The beginning of every journey starts with a single step. The same can be said of your health journey. Starting out can be hard, but one of the best ways to guarantee success is to make sure that you have laid the proper foundations. The best way to do this is with a complete kitchen makeover.

Step 1: The Purge

No one is immune to temptations, but we can make it harder (or easier) for ourselves to give in. Set your journey off right by during a total over haul of your kitchen cupboards and fridge. Start with the worst offenders, the junk food. All the chips, cookies, chocolate, pastries, anything that makes your cringe when you look at the calories – gone. Next if it contains added sugar it has to go (cereals, yogurts and fruit juices.) If it is heavily processed – go. If there are ingredients you do not recognize – go. If it has a shelf life longer than a year…. It should probably go.

Step 2: The Replacements

Now that we’ve successfully raided the pantry its time switch out the old with some new whole healthy foods. Focus on filling the fridge with fresh produce (organic if its an option.) Getting a lot of dark leafy green vegetables will go a long way to help your body recover from any holiday indulgences. Switch cereal for overnight oats or chia seed puddings. Sugary snacks for fresh fruits, soda for mineral water, cured meats (lunch meat) for lean cuts of protein. Yes it may take a few days for your body to adjust and for the cravings to subside but they do and you’re body will thank you.

Step 3: The Prep

The fridge may be stopped, and your kitchen may look like a complete health oasis, but now it needs to be put together into healthy dished. When we are tired it is hard to make smart food choices, this is human, we’ve all done it. The key to avoiding this is being prepared. Plan your menu for the week and stick to it. Pick a day of the week where you can hang out in your kitchen preparing healthy delicious meals for the week. Cut up some veggies for you snacks, portion out your hummus, cook all your protein and carbs and keep it all in portioned containers (breakfast, lunch and dinner). Have fun with it, find some new recipes from your favourite cookbooks or health blogs. As time goes on this will all become second nature and become more of a habit. Planning and prepping can be the difference in reaching your goals.

Finally… Good luck!