Maintaining a healthy weight and enjoying a long and vibrant life depends on how well you balance the foods you eat on a daily basis. Have you ever heard of the term “you are what you eat”? If yes, then you should know that when it comes to diet, junk equals junk. A healthy breakfast could mean the difference between having energy throughout the day or burning out before lunch. The body needs certain vitamins and minerals to function at optimal efficiency throughout the day. When you deprive the body of these nutrients, it can be dangerous.

Below are the top four tips you can follow to ensure a healthy lifestyle.

1. Skipping meals is a big no!

Three meals a day is the best way to eat well and maintain a healthy body and weight. Skipping meals leads to what I call “grazing”, this is when you go around eating everything you can get your hands on. Many people skip breakfast, but by lunch they’ve already raided the snack machine for two bags of chips, a candy bar, and a soda. If they had eaten a good breakfast, those empty calories would not have entered their bodies. When we are hungry, we are more likely to eat the wrong foods. Eating three meals a day, preferably at the same time every day, is a great step towards a healthy lifestyle.

When you take long trips or go on vacation, you should take your meals with you or buy meals at health food stores in the area where you are staying. I know it can be tough, especially with a fast food restaurant on every corner, but here’s what you have to do to stay in tip-top shape. If it was easy, everyone would be slim and fit.

2. Learning to prepare food is another big step in the right direction.

When it comes to cooking, there are many things that can be done to ensure that you are preparing food in a healthy way. Instead of frying, you should boil, grill, or bake. Also, you should try using fresh and dried herbs for seasoning instead of salt and other high-sodium seasons. Finally, but most importantly, skin and fat should be removed from all meats before cooking.

3. Sugar is your enemy; He is not your friend!

Avoiding sugar is sometimes not so easy, but if you put your mind to it, you can do it. Soft drinks and juices contain nothing but sugar and should be avoided due to their abundance of empty calories. Empty calories are calories that contain no nutritional value and are easily stored as fat. Sodas and juices should not be a substitute for water. Water is the only liquid you should drink regularly. The others can be used as a treat, or once a day, but don’t overdo it.

4. Avoid fad diets like the plague.

Diets of any kind should always be avoided. Fats and carbohydrates have their place in a healthy diet. Moderation is the key, not fad diets. Limiting carbohydrates and increasing fat and vice versa could be dangerous. Another thing to watch out for is pre-packaged diet foods, although they may be low in fat or carbohydrates, most of them are high in sodium. Therefore, eating different foods with fats and carbohydrates in moderation and without overdoing it is as good or even better than fad diets.

Most people who follow these diets gain the weight back within a year. Not only do they gain back the weight they lost, but they also gain even more. Eating healthy and exercising is all you need for a healthy lifestyle. Following these four tips will have you on the right track in no time.