As the pace of everyday life accelerated, the fast food industry began to boom in the 1960's.

In 1982 we were introduced to the drive up window, an added convenience for those on the go.

Today, we have online ordering, and all sorts of delivery services that bring food right to our doors.

Each generation has, on the whole, chosen comfort over quality, and taste over health, when it comes to our diets.

Not everyone follows this path, of course.

But count how many Dunkin', Starbucks and other fast food locations are within 10 minutes from your home, and you can see it's a growing percentage of the population.

The tradeoff of convenience over quality nutrition, unsurprisingly, has brought with it an increase in poor health, low energy, brain fog, and mood disorders.

The culprits are easy to spot - they're the cheap, flavorful ingredients that fuel the mass production of addictive food and beverages.

Whether you are younger or older, we all should be mindful of the effects nutrition has on our athletic performance, and overall health.

If you are interested in improving your nutrition, but feel overwhelmed about where to begin, I recommend you start with one or more of the following changes.

Ditch Sugars

We can all surely agree that sugary snacks are tasty.

It's why cake is the universally accepted birthday treat, and not broccoli or brussel sprouts.

Eating sweets all the time has massive drawbacks, though.

Weight gain, energy crashes, poor sleep, and increased irritability come with it, warnings you won't find on your donut box.

Even an excessive amount of fruit consumption can cause these symptoms.

If you've got a sweet tooth, you'd benefit greatly by getting it in check.

Drink Plain Water

More and more, those sugar calories come from beverages.

Coffee with scoops of sugar, pick me up energy drinks and refreshers loaded with sweeteners, all promising to provide a temporary energy jolt.

Sugary drinks have a dehydrating effect, and chronic dehydration is why many people feel tired all the time.

Drinking plain water, not the ones with artificial flavorings, improves your immune system and increases energy levels naturally.

I suppose seltzers and vitamin infused waters are ok too, provided they don't have any other additives included as well.

Eliminate Chemical Based Oils

Their names make them sound healthy - vegetable oil, corn oil, canola oil, and so on.

And research has shown they do have a few health benefits, which you've surely heard of through popular marketing campaigns.

What they don't tell you is these oils increase inflammation in your body, too.

So a small ache or pain turns into large one.

The fatigue you sometimes experienced becomes chronic.

Before you know it, your doctor is prescribing you medication for an entirely self-created condition.

Steer far away from cheaper, synthetic fats, but make sure to consume all natural ones like olive oil, peanut oil, and butter.

They improve your energy levels and reduce inflammation.

Plus, they also help you become more efficient at burning body fat, especially when combined with the next tip.

Eat Only When You're Hungry

Different cultures have different eating habits.

Ours has, more or less, popularized the three meal a day approach.

Recent health fads, rooted in bodybuilding culture, have promoted a more aggressive 4-6 feedings per day.

Other cultures eat just once or twice a day.

So who is right?

This one's variable, based on things like the speed of your digestive system and the kinds of food you consume.

These can vary wildly from person to person, even from day to day, so the best approach is to be mindful of when you are physically hungry.

And only eat then.

Sometimes we eat because there's food available, or even due to boredom.

Both are prime reasons for overeating, and unwanted weight gain.

Those who consume moderate amounts of healthy fats will need to eat less often, using stored body fat for fuel between meals.

The better you become at efficiently burning body fat, the more likely you are to maintain a healthy body weight.

Mix It Up!

Low energy and poor health aren't always the result of bad things in your diet.

They can also be caused by what's missing.

We're still just scratching the surface of what things like phytochemicals do for our health.

If you don't know what that is, rest assured you don't really need to.

Provided you eat a wide range of whole foods, you're bound to get all the nutrients you need to look and feel very healthy.

Grilled chicken salad is fine to have for lunch, but maybe not every day for years.

Taco Tuesday doesn't have to be a thing every week.

It's human nature to develop routines, they simplify our lives.

When it comes to your diet, though, diversity is better for you than consistency.

Are you already doing any of these things?

If so, great!

If not, don't worry.

Find the one area above that is easiest for you to improve, and get to work on improving that habit.

Once you've got that down, move to another, and another.

Reforming your nutrition habits may take time, but you'll notice the difference each time you make a significant change.