So, you’ve committed to work out and eat healthy, but that bag of chips still seems to end up in your hands more often than a stalk of celery? Don’t beat yourself up! Fats, sugars and processed foods are hard habits to break, but here are a few tricks to turning over a new leaf and learning to love your fruits and veggies.

Start small

Instead of completely changing your entire menu in one swoop, try small substitutions.

Craving a salty snack? Replace your chips with some healthy low sodium nuts full of protein and fiber, or, if it’s the crunch you crave, slice yourself a handy bowl of crispy celery and crunchy carrots. You can also pick up a bag of healthy veggie alternatives like carrots, beets or kale chips. Just make sure they’re dehydrated and not fried.

Loving that sugar rush? Turn down your sugar intake by replacing sodas with bubbly water (with the purified, ionized, alkaline water being the ultimate goal – but we’re starting small). Instead of the heaps of white sugar, grab a spoonful of honey. Cookies can be replaced with sweet, fresh carrots (the fresher they are, the sweeter they taste), a moderate bite of fresh or dried fruit, or a delicious fruit and veggie smoothie. Remember, sugars hide in most of the processed kitchen staples, too. Homemade ketchup can be frozen or refrigerated for a long time, and it comes without the unhealthy and fattening high fructose corn syrup. Instead of pre-sweetened yogurt snack, get the plain one and throw in a bit of honey or some fresh fruit.

Busy and always eating on the run? Stock your kitchen with healthy foods to reach for, and throw away the processed snacks and staples. That way, you’ll be able to make a smart choice even with your eyes closed – or with one foot out of door.

Trick your taste buds

Smoothies can be a bit time consuming, but they’re just about the tastiest, guilt free, healthy treat you can find. As a bonus, you can sneak in some less-than-favorites into the delicious mix and trick yourself into an extra helping of healthy choices!

If you’re a chocolate lover, forget the boring, high in fat and sugar milk chocolate. A piece of artisan dark chocolate is an explosion of heavenly flavor, and so satisfying that a small piece will be enough. Full of antioxidants, minerals, fiber, flavanols and flavor, it’s almost too good to be true – but the studies prove it. Count your blessings!

As you gradually add more and more healthy and nutritious choices to your diet and eliminate the processed, high calorie foods full of bad fats and sugars, your mood, health and energy levels will improve, your skin will glow, and you’ll find your body starting to crave what makes it healthy and happy naturally. One step at the time!