One of my closest friends in the publishing world is Bea Ledesma. May it be inside or outside the office, we always exchange ideas and pegs for shoots and features. In the past year or so, Bea has introduced me and everyone around her to very healthy lifestyle. She turned around her eating habits drastically. The result of which I continue to see every time I meet with her. Bea managed to avoid carbs and sugar, with just sheer determination and will power.
I know not all of us can do the same thing Bea did. It’s a process anyway to transition from the bad habits to new, good ones we can stick to. It’s easy to fall off the wagon and be tempted. So I asked Bea what can be done first. Call these simple steps that foundation of your healthy lifestyle journey. From here, you can create new rules according to your goals and body type.
Here are five healthy steps Bea recommends, and wouldn’t require a big lifestyle change.
1. Eat at home more often. When dining out, you don’t know if the food you’re eating has a lot of sugar or MSG or sodium. When you eat at home, you know exactly what goes into your food.
2. Always have a healthy snack on you. It’s easier for me to resist the lures of a batch of freshly-cooked doughnuts if I have something to munch as I was walk past a Krispy Kreme. Either some nuts (raw is best, but if roasted is your thing avoid the overly salted, flavored kind) or a really filling RX bar (available at Healthy Options) does the trick for me.
3. Skip commercial chocolates. One thing you can do is find good quality chocolates (there’s even a stevia-sweetened brand in Rustan’s supermarket) that are dark and not too sweet. Most commercial chocolates have way too much sugar and can change your palate without your realizing it.
4. Try a meatless Monday or skip meat a few days every week. It’s better for the environment—and for your health.
5. The old Michael Pollan adage works for me: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
