Nowadays many of us live very busy lives, so the idea of being organized enough to cook healthy meals every day just seems too much trouble. Plus there's the commonly held belief that if it's good for you, chances are it tastes bland and boring. In fact, cooking healthy meals can be just as simple and delicious as cooking all the meals you're used to preparing every day. It's just a question of choosing the right foods and getting used to cooking some new recipes.

Even better, it's possible to take a lot of the meals you already prepare regularly and make them healthier, simply by changing a few of the ingredients to healthier alternatives. If you choose carefully, the food won't lose any flavor, just lower in calories and fat.

It's also a commonly held belief that you have cook healthy meals completely from scratch. That's not true either - again, by choosing carefully, you can select a lot of partially prepared ingredients and add your own, healthy flair. Semi-homemade meals can be healthy too!

Healthy meals also don't have to be completely made from raw vegetables. You're simply aiming for a healthy balance of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Although it's better to minimize cooking to help maintain high nutrient levels, it's not necessary for everything to be raw.

There are some basics you need to follow for cooking meals, including:

• Use reduced-fat dairy goods
• Use lean meat
• Include lots of fish, olives, nuts, avocado, soy and seeds
• Use a non-stick pan
• Apply cooking oils with a brush or use cooking sprays, rather than pouring oil into the pan
• Use water, juice or stock instead of oil if possible
• Serve fish or meat with vinegar or salsa, rather than cream and butter
• Cook vegetables for as short as time as possible
• Minimize water when cooking vegetables - steaming is preferable

The secret to cooking healthy meals is moderation. You need to take out as many of the unhealthy elements as you can, and maximize the healthy components of the meal. It may take you a little while to get into the habit of doing this, but once you do, the habit of cooking healthy meals is with you for life. Keeping your body healthy by eating a balanced diet is a great way to keep in shape and reduce your risk of developing a chronic disease, so get started cooking healthy meals today.