red beans, salmon, spinach, sweet potatoes, vegetable juice, and wheat germ.

The 10 Healthiest Foods as chosen by Mayo Clinic are said to have qualified under 5 standards including being a good source of nutrients, high in phytonutrients and antioxidants, low in calories, readily available, and able to help in the reduction of heart disease and other health conditions.

If this were my 10 Healthiest Food list, I would replace wheat germ with steel cut oatmeal. It is highly available and has numerous health benefits. As a matter of fact, many similar lists include oatmeal in their top ten.

One of the good things about this list is these foods are easily incorporated into your diet. Almonds and blueberries on your oatmeal make a great breakfast. A spinach salad with apples is perfect for lunch and salmon with sweet potatoes and broccoli make a super nutritious and filling dinner. By adding some of these foods into your daily diet, they can take the place of higher calorie, less nutritious things you may be eating.

Small simple changes can make a big difference in your diet. For additional information on healthy foods and good recipes to easily incorporate them into your diet, check out these entries in About.com’s Low Calorie Cooking Blog.

The term “healthy eating guide” can apply to a number of things. A fad diet book could be considered a healthy eating guide. Just because you can stick this particular label on it, doesn’t necessarily make it so. There are hundreds of “diets” out there and many of them aren’t worth the paper they are printed on. Weeding through them often leads people back to the place where they realize the best diet is one that is nutritionally sound and free of gimmicks and fads. For this reason, a truly healthy eating guide is often the simplest.

The right healthy eating guide for you may be different than the right one for me. We are all different and so are our bodies, our fitness goals, and what we like to eat. Finding the correct healthy eating guide that lines up with all of your individual needs can be tricky. But, it doesn’t have to be.

If you are getting involved in a fitness program and seeking a guide to accompany your workouts talking with a personal trainer or nutritionist might be a good idea. However, most of us don’t have the time or the money for this kind of one on one help. In that case, finding a fitness program that has an eating plan included is a great way to ensure that what you are eating matches your goals and your workouts.

The P90X Nutrition Guide has gotten a lot of good feedback for several reasons. This healthy eating guide not only gives you detailed instructions on how to eat with the accompanying extreme fitness program, it gives you options. Nothing is more difficult to stick with than a nutrition plan or workout that doesn’t have some wiggle room or customization features. With the P90X Nutrition Guide you pick the eating plan that fits your lifestyle.

When looking for the ideal healthy eating guide, don’t forget your preferences and needs. We are often lured by what works for someone only to find it is totally inappropriate for us. Find a nutrition plan that allows you to make some customizations and alterations in order to increase the likelihood of your successes.

Not all diet plans are created equally. What works for you may not be the best solution for my fitness goals. While some people struggle with the fitness aspect of healthy living, eating high quality nutritious foods is more difficult for others. As with any aspect of a healthy lifestyle, there are numerous approaches to make incorporating healthy foods easier. Simply learning little tips and tricks can dramatically increase your healthy eating habits overtime.

One of the best ways to reduce your consumption of high fat or otherwise unhealthy foods is to increase the consumption of healthy foods. When you replace empty or unhealthy calories with those that further your fitness goals you get one step closer to a healthier and happier you.

Home workout programs that include a nutritional or eating plan often give great tips on how to make the inclusion of healthy foods an easy task. P90X and ChaLEAN Extreme both give people the nutritional fuel they need to reach even the most lofty fitness goals.

Finding ways to boost the number of healthy foods in your diet, even by one vegetable daily, can make a difference. If eating right is particularly difficult for you, start small. Add one additional veggie to lunch and dinner. The place this veggie fills on your plate will need to take the spot that was once filled with a less healthy option. Once you realize how simple this small change is, you may work up to more difficult dietary changes.

Try adding a steamed green veggie to your dinner plate tonight or perhaps some extra tomatoes and sprouts to your noontime sandwich tomorrow. Also, bulk up recipes with extra vegetables to reduce their calorie count. Making multiple small changes can add up to major results when they are done in conjunction with a fitness program.

Sticking to a nutritious eating plan can be difficult without planning. This is simply because modern adults love convenience. Sure fast food is typically cheap; but we don’t usually go there for this reason. We go because it’s easy. It requires little time and also very little thought. Imagine if preparing a healthy meal was this simple. We would probably do it a lot more often. While healthy foods aren’t always as fast, they can be more convenient and the trick is starting at the beginning.

Healthy foods and healthy eating habits begin in the grocery store.

You can’t expect to eat according to your nutrition plan if there are no healthy foods in the house. Sure you can argue that you could run out to get them but this is exactly where temptation comes in. If you have healthy foods available, at your fingertips, you are far less likely to stray.

Spending your grocery money wisely can take some practice. If you are new to shopping for healthy foods you may find yourself needing a list more often than not. I encourage a list. Knowing what you are after ahead of time means you are less likely to stray from those healthy foods. Think about what meals you want throughout the week and take about 20 minutes to make a comprehensive list before you even leave the house.

Once you have your cupboards stocked with these new healthy foods, you have to get rid of temptation. If you reach for a snack and find a bag of chips right next to your almonds, there are some days that you won’t have the will power to choose wisely. The solution: get rid of the chips! Clean out your pantry, cupboards, and frig ensuring you get rid of the unhealthiest choices.

By making healthy foods convenient and guilty pleasures hard to get at, you make it easier to stick with your eating plan than to stray from it.

We all know that well-intentioned plans don’t always turn out. Things come up, obstacles present themselves, and sometimes we are caught in situations where our plans don’t have a hope for survival. When it comes to healthy eating plans, however,  we can usually make them work. There are very few valid excuses for completely abandoning a healthy eating regimen. However, there are days where we may allow ourselves to stray a little further from the target goal.

The key to making it through the days when your healthy eating plans go out the window is to not let this minor setback be the end-all of your healthy lifestyle. Too many people who are into fitness just to lose weight see a diet setback as a diet disaster and it simply doesn’t have to be that way. When you have a small fries with your salad once a week, it doesn’t have to snowball into a Bic Mac and milkshake on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays. 

Finding a balance between sticking to your guns and allowing yourself a treat now and then is crucial. When someone asks me for healthy eating advice I always say, “eat right 90% of the time”. I say this because it is totally attainable and doesn’t require perfection. When you set healthy eating plans that require perfection, you will fail. No one is perfect. So, be realistic.

Find healthy eating plans that work for you. The P90X Nutrition Guide is a great example of healthy eating plans to fit a variety of lifestyles. There are several choices in this workout system to ensure you have a plan that is customizable for you. The best fitness systems include healthy eating plans like these.

Once you have your healthy eating plans in place, stick with them. If you eat pie on Thanksgiving or a slice of cake at a birthday party, don’t sweat it! Your diet will not fail because you step outside the rules every once in a while. Just pick back up after that last delicious bite of cake and get back on track.

Learn to see your healthy eating plans as a lifestyle, not a temporary set of rules and you will be in a much better place for success.

Why is eating healthy important? Sounds like a ridiculous question huh? You would be absolutely astounded at how many people search the Internet for an answer to this question on a daily basis. More than likely the people who are looking for the answer know on some level that eating healthy keeps them fit, it keeps their body running efficiently and it helps them live longer. They may be looking for a scientific answer or simply a reinforcement of what they already know.

When people ask a question like why is eating healthy important, they are likely looking for more than a textbook answer. Many times when we dance between trying to be healthy and slipping back into unhealthy habits, we look for justification. We play games with our minds and hope maybe we will discover that we don’t have to eat healthy or maybe we will find a recent scientific study stating that pizza is the new superfood.

Newsflash: it’s not going to happen. Eating healthy is important for weight management, disease prevention, and long life. In order to look good and feel good, we have to give our bodies the right fuel. So, why is eating healthy important?

It’s important for all of the reasons you have ever learned it is. You have to eat healthy to grow big and strong! You have to eat healthy to fight off disease and infection. You have got to give your body good fuel if you expect good performance from it. Eating healthy is important if you want to fit in your clothes, look good in a bathing suit, and simply feel comfortable in your own skin.

If someone were to ask me “why is eating healthy important?” my first reaction would be to wonder what their true motivations were. You don’t need to be a doctor to realize that eating healthy feels better. You don’t have to be a fitness whiz to know that it is important for a multitude of reasons and if you are searching the web for “why is eating healthy important?” just know that your mother was right and please eat your vegetables.

Everyone wants to be fit. Everyone wants to be healthy. Getting there is the hard part. For many of us, healthy eating is where the challenge lies. Working out may come easy but reigning in those eating habits is another story. In an effort to master healthy eating, we may try low carb, high carb, carb cycling, high protein, low fat, or any other combination that promises to be the “answer” to our weight and eating struggles.

When it really comes down to it, these plans may provide success to some, but for many they are just another route to the same result. We try something that could deliver healthy results but we are set up by the restrictive nature of the diet. Healthy eating requires going back to basics and finding what specifically works for you.

Everyone is different and so is every body. We all process foods slightly differently. For some, carbohydrates cause immediate weight gain or sluggishness. For others, a diet low in carbohydrates feels like a diet without any energy source. The fact is, no diet is the perfect diet for everyone. Healthy eating involves figuring out what works for you and your body.

So, how do you know what healthy eating habits work for you? Well, it’s a little bit of trial and error. However, that doesn’t mean go buy a chocolate cake and see how it makes you feel: You Know That’s Unhealthy! Adults know the difference between healthy foods and unhealthy foods. Don’t eat the unhealthy ones! Does this mean you will never have a Big Mac again? No, it means you will regulate your eating and have a Big Mac, when you feel like your body can handle the extra calories and a little treat.

Stick to healthy eating, the foods you know to be good for you. Adjusting your protein, carbs, and fat to an optimal level for you will take practice. As you learn more about your body through working out and eating, how your body feels after certain meals or days will become more apparent and you will be better able to decide what foods are the right ones for your healthy eating plan.

Looking to lose weight? If you are you may be interested to know that weight loss workouts and a healthy diet are vital in lasting weight loss. Did I hear a “duh”? Yeah, I know it is obvious, but how many of us know the truth and fail to live it. Whether your excuse is time, effort, or just plain lack of motivation, most of us find exercise easier to manage than diet or vice versa.

For me, it’s diet. I can manage what I eat, but finding the “umph” to workout is another story. I have found tricks and methods to make fitness work for me and know that others have to do the same thing. Weight loss workouts must have short term payoffs to entice me. Lately, realizing the stress reducing effects of daily exercise has been a tremendous motivator.

For others, it’s the food that poses a problem. These people may be lifelong athletes, always finding time for a workout and never dealing with that lack of motivation. For them, weight loss workouts are no sweat. It’s the food regulation that is difficult for these folks.

Regardless of your challenge in staying fit, you must find ways to cope with it. Recognizing your weaknesses and dealing with them will help you keep your health a priority for life. Weight loss workouts and diet are essential components to overall health and happiness.

For a workout plan as intense as P90X, there has to be an equally life changing diet plan. In developing the P90X diet plan creator Carrie Wiatt wanted to make a nutrition program that would maximize the benefits of the P90X program. She knew that P90X participators would be seeking big results and would be willing to make sacrifices for big payoffs.

Wiatt is a notable author and nutrition consultant. She developed the P90X diet plan with the P90X participator in mind. She knew that anyone doing the P90X program must be dedicated to their health and their results. She came up with a great eating program that will get you on the right track, developing better eating habits and also seriously improving the results you see from the P90X program.

Many people are tempted to skip the P90X diet plan and just do the fitness aspect. Be warned: your results with only the exercise portion of P90X will be far less extreme than if you include the P90X diet plan. This plan was made to give you results and do so in a sensible program that nourishes your body and won’t leave you hungry.

The P90X diet plan is a 3 phase program. Phase one is the “Fat Shredder” phase where you include lots of protein, necessary in muscle repair and strengthening, and you will definitely need some muscle repair after the first several weeks of your P90X workouts.

This is also where you will relearn good eating habits and destroy unhealthy ones!

The second phase is the “Energy Booster” phase, this is where carbohydrates are increased slightly and fat intake is low. This phase is designed to give you extra fuel for the fire. It is a more sustainable eating plan and can be used as long as you like.

Phase 3 is the “Endurance Maximizer” phase, an athletic diet, heavy on the carbs. Athletes burn through calories at a greater rate than non-athletes. When you started this program you may not have been able to call yourself an athlete, but after several weeks on the P90X diet plan and workouts, you have earned that status and the new eating style that goes with it.

Overall, the P90X diet plan is a sensible and well rounded nutritional approach. Your body needs food for fuel and giving it the right kinds of food is vital when looking for big results. This plan will allow your body to process food efficiently for energy and allow you to utilize the nutrients necessary for muscle growth, weight loss, and overall health.

Diet shakes have been around for a very long time. A few decades back, they were all the rage. People were replacing meals with shakes left and right in an effort to drastically lose weight. While diet shakes do the trick when trying to lose weight, the weight loss can be difficult to maintain if the diet shake isn’t a part of a well-rounded program. When your body doesn’t get enough sustenance you may be more likely to go off of your healthy eating plan, counteracting the effects of any diet shake.
 
Meal-replacement shakes are designed to replace a meal. Too many people on a diet shake program are tempted to make a diet shake part of a starvation diet. They are designed to replace a meal in the lives of health conscious but busy adults. A healthy diet should include 3 meals at the least as well as healthy snacks throughout the day. If a meal replacement shake isn’t used correctly, dieters will be famished and not be able to use it as a weight loss tool.
 
By adding a piece of fruit or a half of a sandwich to your meal replacement shake you can ensure that your stomach is filled and you are less likely to reach for candy bar or unhealthy alternative in an hour. If using the diet shake as a true “meal replacement”, some additions may have to be made to reduce cravings and hunger later on. If you don’t want to eat with your shake, have a healthy snack ready for a little later. By supplementing the meal replacement shake with high quality, low calorie food you can reap the benefits without setting yourself for diet failure.
 

Diet shakes should include a good variety of vitamins and minerals to ensure that they are providing you with quality ingredients worth replacing a meal over.

 
One only need to look at the nutritional label of Beachbody meal replacement shakes to get a good idea of what a high quality diet shake should bring to the table. Rich in vitamins and minerals and a good supplement for any healthy diet, Beachbody meal replacement shakes are a great way to get something on your stomach quickly that won’t jeopardize your training and weight loss efforts.

Beachbody meal replacement shakes are a good example of weight loss shakes gone right. By using a meal replacement shake as one part of a healthy, well rounded diet, you can lose weight without resorting to measures that aren’t maintainable over the long run.

High fiber foods can help you lose weight. Eating the recommended amount of fiber everyday can keep you fuller longer, letting you eat less and more easily lose weight. Unlike years ago, however, high fiber foods are more in demand now and subsequently taste better. When looking for prepackaged high fiber foods, you are likely to find some tasty varieties out there.
 
There are two type of fiver: soluble and insoluble. Soluble fiber forms with liquid in the stomach to form a sort of gel. This gel makes you feel full and hangs out in your stomach a while, allowing your body to absorb nutrients. Insoluble fiber, however, does not break down in the body. Insoluble fiber bulks up in the stomach, pushing waste out of your system. Insoluble fiber cleans house, so to speak.
 
Both types of fiber are beneficial to your diet. Another benefit of high fiber foods is they likely have fewer calories and carbs. For instance, high fiber whole wheat bread will have less net carbs than white bread. This is because the carbohydrates in the whole wheat bread are coming from fiber and not sugar.

How Much Fiber is Enough?

It is recommended that adults get 14 grams of fiber for every 1,000 calories ingested. This means that if you are on a 2,000 calorie a day diet, you should be getting at least 28 grams of fiber. High fiber foods paired with an optional fiber supplement can easily get you to this attainable goal.

Try making some of these high fiber changes in your diet:

• Change your white rice for brown rice
• Add a side salad to your lunch or dinner
• Munch on popcorn instead of potato chips
• Switch your white bread for a whole wheat or even a “double fiber” variety
• Increase your daily fruits and vegetable intake
• Only eat cereals with 5 or more grams of fiber per serving

Doctors recommend you increase your fiber intake gradually for obvious reasons. If you have a hard time fitting all those high fiber foods into your diet, add as much as you can and pair those foods with a fiber supplement.

Many diets and weight loss efforts have by thwarted by meal times spent away from home. The weekday lunch hour is either seen as a break from the daily grind and a chance to socialize or it is given little thought as you stuff whatever is within arm’s reach into your mouth while not skipping a beat. Not allowing lunch to ruin your efforts requires planning and tenacity on your part. A healthy lunch doesn’t have to be a difficult challenge everyday. Just like the rest of your lifestyle, once you truly make the dedication to living healthy everyday, it becomes easier.

Check out these tips for staying on top of your healthy regimen, even through your lunch break:

1. Don’t let lunch catch you off guard. Schedule your lunch so that you aren’t famished by the time it rolls around. If you include and mid-morning snack you will be less likely to overeat at lunch time and better equipped to make healthy lunch choices.

2. Pack your lunch the night before. Plan ahead by preparing and packing your lunch before bed. This way there’s no “I didn’t have time” excuse in the morning. Have it ready to go waiting in the frig and write yourself a note if needed so that you don’t forget it in your rush out the door.

3. If in doubt, overpack. You don’t want to be hungry at work. Not only will it affect your brain power, but it will also send you running to the ever-dreaded vending machine with little thought of consequences. Pack snacks like fruits and raw veggies to snack on throughout the day.

4. If you decide to have lunch with your coworkers at a restaurant, don’t see it as an opportunity to fudge your diet. See it as an challenge to use what you have learned about proper nutrition. Servers are there to make your dining experience enjoyable and typically welcome additional requests and questions about the food.

Being healthy is an all day everyday thing.

You can’t leave your healthy lifestyle at home; you must take it with you to work as well. Informing your coworkers about your health “kick” will also help you be accountable to your fitness and health goals and may even inspire some. Post-it notes around your cubicle to remind yourself of your dedication can also help. The key is to do whatever is necessary to keep meals and snacks healthy when you are away from home. The new, healthy you needs to stay in charge no matter where you are or what time of day it is.

We are all strapped for time in this busy world. It seems that even when we have a break from the daily grind, the last thing we want to do is expend too much energy. If you are trying to stick to a healthy lifestyle while maintaining a heavy work schedule and busy personal life then you know that there isn’t much time to spare for leisurely cooking or relaxing meals.
 
The problem with this is two-fold. First, eating quickly and not taking the time to enjoy your meals can thwart your weight loss. There is evidence that eating while stressed or in a rush can cause you to overeat. Taking the time to be conscious of your meal and tune into your body will allow you to eat just enough rather than way too much.
 
Another way this rush-rush lifestyle can hurt your good diet is the lure of convenience foods. The term convenience food is used to define a food that is easily prepared. Typically these foods contain lots of preservatives, high sodium, and serious calories. It can be hard to find a healthy convenience food that also fills you up. The key to staying healthy while eating convenience foods is to simply be aware of what you are putting in your body.

Frozen meals are tempting to those of us strapped for time. They are quickly heated and require very little clean up. However, this convenience comes with a price. The good tasting frozen foods are often loaded with calories, making the term “healthy convenience food” somewhat of an oxymoron. Next time you are shopping for a week’s worth of dinners, make sure you are selecting varieties with acceptable calorie and fat levels.

If your favorite convenience food has a nutrition label that is less than desirable, try adding some vegetables to it and saving half for tomorrow. Your fattening frozen macaroni and cheese is only half as bad when you load it up with broccoli and eat the rest tomorrow. How about adding mushrooms and chicken breasts to the frozen food staple fettucini alfredo? By cutting the portion in half and then bulking it up with simply prepared healthy vegetables and lean protein, you can keep the convenience while cutting the harm in half! If the store isn’t willing to give you a proper healthy convenience food, you can make your own.

Convenient doesn’t have to mean a whole days worth of calories. Simply being conscious of your time-saving choices can make all the differences. Adjusting the meals with simple add ins or a side salad can bulk it up, allowing you to only eat a portion of what is intended, turning a typical frozen meal into a healthy convenience food.

Sometimes the best foods are the easiest to prepare. In the heat of summer no one wants to turn on the stove if they don’t have to or eat a meal that will weigh heavy on their stomach. Everything is a bit more laid back in the summer. No need to break out the measuring spoons with this chicken salad recipe; eyeballing the measurements and adjusting them to fit your taste makes the recipe your own.
 
The beauty of chicken salad is you can use the leftover grilled chicken breasts from last night’s dinner, or buy a can of all white chicken breast meat when you don’t have the time to spark the grill. Whichever chicken you use, just be sure it is either shredded or cut into bite sized chunks.

• Chicken (Breast meat, shredded or cubed)
• Grapes (Green or red seedless, sliced in halves)
• Apple (Cubed. Any variety will do, add your favorite)
• Walnuts (Chopped. You can substitute pecans or any other nut of your choice)
• Light mayonnaise (Use sparingly, to taste)

Add all ingredients in bowl and combine. Simple enough!

This chicken salad is great alone or served on a whole grain pita. You can also serve on a bed of mixed greens or a slice of good whole grain bread.

Chicken salad is a great source of protein. Adding the fruit and nuts not only increases the nutritional value but also makes this an interesting and fun take on the traditional chicken salad. Served with iced tea and lemon, this is a great lunch time treat for one or to share with guests.

What is good in our mouths isn’t necessarily good for our health. However, just because it has the same name as that squishy stuff on your thighs, doesn’t mean all fats are bad. Learning the difference between good fats and bad fats can simplify how much and what kinds of fat you need to avoid in order to lose weight, feel better, and even have a healthier heart.We know that not all fats are good for us and plenty of us remember the “fat free” frenzy that took place in the 90s. Luckily that craze ended and science has gone on to educate us about the fact that there are good fats, which we all need, and bad fats, that cause heart disease and do nothing positive for us.
 
The human body needs fats to survive. Fat is an excellent source of energy and does things like protect our organs and keep our skin soft. Good fats go even further by helping to lower cholesterol and prevent the risk of heart disease. There are two types of good fats: polyunsaturated and monounsaturated.
 
Polyunsaturated fats, like Omega 3’s, are found in vegetable oils and seafood. It lowers all types of cholesterol. Fish is a great source of polyunsaturated fats and also a high protein, low calorie, all-around great diet food.
 
Monounsaturated fats not only decrease cholesterol but are thought to actually decrease the risk of certain types of cancers. These fats are found in things like olives, avocados, nuts and seeds. Monounsaturated fats are also typically rich in Vitamin E.

While these good fats are far better for you then saturated fats, they contain the same amount of calories, 9 per gram. Compare this with 4 calories per gram of carbohydrates or protein. This simply means that your fat intake still needs to be moderated regardless of what types of fat you are eating. Just because it’s a good fat, doesn’t mean you should switch to a diet of avocados and olives!

Educating yourself about the things you put inside your body makes you a more health conscious person. When you are aware of the effects of certain foods on your body you are more likely to make healthy choices that encourage a longer life and even weight loss. Remember this: 1) not all fats are bad, and 2) good fats have a positive impact on your heart and overall health.