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SALT LAKE CITY — Being flexible with your food choices and eating habits is important because it allows for less stress around food.
Say you were planning on making dinner at home but your best friend suddenly invites you over for dinner. Flexibility means that you can go over to his or her house and not stress or feel guilty about the fact that perhaps she didn’t prepare as many veggies as you would have liked.
Decreasing stress is a significant component of overall health, and your diet should support and supplement all aspects of health, including mental and social well-being.
Being flexible will help ensure that whatever dietary pattern you adopt will be sustainable in the long term. Sustainability is the ultimate criteria that needs to be met in order for a dietary pattern or habit to have a positive influence on your health.
If you're the on-again-off-again person, know this: There is no perfect way of eating. A healthy diet pattern allows for all foods, including items like desserts. Perhaps it may be helpful to think in averages across the week. Instead of getting hung up on one meal or one day, think about what the rest of your week looks like. Focusing on the big picture is often more helpful when it comes to health and nutrition.
Adaptability also provides the opportunity for true enjoyment of food. Food is meant to be pleasurable and it often brings people, families and cultures together. Did you know that social connection is a key component of health? In fact, those with stronger social connections may live longer than others.
The bottom line: A diet that supports overall health and wellness is flexible. Being inflexible with your food decisions may result in detriments to other aspects of health such as social, physiological and emotional wellness. Decreasing stress, increasing sustainability and enjoying your food are all important aspects of well-being.
For some more ideas of how to increase flexibility into your diet, take a look at the recipes below for these registered dietitians' favorite desserts:
- Best Carrot Cake Muffins — Laura Iu, Nourish New York
- Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Cookies — Alexandra Regalado, Fully Nourished
- Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes — Isa Robinson, Goodness Guru
- Chocolate Chip Cookies — Rose Mattson of Rose Mattson Nutrition
- Coconut Macaroons — Ashley Munro, Ashley Munro Nutrition
- Valentine’s Day Chocolate Chip Cookies — Anna Lutz and Elizabeth Davenport, Sunny Side Up Nutrition
- Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts — Sarah Wax
- Fudgy Coconut Brownies with Chocolate Ganache — Rachel Hartley, Rachel Hartley Nutrition
- Gluten-Free Banana Blueberry Bread — Brenna O’Malley, The Wellful
- Strawberry Rhubarb Pie — Sydney Bates, Liberated Nutrition
- Chocolate Spiced Ginger Sandwich Cookies — Bracha Kopstick, BeeKay Nutrition
Editor’s Note: Anything in this article is for informational purposes only. The content is not intended, nor should it be interpreted, to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition; Any opinions, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and not of KSL. KSL does not endorse nor is it responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any opinion, information, or statement made in this article. KSL expressly disclaims all liability in respect to actions taken or not taken based on the content of this article.size="2">
