Variety

Last week, I talked about the importance of balance and how you should be incorporating balance into your diet – by choosing good quality/nutrient-dense macronutrients (check out “Balanced Diet” in Quick Tips to read more)

Variety is the last nutrition principle and correlates with balance, as it involves including more than one food group and each of your essential macro- and micronutrients. However, variety holds its’ own meaning as well, because even if you incorporate balance by choosing food items from each food group and each of your macros, you still should change your meals up from time to time. Eating a lot of the same kinds of food is rarely good for us, as it cuts us off from consuming the many nutrients our bodies need.

So, branch out the next time you are at the grocery store, lean into trying something new! Cook something you enjoy, but don’t often prepare or consume. For example, instead of cucumber salad, try squash or mushrooms – or instead of blueberries, try raspberries, pomegranates and so forth. You can also include a bit of a variety of these food items.