One of the most frequent excuses I hear for people not exercising or eating well is “not enough time.” Seems everybody is always pressed for time and unfortunately two of the most important things are the ones that get left out - diet and exercise. And when it comes to meals, fruits and vegetables are the most popular victims of our hurried lifestyles.
Approximately 200 studies that examined the relationship between fruit and vegetable intake and cancers of the lung, colon, breast, cervix, esophagus, oral cavity, stomach, bladder, pancreas, and ovary are reviewed. The resulting recommendation is that we consume between five and nine servings of fruit and vegetables daily to help prevent cancer... Unfortunately, busy people or people on the run turn to high fat or high calorie fast foods a lot quicker than they do fruits and vegetables. Nevermind that fruits and vegetables are nature’s original fast food!
I want to share five easy steps/tips that I learned and use that will help you consume the required servings of fruits and vegetables, and help you eat healthy and lose weight.
TIP # 1. If you usually eat cereal for breakfast, try slicing a banana on top. If you like oatmeal (which I don’t) try adding raisins. I don’t particularly like oatmeal but I know it’s good for me so I eat it and sometimes will blend it with some protein powder and a banana to make it more palatable. And don’t forget the fresh fruit juice to wash it all down. Just six ounces of 100% fruit juice or low sodium vegetable juice counts as a serving toward your five fruits or vegetables a day plan. You can even try a fruit smoothie if you have enough of a variety of fruit lying around. Do that and you have 2 servings down for breakfast already.
TIP # 2. Unsweetened portable apple sauce counts as a serving and is easy to snack on. Eat 5 or 6 baby carrots as a midmorning snack and you have another serving. Three servings down.
TIP # 3. Try ordering a sandwich with vegetables or a cup of vegetable soup for lunch. Add a small side salad with low fat dressing, and you have 5 servings down.
TIP # 4. After a long hard day you’re probably not looking forward to standing in front of a stove, so dinner vegetables are an easy and delicious option. Consider cooking canned or frozen peas or cauliflower for a quick dinner side dish. Or try sweet potatoes with broccoli, cauliflower and some low fat ranch dressing. A half cup of vegetables counts as one serving. Seven servings down.
TIP # 5. Stock your freezer with 100 percent fruit juice popsicles or icicles and have those for dessert. You can also place a half cup of your favourite fruit on low fat frozen yogurt and you have added another 5 a day serving to your day. Eight servings down-surpassing the goal of at least 5.
Take advantage of some much needed down time over the weekend to prepare fruits and vegetables for the entire week. You can make a veggie pizza with some fresh vegetables, low fat cheese and pre-packaged pizza dough then freeze it and reheat it for lunch later in the week.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR; Kendal Burton is a Certified Personal Trainer & Sports Nutrition Specialist. For more health and fitness tips “friend” us on Facebook, or join our free fitness community. If you have any questions, or a topic you’d like us to address email us at mail@edgepersonalfitness.com
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