We all know we should eat veggies….but how can you eat veggies when you don’t like them very much?
I’d like to suggest that changing your mindset about vegetables is key in developing a healthy lifestyle. In the Robin Becker Coaching fitness nutrition program, we don’t require special recipes. We don’t require you eat vegetables you don’t enjoy.
We do however, want you to eat more veggies. Every time you eat, you want to encourage yourself to eat some kind of vegetable or fruit. That does not always mean spinach salad or carrot sticks. It does mean you will want to experiment with ways to work more nutrient dense plant foods into your diet. Here are some quick suggestions to try.
Some diets want you to go for kale or spinach salads. I don’t enjoy the taste of straight spinach or kale. However, I do like romaine and can throw in a little spinach or kale and that is fine for my taste buds. If you like iceberg lettuce salads, start with that and add in a little of some type of darker greens. This way you start to adjust your taste buds. Many clients start this way and increase the more nutritious salad greens as they go. Try some mixed field greens. There are some types of lettuces that are bitter or lemony or peppery that are interesting. Your taste buds may actually like them. Be open to experiment!
Another point on salads: add some interesting ingredients to make it more palatable. Add (sparingly) sliced almonds or walnuts, a little feta or queso fresco cheese, a little avocado, or pumpkin seeds. Then you could add something a little sweet – some sliced strawberries, blueberries, mango, orange or other fruit. You’ll feel as if you are eating at a fancy restaurant!
Other ways to eat raw veggies: chop up one cucumber, 1-2 tomatoes, 1 green pepper and 1/3 of a red onion and pour tomato juice over all these until you have made a simple cold soup called gazpacho. You can add a little salt and pepper, and some hot sauce to taste. This is a pretty yummy cold option for the summer.
Some people don’t like steamed broccoli, but really like raw broccoli salads with a little light sour cream and olive oil mayo mixed together for dressing. Add some yummy items like sliced almonds, dried cranberries or a few raisins, chopped onions, a little bacon or turkey bacon bits for flavor… Restraint is the order of the day when adding the flavor items. To give you an idea, with one cup of broccoli salad, I would add a teaspoon of raisins and 1 teaspoon of almonds and 1/3 – 1/2 slice of bacon. It will flavor the whole serving without adding a ton of calories.
And here is a suggestion for breakfast: grate a zucchini into whole wheat pancake mix with cinnamon, vanilla and a little grated apple for sweetness. This actually tastes like zucchini bread and is moist. Kids love it and you will too and you’ll get some veggies even in your pancakes!
What are your ideas? We’d love to hear from you. Like and follow Robin Becker Coaching on Facebook and make some comments.
As always, feel free to check out our 4 month Healthy Lifestyle Change program available on our website. This individualized journey is where your true transformation takes place.
Have a healthy week!
Sincerely,
Robin Becker
http://www.robinbeckercoaching.com