Good nutrition is one of the most important things you can do for your body and health. Practicing healthy eating habits can help support a healthy lifestyle, and it can help you reach your weight and fitness goals.

A common misconception I hear is that you only need to worry about eating healthy if you want to lose weight. However, that’s so far from the reality and completely untrue. You need to eat healthy no matter what your weight goal is - whether your goal is weight loss, weight maintenance, or even weight gain, you need to eat healthy. Eating healthy is for your health and well-being, and not your weight loss goals.

The best way to get into a habit of eating healthy where it becomes a lifestyle and not something you have to force yourself to do is about making small but consistent changes to your eating habits. That can have a significant impact on your overall health and wellness, and yet it won’t represent a drastic change in your life, so you’ll easily be able to stick to it long-term.

That’s why in this post, I’m sharing a roundup of healthy eating habits you can incorporate into your daily routine.

7 Healthy Eating Habits

Eat balanced meals

One of the best nutrition tips I can give you when it comes to eating a healthy diet is to make sure your meals are well-balanced. That means you need to eat enough protein, healthy fats, healthy carbs, and fiber.

If you make it a habit to include some lean protein, healthy fats, and healthy carbs on your plate whatever you are eating, you will start developing a very healthy eating habit, as it will become your habit to eat enough of every macronutrient your body needs.

Chicken, tofu, beef, turkey, fish, chickpeas - those are all great sources of protein, and there are a lot more you can add to your diet (both animal-based and plant-based protein sources). Avocado, olive oil, nuts, etc. are good healthy fat sources. Whole wheat bread and pasta, brown rice, etc. are good healthy carb sources. And of course, fruit and veggies are great fiber and vitamin sources.

Practice mindful eating

Another healthy eating habit you can start practicing is mindful eating. Eat with no distractions, don’t watch TV while you eat, don’t scroll TikTok while you eat - instead, be present in the moment. Also, listen to your body and pay attention to the signals. Eat when your body tells you you’re hungry, and stop eating when your body tells you you’re full.

Don’t torture yourself

If you sometimes feel like eating pizza or a burger, eat it. It will not make or break your diet, but not letting yourself indulge in something you like ever will likely not be sustainable and will lead to binge eating.

Think about portion sizes

Make sure to pay attention to portion sizes you’re eating. If you’re eating something less healthy, you can grab a smaller portion and add more salad on the side. You can also start by putting a smaller amount of food on the plate, and then when you finish it, sit for a minut and ask yourself if you are actually still hungry. If you are, put more food on the plate, but if you’re not, stop eating if you don’t want to overeat. This is a good habit to develop, because when you put lots of food on the plate, you can often eat fast and finish the plate without even realizing you got full in the middle.

Focus on nutrition

If you want to eat a healthy diet, you need to focus on nutrition, and not on calories. What does that mean? That means your first focus should be to make sure your food is giving you the nutrients, vitamins, and minerals your body needs to be healthy. The reason you need to eat lots of fruit and vegetables is that when you’re making healthy choices, you’re making choices that will lead to your overall well-being, and not just choices that will lead you to your weight-related goals.

So, the main reason you should aim to eat the least amount of highly processed foods, as well as fast food, isn’t just that it will probably not help you reach your weight loss goals, but because they will not help you be the healthiest you can be, as they are not nutritious. Also, eating lots of fast food is known to be connected to increased risks of type 2 diabetes, heart diseases, and strokes.

Think about drinks

Drinks can add a lot of unnecessary calories and added sugars, especially unhealthy drinks including sodas, energy drinks, and so on.

So, you should make it a habit to drink as much water as possible and to make the majority of your drinks just plain water or fruit-infused water.

When you want to switch it up, drink fruit juices (freshly squeezed, of course), or tea.

If you have a habit of grabbing store-bought juices and drinking them the entire day, try switching to freshly squeezed juices and changing that habit.

Also, make sure to drink enough water throughout the day.

Find the balance

While I don’t love classifying foods as healthy foods and unhealthy foods, the key is to find a balance between the two. If you want to develop healthy eating habits, you need to find the right balance. Eat healthy foods most of the time, but if you sometimes really crave something that isn’t really healthy, it’s okay to eat it from time to time. It will help you develop a healthy relationship with food, as you will never feel like you’re torturing yourself.

Those are 7 helpful eating habits you should start working on if you want to focus on eating a healthy diet while being able to maintain that in the long run.

If you found this post useful, you might also be wondering how to eat healthy on a busy schedule. Luckily, I have tips for that as well!