If you didn’t know, I radically changed my diet a few months ago and it has made a big difference in my health. Since I’ve made these changes, I’ve increased my vegetable and fruit intake out of necessity, because I’ve been left with little to eat. I invited Beth Marlin on to share with us a few other ways that you can increase your vegetables and fruits.
Here’s what she has to say-
A constant challenge of modern life is to eat healthy as often as possible. If you have kids, you probably keep asking yourself how you can help them to have healthy diets and to learn healthy eating habits that will last them for the rest of their lives. The best way to do that is by modeling great behavior yourself – and here’s how to improve your diet with added fruits and vegetables!
Change Your Breakfasts
It’s actually incredibly easy to add more fruit to the breakfasts that you already have. You don’t need to go for anything too complicated, like having to chop up mangoes – instead, you could just wash a handful of berries like strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries and add them to your morning cereal or oatmeal.
If you have toast for breakfast you could always eat the berries on the side, or mash up a banana to eat it on your toast. Fruit is also an extremely easy option for a to-go breakfast – if you’re in a rush, why not grab a banana and an orange instead of a candy bar?
Go For Mixed In Vegetables
If you have kids, then chances are they balk at the sight of too many vegetables on their plates. If they don’t like the meat, potatoes and vegetable combination then it’s time for you to get a little more creative – try using a slow cooker to make stews, or mash up vegetables to make soups.
You could add extra vegetables to pasta bakes or make quiches that contain vegetables like peas and asparagus. A lot of the time, vegetables that are less blatantly obvious are somehow more palatable for kids.
What About Smoothies?
Smoothies are a great way to eat plenty of fruit without actually having to chew your way through it all morning. If you’re usually rushed first thing in the morning, why not make a smoothie out of your favorite combination of fruits every night to take to work with you? Look online and in your local stores on the quest of finding the perfect blender for you and then get researching smoothie recipes.
Coconut water and fruit juice are two great bases – or you could even go for milk if you want something that’s just as delicious and maybe a little more filling. Try out the classic strawberry and banana combination, and then consider getting a little more experimental – you could add superfoods like chia seeds and more tropical fruits.
No More Ice Cream
That’s right – ice cream is banished forevermore! No, just kidding. What is a life without ice cream, really? But it is time to start thinking about how you get a little sweetness in your diet – and you should try to go for fruit over more processed sugars in order to stay healthy.
Why not try sorbet instead of ice cream? And try out a bowl of berries instead of cake every now and then. Check out the times of year that your favorite fruits are in season so you get them when they’re at their most delicious.
