Every year the same question: New Year's resolutions or rather not? The feeling of leaving the past behind you in the new year gives us reason to make a fresh start. The most popular New Year's resolutions most certainly include "eating more healthily", "losing weight", "becoming a fitness ace", etc. To make sure these are successfully put into practice this time, and also upheld in the long term, we have outlined the most important tips for you.

Intentions and habits

Changing a habit is a challenging task. So take a different approach for 2019, and bid farewell to any overly ambitious expectations.

Write down specific targets rather than vague intentions, such as "eating more healthily" or "going running more often". What does "a healthy diet" actually involve for you? Do you eat too little fruit and vegetables, too few whole-grain products and thus too little dietary fibre? Do you want to increase your intake of vegetable protein? What target in terms of sports and fitness do you want to achieve? Try to think about your lifestyle.

The path to a balanced diet

For a varied and healthy diet, your daily menu should include 5 servings of vegetables, pulses and fruit (3 servings of vegetables and/or pulses and 2 servings of fruit). The Austrian Nutrition Society recommends a daily intake of at least 30 g of dietary fibre, a minimum of 1.5 L of water, 3 servings of dairy products, 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil, nuts or seeds – in short, a varied and enjoyable diet.

Nutrition – increasing dietary fibre

Dietary fibres are indigestible nutritional components, found mainly in plants. The components get into the large bowel undigested, and are broken down by intestinal flora bacteria. They thus have a positive effect on digestion. But they also serve other important functions: longer satiation, improvement of the blood sugar level, strengthening the conjunctive tissue and lowering the cholesterol level. Food rich in dietary fibre includes whole-grain products & whole grains, pulses (beans, lentils, peas), nuts & seeds and vegetables & fruit.

When increasing the intake of dietary fibre, some caution is necessary. The daily intake quantity should only be increased slowly and sufficient fluid intake (min. 1.5 L) also be ensured.

Tips for covering your intake of dietary fibre:

• Wholemeal: when choosing bread, pastries, noodles and such, pick the wholemeal variety. Wholemeal bread such as Dinkelix spelt wholemeal bread or Vegipan®, a vegan wholemeal bread, score with a high ratio of wholemeal. Actipan® was developed especially for athletes and active people and offers a high content of protein.
• Salad: if your plate still lacks sufficient vegetables, combine a side salad to go with it.
• Fresh fruit and vegetables (instead of Smoothies): thanks to the ratio of peel, fresh fruit and vegetables contain more dietary fibre and vitamins. The sugar ratio is lower.
• Seeds & nuts: are rich in vitamins (in particular vitamin B), protein and dietary fibre – also ideal as a topping!

More vegetable protein

For the new year, many people want to replace the ratio of animal protein in their diet with vegetable protein. You'll find tips for this in this article. 

Exercise & sports

Exercise increases your fitness and performance, makes you more motivated and is good for your mental health. Incorporate plenty of exercise into your daily routine. Take the stairs instead of the lift, walk on foot instead of taking the bus for just one stop. Adults should get at least 150 minutes (2 ½ hours) per week of medium-intensity exercise or 75 minutes (1 ¼ hours) per week of high-intensity exercise, or a combination of both. Your schedule should include strength training involving all major muscle groups on at least two days a week.

Bottom line

Don't make too many resolutions at once and concentrate on just one thing - but with more focus and consistency. Once the new resolution has established itself as a habit, you can set yourself a new target. This is how to achieve a better lifestyle step-by-step in the new year.

 

Dietary fiber in foods: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3614039/

Do you have any other questions? Please write an e-mail to marketing@backaldrin.com.

Carmen und Jasmin Klammer
Nutrition scientist and dietician