In my most recent Instagram IGTV live I spoke, in depth, about this topic. If you’re looking for the full version please head over to my page @thelisamanzo to view it. Below is a brief re-cap as well as a sample Meal Plan.
- Eat Breakfast Every Day: A healthy and balanced breakfast provides those first critical nutrients your body needs each day for energy and to manage any stress that may pop up throughout the day. Breakfast revs up your metabolism and kick starts your energy levels.
- Eat Balanced Meals throughout the Day: Ensuring that you’re eating Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner and not skipping any one of these main meals. Eating 3 balanced meals a day will help keep you energized and focused as well as stop you from getting so overly hungry you overeat during any one meal. It is not just about eating these 3 meals a day but about eating the right foods at each meal. Breakfast and Lunch should have a combination of complex carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats. Together these macronutrients are MAGIC: carbs offer up energy while protein and healthy fat are satiating. When you add protein and healthy fat to carbohydrates, the carbs are released more slowly into your bloodstream and your meal is digested a lot slower keeping you fuller for longer. This will also avoid any blood sugar spikes and/or crashes. Our metabolism naturally slows down in the evening and therefore Dinner can include protein and lots of green leafy vegetables. Please see below for a simple snapshot of a balanced meal plan for 1 day.
- Be Mindful when Eating: Begin to pay attention to when and what you eat and tap into your behaviour and feelings around food. Eat ONLY when you’re hungry (but do not wait until you’re ravenous when you will more likely overeat and choose unhealthy foods to calm your cravings). Also be mindful of your eating environment, Many individuals give in to junk-food craving when they are stressed (or starving), deep breathing curbs cravings by calming your nervous system.
Changing your eating habits can be difficult. Consulting a Registered Holistic Nutritionist might be a great consideration to ensure that your meal plan fits with your lifestyle, preferences, goals, and health issues. On top of that you will be receiving advice that is current and credible and research based.
Simple Balanced Meal Plan for 1 Day
Breakfast: 2 sunny side eggs (made with a small amount of grass-fed butter), 1/2 avocado and 1 piece of sourdough bread (preferably naturally gluten-free). ** Make sure the yolk of the eggs are runny **
Lunch: Fully Loaded Salad
- Mixed Greens (preferably organic). 1 to 1 1/2 cups
- Protein of choice: salmon, chicken or chickpeas. Size of your palm.
- Roasted (cubed) sweet potato (best to roast at the beginning of the week to have on hand). 1/2 cup
- Unsalted raw pumpkin seeds. 1 Tablespoon
- Dressing: 1-1/2 tablespoons of Olive Oil + a dash of apple cider vinegar and a pinch of sea salt
Dinner: Protein of choice (see above options) + lots of leafy (lightly cooked or steamed) green vegetables (i.e. bok choy, rapini, spinach, kale, collard greens, beet greens, Swiss chard, arugula, etc.)
Snacks (only if hungry and before dinner): 12-15 unsalted raw nuts (all nuts except for peanuts and pistachios), cucumbers and 1 tbsp of hummus, smoothie (water based: 1/4 cup blueberries, 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds, 1 tbsp almond butter).