Everyday Diet Plan

Diet and nutrition is one of the most important factors in personal health. If you are serious about looking after your body and your health, you need to take care of your diet. As the saying goes, you are what you eat, so make sure you only eat the best.

Significance

Your diet can play an important role in keeping you healthy. According to the American Dietetic Association, poor diet is associated with a number of chronic illnesses. The ADA lists conditions that can be helped by eating right, including high blood pressure, heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, irritable bowel syndrome, obesity, allergies and eating disorders.

Features

The Harvard School of Public Health lists eight rules to follow for a healthy diet. It recommends eating good carbs, such as whole grains; eating lean protein, such as fish, poultry, nuts and beans; eating healthy fats and oils but avoiding saturated or trans fats; eating plenty of fiber; eating lots of fruits and vegetables, trying to eat as many different colors as possible; avoiding too much dairy; limiting your alcohol intake; and taking a multivitamin supplement.

Calories

The Weight-control Information Network advises that a normal healthy diet should have a balanced amount of calories. You can calculate your average daily calorie requirements by using formulas such as the Mifflin-St Jeor formula, which uses your height, age, weight and gender to calculate your base metabolic rate, BMR. This, when combined with your level of activity, should give an accurate indication of how many calories you should aim for.

Expert Insight

Ian Marber, author of "The Food Doctor Diet," recommends the same types of food as do the ADA and the Harvard School of Public Health. He also lays out a plan to prevent spikes in energy or hunger levels that can cause you to stray from your diet. He recommends eating five or six meals a day, spread every few hours, in order to prevent yourself from feeling hungry and falling off your diet. He recommends dividing your meals into roughly 40 percent lean protein with the rest composed of complex carbohydrates.

Exercise

While food and nutrition are the most important component of a healthy diet plan, you should also try to incorporate exercise into your routine. According to the Weight-control Information Network, 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise a week can help most adults keep their weight under control. Exercise also provides other benefits such as reducing stress, improving energy levels and improving your mood and sense of well-being.