Your health is important: don’t put it on the back burner—make it a priority. Fueling our bodies with foods that contain nutritious and wholesome ingredients is vital to sustaining our energy levels throughout the day and to maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Now let’s clear some things up with regards to the word, “healthy.” I feel as though a lot of the time, people don’t truly understand the meaning of the word. Someone who eats healthy doesn’t eat salads all day, every day. Heck, someone who eats salads all of the time isn’t living life! I need, I repeat, need chocolate in my life—my body basically craves it 24/7.

Someone who eats “healthy” is someone who voluntarily decides to consume foods that will in some way, shape or form aid their health. I ate chicken with brown rice, roasted veggies and avocado for lunch today because I loved the way I felt after eating it! I know that the chicken will serve as protein and will aid in building and repairing my muscle tissue, the brown rice and veggies will serve as carbohydrates in the form of glucose to act as the main source of energy my body needs to function, and the avocado will serve as a fat that my body will use to help reduce my chances of developing heart disease and stroke.

Why label the way I eat? How I eat shouldn’t be looked upon as different nor should it be categorized. It’s simply just the way I eat! The only difference is that I am making a conscious decision as to what I want to put into my body. I love my body, and not only do I choose to treat it well, but I want to, and so should you! You deserve it!

Ok so, let’s think about it, when you don’t eat enough or you eat processed foods, how do you feel? Tired? Groggy? Irritated? Weak? Moody? Yup. That would be the symptoms that accompany a nutrient deprived body. That double cheeseburger and fries you are putting into your body are called empty calories for a reason: they don’t do you any good—when eaten in excess! Did you catch that last bit? "When eaten in excess.”

I am a big believer in eating what you want when you want because food is dang good and you should be able to enjoy what your body craves when your body craves it. That dairy queen blizzard is not going to kill you—if anything it’s definitely going to satisfy your sweet tooth. The key here is to remember balance. Try to consume nutritious foods every day while still enjoying that slice of chocolate cake.

Life’s too short to restrict yourself from foods you enjoy eating. I know myself and I am way too much of a foodie to stop eating all the delicious foods Austin has to offer.

So, try it out! Start fueling your body with those nutritious and delicious foods! You will be amazed at how different you will start to feel. Both your physical and mental health will thank you! Once you start seeing those benefits, you won't want to stop!