Last week I posted some of my favorite healthy living tips, but there were so many additional amazing tips from you guys in the comments section that I just had to share a few more. :)
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Reader’s Tips for Staying Healthy & Feeling Satisfied
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1) Ditch the all or nothing mentality. Eat healthfully most of the time, but if you’re really craving something, eat it! Otherwise, you’ll feel deprived and overeat later.
2) Try using smaller plates at home. This makes it seem like you are eating a lot more!
3) Eat breakfast!!! Have something with a good balance of protein, carbs, and fat, like my microwave banana oatmeal topped with nut butter! A real breakfast will set you up for a much more satisfying day.
4) Snack! Keeping your body fueled will not only keep you energized and avoid crankiness, it also means you won’t arrive at the dinner table starving and ready to attack everything in sight.
5) Stop thinking about calories and start thinking about nutrient density. Yes, there may only be 150 calories in that candy snack pack, but will it provide you with the same amount of nutrients and satiety that, say, some fruit and nuts would? Try to think more about how your body will use what you eat, and how to eat to make yourself feel your best.
6) Sneak veggies in to dishes. Spinach is awesome for this since it doesn’t have a ton of flavor. Toss some in your favorite smoothie (you won’t notice it!), or try my Black Bean Spinach Burgers or Spinach Basil Pesto!
7) Get enough sleep. This is HUGE for me, too. If I’m exhausted, I find it much harder to make healthy choices.
8) Put fresh slices of lemon, orange, or lime in your water to make it more fun!
9) Stop eating “diet” foods. Low-cal snacks, frozen dinners, desserts, etc. won’t keep you full and will stop you from loving and enjoying food! Especially in terms of dessert, just have a smaller amount of the real thing vs. a larger, less satisfying amount of a diet imitation.
10) Make homemade soup! More veggies, less sodium and fillers. ‘Nuff said :) Try my super easy Veggie-Tastic Minestrone Soup or Curried Carrot Soup!
11) Don’t keep too many desserts in the house — if you don’t have it, you can’t eat it! This way dessert will become a fun special treat when you are out, rather than a habit just because it’s there.
12) Brush your teeth right after a meal. You won’t want to ruin that minty fresh breath by eating something else :)
13) Go vegetarian a few meals a week. Variety is a good thing! If you need ideas, I have a whole vegetarian section on my recipes page. 
14) Eat your meals on top of a salad! Pretty much anything can be dumped on top of a bed of spinach. I do this all the time!
15) Buy a fun lunch box! Anything to get you more excited about packing meals :)
16) Don’t be scared of fat! Try adding some healthy fats, such as nuts and avocado, to your diet if you aren’t already.
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What do you think? Will you give any of these tips a try?
these are such great tips…from great readers! i like the “brush your teeth right after you eat” tip…it DEFINITELY works!
Good luck on your races girl!!!!
SUCH great tips! i totally agree about snacking!!
I love these tips! Im getting in the hang of the dessert tip – I always have too much chocolate on hand! The cherry blossom race sounds so fun – good luck!
I never put pasta in soup because I find it gets so soggy. Does that happen to you?
Hi there, I’m new to your blog and loving it! What brilliant tips, so straight forward but effective.
Great tips! Really sensible…
SUch great tips Anne! You make healthy living seem like such a cinch! :)
So excited for the meet up! It’s going to be a blast! :)
I need to eat more of my meals on top of salads. But then I just never end up eating the lettuce. :)
These are great tips! I especially appreciate number 5. I’ve been making such an effort lately to stop thinking about calories and start thinking about nutritional value, and it really does make a difference, both physically and mentally!
Great tips! I have really big and really small plates at home, but want to buy some medium sized ones that are good for regular meals.
These are great tips!. Being a type-A personality, I have the hardest time allowing myself to be less than perfect with my diet. When I do make a mistake, this often leads to a binge and ugly feelings of guilt and shame. I’m working, one day at a time, to let go of this mentality and love myself in spite of my slip-ups. Body love, not hate! :)
Those are great tips!
Those are some awesome tips! i try to follow every one of them!
I like Tip #8 for making water more interesting to drink. I personally do not like to put citrus fruit in my water; it makes my mouth dry. Another great, refreshing option is sliced cucumber – LOVE IT!
Have SO much fun doing the CB10. It is my PR for 10 milers! We are going to NYC that weekend – sad I’ll miss the meet up! And I’d say #11 is my number 1 go to. I try to only have things I cannot control myself around in the house on Saturdays.
Great tips – I do a lot of those. I find the sleep one the most important. If I’m tired my internal hunger/satiety monitor doesn’t work at all. It’s like somebody took the batteries out and I find myself mindlessly eating all day.
SO wish I lived in VA right about now I would love to run that 10-miler with youuu! Oh wait, I also would have to get super speedy fast. ;) Miss you tons and tons! Still!
P.S. Love the tips from readers! I love adding lemon to my water it makes it much more enticing sometimes when I want a little flavor.
Those are such great tips many of which I already incorporate! Thanks for the reminder :D
Those are fantastic tips and a lot of them work well for me, especially, the snacking, sleeping and remembering nutrient density!
And I’m a huge fan of spinach – I put a gigantic handful of it in everything!
Fantastic tips! I LOVE spinach :) My mom buys me a huge tub at Cosco for me and it’s typically gone in days. Do you have a fave brand of nut butter that you could recommend? I’m trying to stop eating Better N’Peanut Butter and want a legitimate nut butter. I’m just worried about being able to control myself around something so fattening!
Thanks!
Absolutely fantastic post! Very helpful – I’ll definitely be putting some of these to good use! And I’ll keep you posted on the blogger lunch… a friend might be coming in from out of town that day but she WILL be staying in D.C. :)
Terrific tips, thanks! You’ve laid out some truly common sense approaches. Maybe you should think about a book! :-)
Wonderful tips!!! I love your approach to eating and a healthy lifestyle. And about the fat- so true! No need to fear it! It makes your skin glow and your hair shiny and keeps you full!
LOVE those tips. I think that my favorite are #1 and #16! I personally try to *base* my meals around fat most of the time, as crazy as that sounds, or at least squeeze some fat into a meal/snack. I find myself feeling more satisfied and more energetic when I’m getting ample amounts of fat. Not to mention it improves my hair, skin, and nails!
I love the stop eating “diet” food! For years that’s how I’d eat! Lean Cuisines for lunch, 100 calorie packs for snacks! Not only are they not filling and full of sodium, you’re never satisfied! Now I rarely eat frozen meal and if I do, it’s from Trader Joe’s or Amy’s. The only “100 calorie” packs I buy now are yogurt and the individual sized 100 calorie packs of Wholly Guacamole (bc I’m a party of 1 and otherwise it browns). Besides, buying in bulk cuts down on packaging which is better for the environment!
I love these tips :) I think about a lot of those ideas too. And I TOTALLY agree on the sleep thing! It makes a huge difference in all aspects of my life, definitely food too! All your tips remind me of my old awful roommate Melisa who would try to lose weight by eating about 20 of those tiny calorie pack things or “weight loss” yogurts while staying up all night and never moving.. wrong strategy!
Argh, I’m always like a week off for these meetups. I’m going to be in DC the following weekend. Darn.
Great tips! I love the Ideas. I am going to include more vegies in my meals for now onwards. Here find some tips to combine with it http://www.healthsuperstore.com/health/v-activity-and-nutrition.htm.