It’s no secret that packing more vegetables into your diet is one of the biggest tricks when it comes to weight loss or simply living a healthier, more balanced lifestyle. In a study conducted in July of 2015, it was determined that less than 9 percent of Americans eat the recommended two to three cups of vegetables a day. This means that 91 percent of us are missing out on nature’s greatest weight loss tool, not to mention missing out on some potentially awesome additions to a meal! But therein lies the issue that most of us face when it comes to adding a few veggies to our plate…vegetables just seem so boring.
Since we were little, we were often told by our parents to eat our veggies. Being told to eat something almost always makes it less appealing, after all we always want what we can’t have, right? Then as we got older, we were often told that in order to actually get the full nutritional value out of a vegetable, we have to eat it steamed, raw or pretty much as bland as possible. For some of us, a sliced raw pepper or giant bowl of steamed broccoli is insanely delicious, but for the rest of us who enjoy our veggies smothered in salt or gravy or anything to give them flavor, here are some tips to keep in mind when trying to shove more veggies into your life.
- Stop thinking of vegetables as a side. They can be the main attraction too! Focus on dishes that contain way more veggies than meats such as stuffed peppers, veggie burgers, spaghetti made from zucchini squash, or even a big slice of veggie lasagna (light on the cheese of course). It’s not hard to make a vegetable shine as the center piece of the meal. And if you’re ever feeling stumped or entirely uninspired, just google it! The internet is your greatest tool to spice up those vegetables.
- Drink your vegetables. Shoving your veggies into a smoothie is probably one of the best ways to get in your vegetables when you aren’t really a fan of them. Toss in a banana or some berries and the veggie flavor essentially disappears! Just be wary when buying a smoothie from a vendor instead of making one at home. Lots of places substitute juice for the real deal and can be packed with more sugar and less fiber than if you threw all of the produce into a blender at home.
- Make some soup. Not only does soup generally aid in weight loss as it tends to be lower in calories and fill you up a lot faster, it’s easy to make a hearty soup packed with vegetables. If you have a slow cooker, find a great soup recipe, throw it all in the pot, go about your day and come home to a delicious, veggie packed meal!
- Toss some extra vegetables on anything and everything. In the end, if you really can’t think of any other way to get in those veggies, just toss a few onto whatever your eating. Pizza, tacos, burgers, they all tend to be better when they’re also packed with produce. And although it may still feel like your indulging, getting in any bit of fiber when you can is always a good thing!
Now that you’re an adult, no one can really tell you to eat your vegetables, but we’re here to tell you that you definitely should. Just make a point of fitting one veggie into every meal. Eventually it will become habit and you’ll learn to love the subtle flavors that vegetables can bring to any dish! You’ll certainly see a difference in how you feel and even increase your weight loss with all that added fiber. Who knows, maybe you’ll even come to love snacking on raw veggies.
