SHOP SMART FOR WHOLE-BODY HEALTH DURING AND AFTER MEDICAL WEIGHT LOSS
Though your medical weight loss center in East Brunswick can provide you with OPTIFAST products to help you lose weight, such products won’t be a part of your diet forever. If you’re on a partial meal replacement diet or have reached the end of your medical weight loss program, you’ll need to sustain the progress you’ve made with healthy habits, and that means cooking nutritious meals at home.
Of course, the foundation of any healthy meal is healthy groceries. Fresh fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains—filling your kitchen with valuable items like these can help you stay focused on whole-body health long after you’ve reached your goal weight.
But when we hit the grocery store to locate these items, we can get easily sidetracked along the way. In today’s typical supermarket, you’ll find more temptations than a kid in a candy store, and this can make selection tough.
How do we steer clear of the processed and unhealthy stuff to make sure that our homes are filled with only the most beneficial foods? Good grocery shopping is a habit that can be learned just like any other, and you can start with these tips:
Go with a plan.
A grocery list helps you remember everything you need, but it can also prevent you from picking up the things you don’t need. Make a list of what you’ll buy at the supermarket and do not deviate from it. Use your weight loss doctor or nutritionist’s advice to include everything that will make your diet nutritionally-sound and be careful of impulse buys—you may regret them once they’ve made it home with you.
Go full.
Even if you’re committed to your grocery list when you walk through the doors, the supermarket will always throw a few tempting curveballs your day. It will be much harder to resist the draw of unhealthy foods when an empty and grumbling stomach is giving you some serious cravings. Try hitting the grocery store just after a meal or snack—this will make it easier to shop with your head instead of your stomach.
Go fresh.
Fresh foods tend to be the most nutritious, so fill the majority of your cart with items from the produce section. Though all grocery stores are set up somewhat differently, they have one thing in common: the freshest foods are found along the perimeter, while the processed, preserved and frozen stuff takes up most of the inner aisles. Your best bet is to stick with the outskirts of the store, where fruits, veggies, lean meats and dairy products can be found.
Because healthy grocery shopping is a prerequisite for healthy eating, it’s important to learn how to make good decisions when you hit the supermarket. Whether you’ve just begun a partial meal replacement program at your medical weight loss center in East Brunswick or are ready to move on from OPTIFAST, these tips can help you stay healthy every time you fill your fridge.
How do you make healthy decisions at the supermarket? Share your strategies and experiences in the comments below.
