How to Spring into Healthy Eating

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CLEVELAND – Spring is often seen as a time for growth and renewal.

With the season in full swing, it’s the perfect time to spring into healthy eating.

“You don’t have to make eating healthy this really complicated thing – even just making a couple of small changes in your diet can have good health benefits,” explained Beth Czerwony, RD, a registered dietitian for Cleveland Clinic.

Rather than taking things away, Czerwony said to start by seeing if you can modify any of your go-to meals.

For example, swapping out white pasta for whole wheat or using lettuce wraps instead of tortillas for taco night.

Czerwony said to avoid any extreme changes that will be hard to stick to long term.

In general, remember to have a protein source with each meal, and you should aim to fill up half of your plate with a variety of fruits and veggies.

If you’re short on time to prep a meal like this, Czerwony said there are options at the store to help.

“A lot of times people will tell me they’ll eat fruits and vegetables, but they just don’t have the time to cut them up,” Czerwony said. “If that’s the case, you can get things like precut fruits and veggies or pre-portioned out salads at the store.”

Czerwony added it’s OK to indulge in ice cream and other treats from time to time, but moderation is key.

The goal is to eat well-balanced meals the majority of the time.