Eat Your Veggies!

Becky WilliamsUncategorized

The benefits of consuming a variety of fruits and vegetables are undeniable. They may reduce the risk or cancer and other chronic diseases. They provide essential vitamins and minerals, fiber, and water. They are also naturally low in calories and very filling, which is very helpful when cutting calories. The typical recommendation is 5+ servings of fruits and veggies per day. That may sound like a lot, but when you consider that a serving size is usually 1 cup raw or 1/2 cup cooked, it’s totally doable. Here are some tips to make it easier to get those 5+ servings in:

Breakfast:
• Add spinach, bell peppers, onions, or mushrooms to your omelet. Top with salsa.
• Add spinach, kale, carrots, cucumbers, or 1/2 an avocado to your protein shake.
• Add berries to your oatmeal.

Lunch:
• Add carrots and celery to homemade chicken noodle soup.
• Revamp your salad — add some variety with combos like: 

Arugula, beets, walnuts, and goat cheese with a vinaigrette
Greek salad of romaine lettuce, plum tomatoes, black olives, crumbled feta, red onion, bell peppers, and cucumber with a red wine vinaigrette.
Chicken, arugula, apple, and goat cheese.

• Add chopped apples or halved red grapes to chicken salad.
• Add arugula, tomatoes, avocado, or sprouts to sandwiches and wraps.
• Make a black bean salad with corn, tomato, jalapeno, avocado, and lime juice.

Snacks:
• Buy pre-cut veggies and fruits to make it easy and convenient to reach for them when hunger hits.
• Instead of buying the fruit-on-the-bottom yogurts (which have a ton of sugar in them) buy the plain and add berries or pineapple, cinnamon, and a little bit of honey or agave syrup.

Dinner:
• Include zucchini, celery, broccoli, carrots, and mushrooms into casseroles, stews, and chili.
• Make a stir fry — cook up a protein and add sugar snap peas, shredded carrots, sliced bell peppers, mushrooms, and water chestnuts.
• Substitute spaghetti squash in pasta dishes.
• Cut up a head of cabbage and saute it with olive oil, salt, and pepper for a tasty, filling side dish.
• Add spinach or zucchini to lasagna.
• Go meatless and try a vegan recipe from OhSheGlows.com.
• Grill kabobs with chunks of your favorite protein and pineapple, bell pepper, onion, and tomato.
• Roast fresh green beans in the oven sprinkled with olive oil and parmesan cheese.