“You are what you eat” has been said so many times that it’s easy to forget how important an idea it is.

You are literally built from the foods and nutrients you put into your body.  Everything from your skin and hair right though to your muscles and bones are made from the foods you eat.  And your body is updating all the time.  What you eat now – today - is going to go into making the body you are will live in for the next few weeks, months and years.

Building a healthy body means giving it the foods and nutrients that support your immune system, your heart, your muscles and your gut.  It means healthy ingredients, healthy foods, lots of vitamins and minerals, and it means balance.

When it comes to nutrition, it’s not just the foods that are important, It’s building in the habits that make choosing good food your default.  Habits take time to build but once they are in place, it is a lot easier to nourish your body with great foods and reap the benefits.

When you are thinking about changing how you eat – whether you need a full overhaul or just want to add a little extra goodness – start by setting some simple goals.  Don’t try to do everything at once.  You would be surprised how many habits are involved in what you eat.  From how you shop to how you cook, from the foods you add in to the foods you leave out.  Even how fast you eat can have an impact on your health.  Don’t try to change everything overnight.  Pick one or two habits.  Give yourself 2-3 weeks to build them in and them move on to the next one.

Think about what you really want to achieve.  If you want to look after your gut think about adding more fibre or some functional foods.  If you want to look after your immune system think about adding lots of fresh fruit and vegetables (for vitamin C) as well as nuts and seeds (for zinc).  Think about how you are going to add them in.  Will you add seeds to your breakfast porridge? Make some vegetable soup for lunch? Choose wholegrain breads more often?  The changes don’t have to be big.  You just need to begin.

The real trick in building good nutrition habits is not will power.  It actually  comes from being consistent in what you do – setting some clear targets and goals and not giving up.  It is really about recognizing that although there will be some days where you don’t get it right, you can easily pick up again, when you are ready, and carry on.

And that is what SiSú is all about. SiSú comes from a Finnish root word that means inner strength.  It means guts, courage and a certain amount of will power.  Mostly it means picking yourself up and carrying on.  And this is the real secret to eating well.  It is not about perfection or getting it right all the time.  It is about coming back to your good habits time and time again. It is about not giving up because you’ve had a bad week, a bad month or even a bad year.  It is about the determination to start again. To build the healthy body you want with the good foods you like and reaping the benefits across your own health and wellbeing,