Four ways to shop smarter
While many have chosen to buy weekly groceries online, as a fitness instructor in Balham area, I understand many of us still choose to go old-school and hit the local Sainsbury/Tesco/Waitrose to stock our shelves at home.
Here are four tips to help you shop smarter at your local supermarket, and stay on course with your nutrition plan. As always we have to thank Precision Nutrition for their great insights into this topic.
1. Stay on the perimeter
Do your best to stay on the perimeter of the shop. Its those internal aisles that have all the stuff that needs to be given the swerve (i.e. think cakes, and most any other things processed). By staying on the outside of the shop you will locate your fruits and veg, lean meats, whole grains, as well as dairy.
2. Actively seek out superfoods:
Even if you have to ask for guidance, seek out where the superfoods are located. Usually you will find things like flax seeds, coconut oil, etc. in places that are off the beaten path, so ask where these items are and make note for future reference. Here is a Superfood Reference Guide on what to look for.
3. Don’t go ‘low fat’
When you see an item described as ‘low fat’, give it a miss. Low fat means that the goodness provided by fats has been taken out. You can be rest assured that something manufactured and probably unhealthy has been inserted in its place (remember fat is also a source of flavour). Instead of trying to remove fat with low fat items, take care on your portion sizes and make sure you get all the nutrients that full fat items can give you.
4. List your meals for the week ahead, and use that list on your shop
Ben Franklin was right: if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. This sounds obvious, but by deciding in advance what you will eat, you will then know what you need to buy. By writing it down, you are more likely to stick to the straight and narrow.
Happy shopping!
To learn more about healthy eating habits to achieve your fitness goals, contact James Staring, a leading personal trainer in Clapham, London.
ABOUT JAMES STARING
James Staring is a personal trainer based in Clapham, London. His methods have featured in publications such as Your Fitness, Hello, Healthy, Daily Mail, Closer, and many more. After giving up smoking and entering the fitness industry in 2009, James has focused on his passion to help others transform their health and fitness. However, James is convinced that most people struggle so much more than they need to in an effort to improve their fitness. Through his company, Fit to Last, which he runs with his partner, Ali Page – James has helped hundreds of men and women make small adjustments in their daily habits to transform their fitness and to love how they look and feel.