VEGGIES AND FITNESS!

We all know we need to eat our veggies. Whether you're following a conventional eating plan, doing Keto, or other type of diet, vegetables must be an important part of it. If you come across someone who tells you to not eat a good amount of vegetables, walk away. Many years ago, there was a well known bodybuilding trainer who would have his guys prepare for contests by eating pretty much unlimited amounts of eggs and meat but nothing else! He had them take craploads of supplements which is certainly not a substitute for real vegetables and fruits in food form. Remember that supplements are just that. They supplement your diet. Yes I believe in supplementation and there are some very good ones out there, but food must be your foundation. So how do we go about preparing vegetables in different ways? I'll go over that in this post.

SALADS

The best way to prepare vegetables is to do as little as possible to them. Often this can mean preparing them in raw salads. Many people think automatically of salads as being limited to pretty much lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers. However you're only limited by your imagination as they can come in an almost endless variety providing everything from protein to fiber, and they taste great as well! Be careful to not add too much rich dressing to it. These can really add up to a lot of calories and fat if you're not careful. I often just use a mixture of olive oil and apple cider vinegar.

Also, don't make the mistake of thinking that salads can only be a side. It can be a main course. Here's a large salad you can make into a main course. It does contain lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes, but you can always customize it. For a large variety of salad recipes, click here

Lettuce

Spinach

Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Artichoke Hearts

Broccoli

Carrots

Tuna, Shrimp, or Chicken

SMOOTHIES

Here's another one that I love. I have a VitaMix which is a beast of a blender and I've been using it for almost 16 years. Just take whatever you would put into your salad and throw it in your blender! The only exception to this is I wouldn't put in the tuna or chicken. I guess it's possible, but I'd rather not.

COOKING

Of course there's also the option of cooking. In Asian cuisine we often make stir frys which is a nice filling meal. They can also be steamed or grilled. I LOVE grilled veggies during Barbeque season! Stuffed peppers is another one. There are so many choices and methods for preparing vegetables, but the one thing I would recommend against is boiling. You unfortunately end up with very nutrient dense water, but depleted vegetables. 

VEGGIES FOREVER

To get the most out of vegetables, take some time to sit down with a food chart or go online to find the various nutrition values in order to see just what is in it. This can better help you plan your meals. Potatoes for example (Yes they are vegetables) are fairly low in calories but high in protein. Mustard greens are surprisingly high in calcium. Carrots have tons of Vitamin A. Each vegetable has something to offer and getting to know them will really help. In closing, make sure you include vegetables in your daily diet. There are many options for this and please don't think that you have to eat salads every day forever. That certainly isn't the case. Just add them and be creative!

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