As Fit as a Fiddle: How to Sustain a Balanced Diet

Photo by Ella Olsson

A balanced diet is absolutely necessary if you’re looking to live a healthy life. For down-to-earth recipes, get a taste of home in Generations Of Good Food.

Health. That’s an important word to remember—and maybe to take a better look at, especially if you’re still at an age where you’re reliably growing. 

If you are growing, hunger is a regular partner: it comes, and it goes, but it never really goes away. 

It’s there, even if you think you’ve done something to keep it out. This is because a growing body is a lot like a building that’s slowly taking form. Both need materials, and the human body largely gathers its materials from the food it eats, the fats and the calories, and everything in between. 

Of course, you have to be smart with what you eat. Not everything you eat will be good for you. Some people try to walk around that caveat by eating less, but eating too little is also not good. Doing the opposite and overeating with no regard to what you are eating is equally terrible.

As Fit as a Fiddle

So, if you want to be healthy, you have to choose what is actually healthy, and what you need is a balanced diet—just the right amount of good quality food to eat. Don’t be too keen on fads—and the so-called “benefits” they have—and just stick to the classics. Perhaps you could even squeeze in time to exercise if possible.

Eating a balanced diet is critical if you want to maintain and sustain good health. There’s also the added benefit of avoiding or preventing chronic illnesses from ever taking root or affecting you. A balanced diet means that the necessary nutrients for healthy living are proportioned accordingly in most every meal. This is to keep your body functioning at its most optimal state and without worry of sudden “malfunctions,” as it may. 

It isn’t enough to simply eat a collection of healthy foods. It also must be assured and ensured that you are getting them in the appropriate amounts. As has been said before, eating too little is bad, and so is eating too much. There has to be sustained energy and feeling full which is why it’s called having a balanced diet.

So, to better guide you on how to eat healthily, here is–

How to Sustain a Balanced Diet

1. Know Your Caloric Needs. The first step to a healthy and balanced diet is determining the right amount of calories your body needs daily. This helps you to plan out how much you will be eating regularly and what types of foods or combination of foods are right for you. Caloric requirements vary according to age, sex, height, weight, and how much work you do to burn energy on average.
2. Diversify Your Diet. When people think of a healthy diet, they usually think of including leafy greens with a meal meaning they generally will have a salad. This is not actually the case. A balanced diet not only conforms to your caloric needs, but it also should, ideally, include fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy, so as to have the beneficial opportunity to get all the necessary nutrients. There is opportunity to get all of these essential foods in a daily diet throughout the day.  Moderation is key.
3. Limit Unhealthy Food. Although it is important to have a balanced diet that is composed of a wide variety of food, it is also important to limit some types of food. This is especially the case for foods that contain high levels of sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats. Examples of food you should refrain from eating are fast food, sugary carbonated sodas, and chips or donuts and other snacks that heavily rely on high fructose corn starches..

Generations Of Good Food

From Eleanor Gaccetta comes a taste of home in Generations Of Good Food, a wonderful compilation of home-spun recipes spanning six generations. 

It’s not only a collection of easy-to-do meals for the family but a heartfelt ode to the warmth and closeness that Gaccetta’s Italian heritage has brought to her, to her family, and to the table. 

With nearly 200 recipes, whether you’re a kitchen newbie, a regular home cook, or a restaurant professional, you will be flooded with brilliant recipes for bread, pastries, main dishes, and more. 

Don’t you want to learn how to make sweet Easter bread? Lemon Ricotta cookies? Maybe tiger butter fudge?

All these and more are included in the pages of Generations Of Good Food!