Published on
April 9, 2025
Small shifts in your eating habits can have a big impact — no dieting required.
Reviewed by Tess Bredesen, Director of Cognitive Nutrition
If you’ve tried countless times to follow certain diets to take control of your health, it might be time for a simple yet powerful reframe.
To build long-term healthy habits, the key isn’t just focusing on what you eat but also on how you eat.
How you eat starts taking shape long before you even think about it — through family meals, cultural traditions, and the pace of your everyday life. These early experiences create a blueprint for your relationship with food. Over time, that relationship is reinforced — or challenged — by messages about food and dieting that show up in advertising, on social media, and even from friends and family.
This is part of what drives diet cycles: the repeated pattern of starting and stopping restrictive eating plans. But research shows that diet cycles can slow your metabolism, damage heart health, and disrupt your relationship with food.
By shifting the focus away from rigid restrictions and focusing on the how of eating you can break out of diet cycling and build sustainable eating habits.
Here are some new eating strategies and Microsteps to get you started.
When you add healthy foods to your plate, you’ll break out of the dieter’s restrictive eating mindset. Fiber slows down digestion, which helps you feel satisfied for longer after eating. And some research shows adding more vegetables and fruit to your diet can help with weight management.
Microstep: At your next meal, add a fiber-rich food to your plate that you haven’t eaten in a while. It can be a colorful vegetable — try brussels sprouts, carrots, sweet potatoes (with the skin) or beets. Whole grains (quinoa, brown rice, farrow), legumes (edamame, chickpeas, black beans) and fruits (raspberries, pears, apples) are also great fiber-rich additions to your meals or snacks. Even small additions — like tossing spinach into your eggs or adding beans to your salad — can make a big difference.
Meal prep isn’t just a time-saver — it’s a form of self-care. It makes healthy eating easier. When your meals are already planned or prepped, you're less likely to grab something ultra-processed or rely on takeout when you're tired, busy, or stressed.
On weekends, set yourself up for an easier, healthier week by prepping a few simple meals and ingredients. Prepping healthy snacks — like slicing apples or cutting up vegetables — makes it easier to reach for something nourishing when hunger strikes. You can also portion out mixed nuts, roasted chickpeas, or fruit with nut butter for quick grab-and-go options. One study found that children ate more apples when they were pre-sliced compared to when they were served whole.
Microstep: Carve out 30 minutes on a Sunday to meal prep and set yourself up for a week of healthy and easy eating. Make a one-pot dish like chili, soup, or stew — they freeze well for future meals. Bake a whole chicken to use throughout the week in salads, sandwiches, or grain bowls. Roast a sheet pan of vegetables (like sweet potatoes, broccoli, and bell peppers) to mix and match with proteins and grains. Cook a batch of quinoa, farro, or brown rice to serve as a base for easy grain bowls — just add veggies, a protein, and a sauce or dressing. Chop up some veggies to pair with hummus, guacamole, or Greek yogurt.
Our bodies are naturally designed to digest and metabolize food more efficiently earlier in the day, thanks to our internal biological clocks. In fact, a meal eaten at 9 a.m. can have different effects on your metabolism than the same meal eaten at 9 p.m. Studies consistently find that people who front-load their calories — eating a large breakfast, a modest lunch, and a smaller dinner — experience better appetite control, improved blood sugar, and more efficient fat burning. In contrast, skipping breakfast and eating large meals late at night, can increase the risk of weight gain, fatigue, and chronic disease. Shifting more of your calories earlier in the day and giving your body time to wind down before bed can support both short- and long-term health.
Microstep: If you usually eat a big dinner, flip your pattern one day this week: have a larger lunch and a lighter, veggie-forward dinner. In a review of research on meal timing, scientists found that people who consumed most of their calories earlier in the day lost more weight and had greater improvements in their blood sugar, cholesterol levels and insulin sensitivity, a marker of diabetes risk.
You can still eat the foods you enjoy while keeping your nutrition in mind. Swapping out ultra processed foods for whole real foods is an easy way to get creative with your meals and make room for more nutrients. We know that the calories we ingest from ultraprocessed foods are treated differently by our bodies than calories from whole, real foods.
Microstep: During one meal or snack today, swap an ultraprocessed food for a whole, minimally processed food. Here are some examples. Swap mayo for hummus to spread on sandwiches. You'll get the same creamy taste with more fiber, protein, and heart-healthy fats. Swap croutons for roasted pumpkin seeds or chickpeas on top of soups and salads. You’ll add a crunch and trade simple carbs for omega-3s. Swap sugary cereals for oatmeal, muesli (oats, nuts, seeds, dried fruit), puffed wheat cereal, or bran flakes. You’ll swap quick-digesting carbs for fiber and long-lasting energy.
Eating with others does more than strengthen relationships — it has measurable health benefits. Research shows that shared meals are linked to improved diet quality, better portion control, and a lower risk of obesity. Social connection during meals helps activate the parasympathetic “rest-and-digest” response, which supports better digestion. People who regularly eat with family or friends also tend to eat more slowly and mindfully.
Microstep: This week, schedule one meal with a friend, family member, or coworker — and keep devices off the table. Setting aside time to eat with another person — free from distractions like phones or screens — can help shift eating from a rushed task to a restorative habit that supports both physical and emotional health.
Mindful eating can help us to savor our food, find joy in mealtimes, and make intentional choices that enable us to feel our best. It also helps break the cycle of dieting by fostering a healthier, more compassionate relationship with food and our bodies.
Microstep: Make an effort to chew your food slowly and stop when you’re satisfied. This practice not only promotes better digestion, but also helps you savor your food and eat more intentionally.
Instead of falling into the dieter’s mindset of “I can’t have that,” try reframing it: “When I eat, I nourish my body and mind.” Which foods will make you feel energized? Motivated? Nourished? This positive, empowering approach is far more motivating than one rooted in deprivation.Take a moment to recognize how food is fueling your body and mind.
Microstep: At your next meal or snack, take a moment to ask yourself: “How is this food nourishing me — physically or emotionally?” Even a small shift in awareness can help you build a more positive, supportive relationship with food.
Rebecca Muller Feintuch is the Deputy Editor at Thrive. Her previous work experience includes roles in editorial and digital journalism. Rebecca is passionate about storytelling, self-care, and health and well-being. She is a graduate of New York University, where she studied Media, Culture and Communications with a minor in Creative Writing. For her undergraduate thesis, she researched the relationship between women and fitness media consumerism.