5 ways to look and feel healthier in 1 week, according to a nutritionist

5 ways to look and feel healthier in 1 week, according to a nutritionist5 ways to look and feel healthier in 1 week, according to a nutritionistAs winter winds down, its a great time to lean into yur New Years resolutions and become your healthiest, most fit self.But whats the best way to start?Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moraRegistered dietician and nutritionist Andy Bellatti reveals all the things you should - and should never - do to get you feeling your best in under a week and on the right track.DO Drink lots of water.Water is essential - it regulates the shape of every cell inside our bodies. If we dont get enough, in fact, these cells begin toshrivel up. The CDC recommendschoosingwater instead of sugar-sweetened beveragesto help with weight management.Swapping a cold glass of H2O for a single 20-ounce soda will save you about 240 calories.So hydrate, Bellatti told Busi ness Insider, ideally with water.DONT Go on a juice cleanse.If youre considering a detox or juice cleanse,you might want to reconsider. Drinking just water, juice, or any other liquefied concoction for mora than a few days can set you up for unhealthy eating behaviors, and can often lead to spikes and drops in blood sugar levels, which can spawncravingsand mood swings.This is a recipe for hangriness, Bellatti said, that also inaccurately paints all solid food as problematic.DO Cut back on sodium.Most of us - 89% of US adults, according to the CDC- eat too much sodium, and thats not including any salt added at the table. Too much salt in your diet can causepuffiness and bloating, so cutting back can help you avoid that.Sodium retains water, Bellatti said, so lowering sodium intake also reduces puffiness.DONT Start banning foods.Theres a difference between cutting back on things you eat in excess and banning certain food groups entirely.Diets that rely on avoiding ingredients (like sugar or gluten) can lead to replacing those things with other ingredients that play the same role in the body (like honey or corn-based foods). Doing this can be dangerous if thereplacement products are nutrient-deficient.DO Fill up with fiber.Writer Michael Pollansaid it best Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.Fresh, high-fiber vegetables like broccoli, bell peppers, and brussels sprouts - whichthe CDC calls powerhouse foods- are a great source of key vitamins and nutrients, including fiber, which helps keep you feeling full and satisfied until your next meal.Whole, plant-based foods (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, and seeds) are best, Bellatti said. One quick way to add extra fiber to your day sprinkle chia, hemp, or ground flax over whatever youre eating for a boost.DONT Rely on powders and pills.The problem with diet powders and pills, Bellatti said, is that they often take something that was once a whole food, like a fruit or a vegetable, then process it t o separate out one ingredient. Thats alright for things like cocoa powder, which does have nutrients, but it shouldnt make up the bulk of your dietary intake.When something is a powder, youre probably using what, a teaspoon or tablespoon at most? And you have to wonder how much that can really do. Versus a cup of broccoli or a quarter cup of cashews. Thats something significant, Bellatti said.DO Be mindful of portion sizes.The baseline portion sizes ofour snacks and meals have balloonedover the last 40 years - even theplates and cups we serve them onhave gotten noticeably bigger.The average size of many of our foods - whether fast-food, sit-down meals, or even items from the grocery store - has grown by as much as 138% since the 1970s, according to data from theAmerican Journal of Public Health, theJournal of Nutrition, and theJournal of the American Medical Association.So be mindful of portion sizes, and if youre eating out, consider taking some of your meal home for later.DONT Focus exclusively on calories.Focusing too much on calories can be dangerous, too, since the measurement falsely makes it seem like a calorie of one food is exactly the same as that of another.This is especially true when eating at restaurants, Bellatti said. Manylow-calorie itemsare loaded with sodium, which retains water and can leave you feeling bloated.Plus, keep in mind that for sustained weight loss, youreonly supposed to lose about 1-3 pounds each week.That tends to be a lot more sustainable than losing a whole bunch at once, Philip Stanforth, a professor of exercise science at the University of Texas, told Business Insider.DO Think positive.Thinking positively about eating and feeling bettercan help motivate some peopleto stick to a new lifestyle.In terms of changing the way you eat (its much more than a diet), focus on the opportunities and what you can eat as opposed to what foods youre trying to cut down on, Dr. Donald Hensrud, who chairs the Mayo Clinics division of prev entive, occupational and aerospace medicine,wrote in a blog post. There are many wonderful foods and recipes to explore, and believe it or not, we can learn to like new foods.DONT Expect miracles.Lets be real Eating right for a week isnt going to counteract decades of subsisting on fries and Frappuccinos. But it is enough to reduce some of the more irritating aspects of those symptoms, like the bloating linked with a high-salt diet, and thefatigue associated with blood sugar crashes.The most that can happen in a weeks time is that you make choices that help reduce bloating and puffiness. Any promises beyond that are more about marketing and hyperbole than anything else, Bellatti said.But committing to treating your body well - even if only for a few days - might be enough to lay the foundation for months or years of future healthy eating. If you can prove to yourself that you can treat your body right (and that it feels good to do so), you just might be more likely to keep it up l ater on.This article first appeared in Business Insider.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people