When you make up your mind to start eating healthier it can be as overwhelming as it is exciting. If you’re not careful, your enthusiasm to improve your health through healthy eating will get derailed by the planning and extra work involved.

Before you jump in determined to eat healthy 100% of the time, set aside a little time to think about what healthy eating looks like to you and develop a strategy to make the transition.

The key to successfully developing healthy eating habits is to keep it simple.

Start with one meal. 

As you begin to eat healthier drop the all or nothing mentality. Focus on eating healthy just one meal a day. For example, plan some easy and healthy breakfasts for the week.  Spend that week focused on eating a healthy breakfast every day.

After a week or two, incorporate another meal. Choose whichever you would find easiest to plan and stick to. Focus on two healthy meals a day for a week or two before adding in your third meal or snack. Continue to do this until you build the habit of healthy eating. This strategy will help you gradually change the way you think about eating without being overwhelmed by it.

Make healthy swaps.

Think about the foods you already enjoy and how you can make them healthier. Instead of eating a burger and fries, have a burger salad. Instead of making yourself some instant oatmeal or eating a bowl of sugary cereal, make yourself some regular oatmeal sweetened with fruit and a little honey. Eat raw veggies instead of chips and crackers to satisfy your desire for a crunchy side. Eat a square of super dark chocolate instead of a regular chocolate bar.

Keep meals simple.

Don’t go crazy trying out lots of new healthy recipes. It will just overwhelm you. Keep your meals very simple.

Breakfast could be oatmeal with fruit and honey or scrambled eggs with sautéed veggies on the side. Lunch could be a hearty salad, a smoothie, or a wrap filled with meat and vegetables. Dinner could be baked chicken with steamed veggies and rice, a quick and easy stir fry, or a big pot of soup made with healthy ingredients.

Allow yourself to try no more than one or two new recipes a week. Over time you will find lot of new, healthy recipes that you and your family enjoy.

Plan and prep.

Knowing what you’re going to eat and doing a little prep work will go a long way in helping you stay on track with your healthy eating.

Take a few minutes at the beginning of the week to plan out your meals. This shouldn’t take long. Remember to keep it simple.

Then, set aside a little time to do some prep work. You can easily do this while you’re already in the kitchen preparing a meal. Chopping veggies for a meal? Chop extra to use as snacks or in other recipes later in the week. Baking chicken? Bake extra to use in wraps, salads, and soups during the week.

Prep work doesn’t have to be complicated and it will make a big difference in how the rest of your week goes.

Give yourself grace.

Remember when I said to drop the all or nothing mentality? That is so important. If you get off track for one meal, or two meals, or even a few days of meals, it will be okay. Take a moment to think about why you’re off track, give yourself some grace, and start over with your very next meal.

You cannot change poor eating habits overnight. This is a process and you’ll enjoy it a whole lot more if you’re not constantly beating yourself up when you don’t make the best choices.

Healthy eating is a crucial factor in improving overall health. While it’s not always easy to change your eating habits, it doesn’t have to be complicated.  A few simple strategies will get you on the road to healthy eating.

Have you changed your eating habits? What are your best healthy eating tips?

The post Simple Steps To Healthy Eating Habits appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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Review by Janet @ Frugal & Focused, *NEW* Contributing Writer 

On the 10th day of Christmas, day2day joys gave to me…

A warm and woody essential oil blend from dōTERRA that promotes a sense of relaxation just in time for the busy holiday season.  This airy, fresh blend evokes feelings of tranquility and balance.

 dōTERRA  produces and sells therapeutic grade essential oils as well as oil blends and other healthy living products.   The company is revolutionizing the way families manage their health by harnessing nature’s most powerful elements. 
 dōTERRA essential oils are high quality CPTG Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade^®. They are sold through individual Wellness Advocates who introduce, educate, and sell the products in their local market. 

They provide educational opportunities for all people interested in learning how therapeutic-grade essential oils can be used as a self-care wellness alternative. More and more people are using essential oils to manage everyday health concerns naturally.

Features of dōTERRA Balance Grounding Blend

• a blend of five different essential oils
• promotes a whole body sense of relaxation
• may help anxious feelings
• evokes feelings of tranquility and balance
• smells great
• can be applied topically or used aromatically

Now for my review:

I was given a bottle of dōTERRA Balance essential oil blend by Holly, a Wellness Advocate. I have used other brands of essential oils but this was my first time to try dōTERRA. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the quality of their products and was excited to give it a try.

The timing was perfect to receive this oil as I had just returned home from a five day trip two days before Thanksgiving. I certainly needed a little balance in my life at that point. I began applying it topically.

My first application was to my wrists and neck in hopes it would help me relax a bit as I made the transition from the trip to preparing for Thanksgiving. After that, I began applying it twice a day on the bottom of my feet. I even diffused it on a particularly busy day.

Since I began using this oil, I feel noticeably calmer. Even after a poor night’s sleep, when I usually feel frazzled and unfocused, I found I was focused and able to stay on task. The Balance Grounding Blend is quickly moving to the top of my list of favorite oils!

What I Liked:

1. It smells great.
2. It’s a natural way to manage feelings of stress and anxiety.
3. It’s safe for my whole family to use.
4. It can be use topically or aromatically.
5. You notice results almost immediately.
6. It’s a high quality product.

What I didn’t Like:

1. Nothing!

You can Buy It!

Go to Holly’s dōTERRA site and learn more about the Balance Grounding Blend,see all the products available, and try them for yourself! You can also connect with Holly on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+.

I will add the rest and make the question at the end fit to the product, if you have a suggestion, go ahead and add it. 

You can Win it!

Enter this giveaway! If you win, you will get a bottle of Balance Grounding Blend($26.67 value).

Use the rafflecopter below!

If you don’t see widget, click below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclaimer: I, Janet, was given the product to review with my fair and honest opinions. If you would like more info or to have a product reviewed, please contact Rachel.

The post 12 Days of Christmas {Day 10: dōTERRA Essential Oil} appeared first on Day2Day Joys.

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