10 Tips to healthy eating and physical activity

1. Start your day with breakfast.
   
   Breakfast fills your "empty tank" to get
   you going after a long night without food. And it
   can help you do better in school. Easy to prepare
   breakfasts include cold cereal with fruit and low-fat
   milk, whole-wheat toast with peanut butter, yogurt
   with fruit, whole-grain waffles or even last night's
   pizza!
   
   
   
   


2. Get Moving!
   
   It's easy to fit physical activities into your daily
   routine. Walk, bike or jog to see friends. Take a
   10-minute activity break every hour while you read,
   do homework or watch TV. Climb stairs instead of taking
   an escalator or elevator. Try to do these things for
   a total of 30 minutes every day.
   
   
   
   


3. Snack smart.
   
   Snacks are a great way to refuel. Choose snacks from
   different food groups - a glass of low-fat milk and
   a few graham crackers, an apple or celery sticks with
   peanut butter and raisins, or some dry cereal. If
   you eat smart at other meals, cookies, chips and candy
   are OK for occasional snacking.
   
   
   
   


4. Work up a sweat.
   
   Vigorous work-outs - when you're breathing hard and
   sweating - help your heart pump better, give you more
   energy and help you look and feel best. Start with
   a warm-up that stretches your muscles. Include 20
   minutes of aerobic activity, such as running, jogging,
   or dancing. Follow-up with activities that help make
   you stronger such as push-ups or lifting weights.
   Then cool-down with more stretching and deep breathing.
   
   
   
   


5. Balance your food choices - don't eat too much
   of any one thing.
   
   You don't have to give up foods like hamburgers, french
   fries and ice cream to eat healthy. You just have
   to be smart about how often and how much of them you
   eat. Your body needs nutrients like protein, carbohydrates,
   fat and many different vitamins and minerals such
   as vitamins C and A, iron and calcium from a variety
   of foods. Balancing food choices from the Food Guide
   Pyramid and checking out the Nutrition Facts Panel
   on food labels will help you get all these nutrients.
   
   
   
   


6. Get fit with friends or family.
   
   Being active is much more fun with friends or family.
   Encourage others to join you and plan one special
   physical activity event, like a bike ride or hiking,
   with a group each week.
   
   
   
   


7. Eat more grains, fruits and vegetables.
   
   These foods give you carbohydrates for energy, plus
   vitamins, minerals and fiber. Besides, they taste
   good! Try breads such as whole-wheat, bagels and pita.
   Spaghetti and oatmeal are also in the grain group.
   
   
   Bananas, strawberries and melons are some great tasting
   fruits. Try vegetables raw, on a sandwich or salad.
   
   
   
   


8. Join in physical activities at school.
   
   Whether you take a physical education class or do
   other physical activities at school, such as intramural
   sports, structures activities are a sure way to feel
   good, look good and stay physically fit.
   
   
   
   


9. Foods aren't good or bad.
   
   A healthy eating style is like a puzzle with many
   parts. Each part -- or food -- is different. Some
   foods may have more fat, sugar or salt while others
   may have more vitamins or fiber. There is a place
   for all these foods. What makes a diet good or bad
   is how foods fit together. Balancing your choices
   is important. Fit in a higher-fat food, like pepperoni
   pizza, at dinner by choosing lower-fat foods at other
   meals. And don't forget about moderation. If two pieces
   of pizza fill you up, you don't need a third.
   
   
   
   


10. Make healthy eating and physical activities fun!
    
    Take advantage of physical activities you and your
    friends enjoy doing together and eat the foods you
    like. Be adventurous - try new sports, games and other
    activities as well as new foods. You'll grow stronger,
    play longer, and look and feel better! Set realistic
    goals - don't try changing too much at once.
    
    

Food Guide Pyramid

Food Guide Pyramid is a practical
tool to help you make food choices that are consistent
with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Using the
Pyramid enables you to eat a variety of foods daily
so that you can get the nutrients you need.

To make the most of the Pyramid, you
need to know what counts as a serving.

Food Group: Vegetable

Serving Size: 1 cup raw, leafy vegetables, 1/2
cup cooked or chopped raw vegetables or 3/4 cup vegetable
juice

Food Group:
Bread

Serving Size: 1
slice bread, 1/2 bagel or English muffin, 1 ounce ready-to-eat
cereal, 1/2 cup cooked cereal, rice or pasta, or 5-6
small crackers

Food Group:
Fruit

Serving Size: 1
medium piece of fruit, 1/2 cup mixed fruit or 3/4 cup
fruit juice

Food Group:
Milk

Serving Size: 1
cup milk or yogurt, 1-1/2 ounces natural cheese or 2
ounces process cheese

Food Group:
Meat

Serving Size: 2-3
ounces cooked lean meat, poultry or fish (about the
size of a deck of cards.) Other foods which count as
1 ounce meat; 1/2 cup cooked dry beans, 1 egg, 2 tablespoons
peanut butter or 1/2 cup nuts

Found at Fitness.gov

Reducing Appetite