Veggies

One thing that you can do to create a healthier body is to feed it more vegetables (veggies)!  I hear this all the time – “but I don’t like vegetables”… That’s a sad story!  There’s always a way to increase your love for veggies!  You just need to retrain your taste buds!  It’s just like when you have a new baby learning how to eat solid foods.  If you start with fruit first, which are way sweeter than most veggies, then the baby will most likely not like the veggies.  As we grow up, we acquire a taste for sweets.  That’s what sugar does to us!  It just makes us crave more sugar!  STOP the cycle!  Limit the amounts of sugar you take in each day… sodas, cookies, candy, fast food… YES!   Even fast food can have tons of sugar which is why you will crave some of those items!

This is why it’s so important to cut out the sugar!  If you think you will go through “sugar withdrawals”, you can always start slow and cut things out one thing at a time.  If you normally drink 4 sodas a day, cut it back to 3 sodas a day for a few days.  Then drop it to 2 sodas a day for another few days, and continue to do it this way until you reach that goal of ZERO a day!  Then start with the next thing that you have to have every day!

As you continue to cut out the sugar, you should also try to find new veggies that you may like.  First start with the ones you like.  The most favorite veggies are green beans, potatoes, and corn.  Of course potatoes and corn are starchy vegetables, so you would want to limit those.  They aren’t something you want to eat daily.  Make a list of the veggies you like.  Then be adventurous and try NEW veggies.  There’s are tons of recipes on the internet, just search “vegetable recipes”.  You don’t always have to eat veggies raw.  I love roasting them or making them in a casserole of some type.

Would you believe this taco casserole is made with cauliflower??  What a yummy way to get the taste of Mexican food and still getting tons of veggies!

One thing I’ve learned by being a dietitian and being a 2B Mindset Mentor, is to try and get “veggies most” in every meal!  This was a hard concept for me… I know I’m a dietitian, but it’s still a struggle.  I have known the health benefits before, but I didn’t make sure I was eating them enough!

By eating more veggies, there are tons of benefits:

  • May reduce your risk for heart disease, including heart attack and stroke.
  • May protect you against certain cancers.
  • May help lower blood pressure, help reduce the risk of developing kidney stones and helps decrease bone loss.
  • Helps to keep you full so you won’t want high calorie foods that don’t have any nutrition in them!

What is the new vegetable you are ready to try??