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4 simple hacks to help you meet your healthy eating goals

Trying to eat healthier? Try these 4 totally doable tricks.

Photo by Anna Pelzer on Unsplash

Most of us want to eat healthier but need some help to make it happen.

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When it comes to choosing what to eat, we live in a uniquely challenging era. Never before have humans known more about nutrition and how to eat for optimal health, and yet we’ve never been more surrounded by distractions and temptations that derail us from making healthy choices.

Some people might be able to decide “I’m going to eat healthier!” and do so without any problem, but those folks are unicorns. Most of us know what we should do, but need a little help making it happen—like some simple hacks, tips and tricks for avoiding pitfalls on the road to healthier eating.

While recognizing that what works for one person may not work for another, here are some helpful habits and approaches that might help you move closer to your healthy eating goals.

man pulling chip out of a chip bagOur mouths loves chips. Our bodies not so much.Photo by Bermix Studio on Unsplash

Goal: Snack on less junk food

Tip: Focus your willpower on the grocery store, not your home

Willpower is a limited commodity for most of us, and it is no match for a bag of potato chips sitting on top of the fridge. It’s just a fact. Channeling your willpower at the grocery store can save you from having to fight that battle at home. If you don’t bring chips into your house in the first place, you’ll find it a lot easier to reach for something healthier.

The key to successful shopping trips is to always go to the store with a specific list and a full stomach—you’ll feel much less tempted to buy the junky snack foods if you’re already satiated. Also, finding healthier alternatives that will still satisfy your cravings for salty or crunchy, or fatty foods helps. Sugar snap peas have a surprisingly satisfying crunch, apples and nut butter hit that sweet-and-salty craving, etc.

slice of cakeYou can eat well without giving up sweets completely.Photo by Caitlyn de Wild on Unsplash

Goal: Eat less sugar

Tip: Instead of “deprive,” think “delay” or “decrease and delight”

Sugar is a tricky one. Some people find it easier to cut out added sugars altogether, but that can create an all-or-nothing mindset that all too often results in “all.” Eating more whole foods and less processed foods can help us cut out a lot of ancillary sugar, but we still live in a world with birthday cakes and dessert courses.

One approach to dessert temptation is to delay instead of deprive. Tell yourself you can have any sweet you want…tomorrow. This mental trick flips the “I’ll just indulge today and start eating healthier tomorrow” idea on its head. It’s a lot easier to resist something you know you can have tomorrow than to say no to something you think you’ll never get to have again.

Another approach when you really want to enjoy a dessert at that moment is to decrease the amount and really truly savor it. Eat each bite slowly, delighting in the full taste and satisfaction of it. As soon as that delight starts to diminish, even a little, stop eating. You’ve gotten what you wanted out of it. You don’t have to finish it. (After all, you can always have more tomorrow!)

colorful fresh food on a plateA naturally colorful meal is a healthy meal.Photo by Anna Pelzer on Unsplash

Goal: Eat healthier meals

Tip: Focus on fresh foods and plan meals ahead of time

Meal planning is easier than ever before. The internet is filled with countless tools—everything from recipes to shopping lists to meal planning apps—and it’s as awesome as it is overwhelming.

Planning ahead takes the guesswork and decision fatigue out of cooking, preventing the inevitable “Let’s just order a pizza.” You can have a repeating 3-week or 4-week menu of your favorite meals so you never have to think about what you’re going to eat, or you can meal plan once a week to try new recipes and keep things fresh.

It might help to designate one day a week to “shop and chop”—getting and prepping the ingredients for the week’s meals so they’re ready to go in your fridge or freezer.

woman holding blueberries in her handsOrganic foods are better for the Earth and for us.Photo by andrew welch on Unsplash

Goal: Eat more organic/humanely raised food

Tip: Utilize the “dirty dozen” and “clean 15” lists to prioritize

Many people choose organic because they want to avoid pesticides and other potentially harmful chemicals. Organic food is also better for the planet, and according to the Mayo Clinic, studies have shown that organic produce is higher in certain nutrients.

Most people don’t buy everything organic, but there are some foods that should take priority over others. Each year, researchers from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) analyze thousands of samples of dozens of fruits and vegetables. From this data, they create a list of the “Dirty Dozen” and “Clean 15” fruits and vegetables, indicating what produce has the most and least pesticide residue. These lists give people a good place to start focusing their transition to more organic foods.

To make organic eating even simpler, you can shop O Organics® at your local Albertsons or Safeway stores. The O Organics brand offers a wide range of affordable USDA-certified organic products in every aisle. If you’re focusing on fresh foods, O Organics produce is always grown without synthetic pesticides, is farmed to conserve biodiversity, and is always non-GMO. All animal-based O Organics products are certified humane as well. Even switching part of your grocery list to organic can make a positive impact on the planet and the people you feed.

Healthy eating habits don’t have to be all or nothing, and they don’t have to be complicated. A few simple mindset changes at home and habit changes at the grocery store can make a big difference.

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Scientists reveal the best tool for cleaning fresh apples could be right in your pantry.

Don't get me started on how awesome apples are because, seriously, they're delicious. But there's a major problem with this tasty fruit: They're dirty.

Conventional (nonorganic) apples often have residue inside and outside the apple from dozens of pesticides used in the production process. These pesticides can improve yield, but they can also have a devastating effect on groundwater and the environment, and they might affect the people who spread and consume them.

And while the apples found at the grocery store have already been washed or rinsed in a bleach solution to remove dirt and harmful microbes, the pesticide residue can still remain. Cleaning or washing conventional apples is a must, but with what?

These apples are off to become cider. Lucky apples. Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images.

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, put together a study to develop a useful solution (pun intended).

The team purchased organic gala apples and treated them with common pesticides (thiabendazole and phosmet, the latter of which penetrates the skin of the fruit). Then they compared the effectiveness of rinsing the apples in running tap water, soaking them in a bleach for two minutes, or soaking them in a baking soda solution for two minutes. (After the bleach or baking soda soaks, they rinsed them in tap water to remove the solutions.)

Is there anything more fun than washing apples by the barrel-full? I think not. Photo by Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP/GettyImages.

The baking soda and water solution performed better than a both the bleach solution and the plain running tap water — but it's still not without concerns.

One teaspoon of baking soda in two cups of water broke down the pesticides, which made it easier to wash them away. However, it didn't completely remove the pesticides that had already gotten deeper into the fruit. And while each method was only tested for two minutes, it took 12-15 minutes to completely get rid of the two pesticides used in this study.

How long would it take to rid an apple of the dozens of pesticides used to grow it? Probably longer than most people are willing to wait for a piece of hand fruit, albeit a delicious one.

A photo of a person about to have the best day of their life. Photo by Remy Gabald/AFP/GettyImages.

While baking soda is an affordable, accessible solution for removing pesticides from apples, the research team says peeling them is probably the best bet.

Or, if your budget allows and you have access, consider trying organic.

Just don't let anything keep you from apples. Because, seriously, they don't get nearly enough credit for their awesomeness.

[rebelmouse-image 19532071 dam="1" original_size="750x500" caption="Come on, have you ever had apple brown betty? Game over. Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images." expand=1]Come on, have you ever had apple brown betty? Game over. Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images.

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They set out to grow affordable food and found an incredible community.

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Jamie Chen had never thought much about food production until her mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Her mom's doctor recommended organic foods, something Jamie had never heard of. Following doctor's orders, the family went to Whole Foods, but the prices were astronomical compared with the price tags at the local Chinese markets where they usually shopped. She told us, "My dad saw the receipt and immediately said we should never go back."

With the family facing huge medical costs, it was just too expensive.

Jamie and her mom, spending quality time in a garden. Image by Jamie Chen, used with permission.

Eventually, the family found a cheaper, bulk organic place about 25 minutes away from them where they'd stock up on foods for Jamie's mom. It was trial and error for the whole family. She remembers her mom cooking "weird colored rice, which none of us really liked, so she would make two pots — one for her and a mix of white and brown rice for us."

The entire experience was an aha moment for Jamie that set the wheels turning. She started thinking about food and where it was produced.

Image via La Mesa Verde, used with permission.

Fresh produce can be expensive — even more so for anyone seeking organic foods, which can cost up to 47% more than the alternative.

If a family is already struggling to pay its bills, advice like Jamie's mom got from her doctor is just not feasible. Growing your own food can help, but many people don't have access to the resources and skills needed to garden.

So when Jamie heard about La Mesa Verde, she knew she had to get involved.

The gardening community La Mesa Verde empowers families by providing them with access to food and skills.

Their target group? Low-income families who want to eat better but can't afford to do so. Located in San Jose, California, La Mesa Verde is ready and willing to help — since their founding in 2009, they've built gardens for over 500 families and currently have 120 families actively participating in the program. Jamie is currently the manager at La Mesa Verde.

She told Upworthy, "I saw the immense potential that this community has for building power and making real change in the food system." So she jumped on board.

Through La Mesa Verde, families gain both the skills and knowledge necessary to grow vegetables — allowing them access to fresh, homegrown foods without putting their budgets at risk.

Image via SPUR/Flickr.

Over the course of a year, families are taught everything possible about growing vegetables and delicious ways to prepare them.

And while they join La Mesa Verde seeking fresh food options, they also find community. Jamie explains, "People help each other out. They go to each other’s houses to plant trees, they share seeds, they share recipes."

Many participants devote so much of themselves to the program and to this way of life that when the year ends, they aren't ready to leave La Mesa Verde behind.

Image via La Mesa Verde, used with permission.

Seeing the community they'd created, La Mesa Verde created a more advanced gardening program for members who waned to remain active beyond the first year. And those members refer their friends, neighbors, and family into the program. And as the community grows, so does its power.

While gardening lies at the core of La Mesa Verde, it's only just the beginning.

When Jamie's mom passed away, Jamie took over grocery shopping and cooking for her family. At the time, she wasn't thinking about activism or community building. She just wanted to heal, and to help her family to heal.

But after meeting with members of La Mesa Verde and hearing about their health struggles, their fight to heal their bodies after cancer diagnosis, and their inability to find affordable fresh produce in their traditional markets, Jamie saw how closely their experiences mimicked hers. She says,

"I see my mom in them, this soft but defiant commitment to having at least some power over what goes into our bodies that have already been damaged. I see hope, too, that we can try together to make real food that doesn't make us sick available to everyone. Cancer can make a family really lonely, so having [the La Mesa Verde] community becomes doubly important when we are sick."

A year ago, La Mesa Verde started a campaign to transform empty lots in San Jose into community gardens. In December 2015, their efforts were rewarded: The push to transform the empty lots was named the third legislative priority for 2016.

Image via La Mesa Verde, used with permission.

Members are organizing and finding out how and where they can effect the most change. And with the size of their community and the lives that they've changed, they'll be unstoppable.

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Moby is taking his love of animals to a whole other level with his restaurant.

Moby's Little Pine restaurant is unique in the coolest of ways.

Splurging at the new Little Pine restaurant in L.A. can be a seriously guilt-free experience.

You're boosting local business, you're eating eco-friendly, organic foods, and — as was just announced on Jan. 5, 2016 — you're supporting a restaurant that's giving away every last cent of its profits to animal welfare groups.

Photo courtesy of Little Pine restaurant/Wagstaff Worldwide, used with permission.

Who's the benevolent genius behind this do-good business model? Singer-songwriter Moby, of course.

Moby's Little Pine restaurant has only been open about two months. But the Los Angeles bistro — already bucking the trend by being 100% organic and vegan — is breaking the mold even more by donating all of its profits (beyond revenue needed to keep the restaurant running) to organizations like the Humane Society of the United States, Farm Sanctuary, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, and many others, according to a statement provided to Upworthy.

It's what Moby's had in mind for his restaurant all along.


Photo by Araya Diaz/Getty Images for The Art of Elysium.

"Opening Little Pine was never meant to be a conventional entrepreneurial endeavor," the musician said. "I want it to present veganism in a really positive light, and also help to support the animal welfare organizations who do such remarkable work."

A restaurant handing over its profits to charity is unconventional (to say the least), but it's probably not quite so surprising to those who've followed Moby's career.

He has a long history of giving back to causes near and dear to his heart, supporting grassroots activism in the political realm, helping nonprofit filmmakers succeed, and, yes — staying committed to protecting vulnerable animals.

Moby attends a "Stand Up for Pits" charity event in Los Angeles in 2013. Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images.

The groups supported by Little Pine restaurant help animals in a number of ways.

The Humane Society, for example, rescues thousands of animals every year who've been victimized by abusive owners or forced to live in puppy mills.

Farm Sanctuary not only works to house vulnerable creatures, but also actively fights factory farming — a thriving industry that exploits and abuses animals to maximize profits within our food production system.

And the Animal Legal Defense Fund? It helps ensure our furry friends have a voice in the justice system, holding abusers accountable for their violations and working to expand legal protections for animals in the courtroom.

Dining at Little Pine will help these groups — and so many others — protect animals for years to come.

So if you happen to be in L.A. and are in the mood for some guilt-free grub, now you know of a good place to go.

The food sounds delicious, your dining dollars are put toward a great cause, and I hear the owner's one helluva guy, too.

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