10 Tips to Eat More Veggies!
Veggies are full of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber! A higher intake of veggies (and fruit) has even been associated with a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, certain types of cancer, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. A great goal is to make half your plate veggies at every meal. I am not talking about the giant plates that can be found today, but the smaller dinner plates that can be comparable to some salad plates. If you are having a dish that has veggies mixed it that works too. As long as those veggies would take up about half your plate if you separated them out, you are good to go!
Adding veggies to every meal can seem like a daunting task, but it can be pretty easy. When choosing your veggies for the week, try to include a variety of colors. This will insure you are getting a variety of nutrients. If you find it hard to get veggies with every meal try some of these tips below!
- Have veggies in your house. If you don’t buy them, you will not eat them. Buying veggies that are in season will help with price and they will also taste the best! See what veggies are in season.
- If you are purchasing veggies that do not have a long shelf life, eat those at the beginning of the week and save your carrots and celery for the end of the week. You could also go to the store twice a week. Frozen veggies can also be helpful if you can’t make it to the store as often. As long as you don’t get them with sauce they are just as healthy as fresh.
- Make sure the veggies you are going to eat are ready for consumption. If you are going to have sliced peppers and hummus, but the pepper still needs to be cut and washed the chances of you still having that will drastically decrease. Having pre-cut veggies ready to go is especially helpful if you are eating salads throughout the week. It’s so much easier to just open a few containers and add pre cut veggies to your lettuce than to cut them up eat time you want salad.
- Store them in glass containers in a visible place when you open the fridge. The more visible they are and less work you have to do, the more likely you are to eat them.
- Buy pre-cut and ready to eat veggies. If you know you will not take the time to cut and wash veggies, spending the extra money to buy them ready to eat could be worth it. This especially makes sense if your veggies usually end up in the trash because they rotted in the fridge. You can get a “party” tray, or veggies that are skewered and ready to grill.
- Add veggies to your eggs. You can make a hash or an omelet. Both are really tasty. Peppers, onions, mushrooms, and spinach are quite tasty in eggs. You can make this crustless quiche recipe ahead of time and just reheat them in the morning.
- Add veggies to your smoothie. This works great with spinach and kale! Start with spinach; it blends right in and you probably won’t even taste it.
- Make them your staple side dish. Carrots, celery, or peppers with hummus is great! Celery with nut butter is another good one for packed lunches. Baked asparagus, roasted beets, cauliflower, or broccoli, and salads, are some great dinner options. Replacing your chips for veggies is a double win!
- Use Romaine lettuce, Swiss chard, or a collard green leaf for a wrap. If using a bitter leaf like the collard green blanch it first. This will take out the bitterness and create a nice texture for the wrap. Romaine lettuce is great with a chicken or tuna salad. It adds a refreshing crispness!
- Be adventurous and try a new veggie. You can even try ones you didn’t like as a child. Tastes change. In my opinion, canned veggies taste a lot different than fresh veggies. Who knows, you may find a new favorite food!
What will help you increase your veggies? They can be easy to overlook, but are crucial to your health!