How the Right Foods are Like Rocket Fuel in Your Body

We speak a lot about losing weight, but there are other benefits to following a healthy eating plan. When you're eating all the right foods in the right amounts, it's amazing how your body responds. You have more energy, sleep better, exercise better, your skin glows and you're in a much better mood, for starters. The right foods--fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, nuts, seeds, water--DO act like rocket fuel for your body. Just like exercise releases endorphins, I've noticed that healthful food can have a similar effect. Of course, combine the two and there's no stopping you!

When people ask me how I lost 25 lbs. and kept it off for over a year, I tell them that I changed my whole way of looking at food. I used to think about food in terms of what I could "get away with" eating without gaining weight. Now, I look at how best to nourish my body: Have I had a good balance of nutrients for the day? Do I need more water? Did I eat at least two servings of fruit today? Did I eat a colorful variety of produce? Did I eat enough protein--walnuts, yogurt, fish, chicken, soy milk--to support muscle-building from the Cardio Muscle class I took this morning? Of course, within these questions are questions of satisfying my cravings: crunchy, sweet, creamy, salty. And I can do this by eating a good variety of the right foods. You can, too!

Speaking of the right foods, here's a good tip: If you're on the go and struggling to fit in your daily servings of fruit, stock up on Brothers-all-natural fruit crisps (www.brothersallnatural.com). They're simply slices of fresh fruit that have been dried into crisps (no preservatives), and they're really tasty. They come in a variety of flavors including Fuji Apple, Strawberry-Banana, Pineapple-Banana, Asian Pear, White and Yellow Peach and Strawberry.

Next post: Tasty ways to eat your vegetables! And keep an eye out for the complete story of how I lost 25 lbs. and have kept it off for over a year.