Ways to eat vegetables so they aren’t boring!!

When people think of clean eating, they think of salads and steamed veggies with no flavor and it’s all just so tasteless and boring. I am here to tell you there are so many different ways to eat veggies that are healthy and just bursting with flavor!!! Try roasting or grilling veggies instead of just steaming them. Try adding some nuts or goats cheese to your salads. Light seasoning with lemon juice salt and pepper can make all the difference to plain sautéed veggies. Here are a couple of my favourite recipes from my Nutrition E book.

Mushroom Kebabs

Need
1 cup of mushroom, thickly chopped
1/2 cup of red bell peppers (capsicum), chopped into 1 inch squares
1/2 cup of green bell peppers (capsicum), chopped into 1 inch squares
1 cup of onion (white or red/spanish), chopped into thick slices
For the marinade:
2 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp of honey
2 tbsp of soy sauce
4 - 5 wooden skewers

How
Preheat the grill, broiler or BBQ on medium to high heat. Soak wooden skewers in water for 5 mins to prevent them from burning. Add vegetables one by one onto the skewer. Coat each skewer with marinade. Grill/broil for 6 mins and turn over. Add remaining marinade and cook for another 3 mins.

Roasted Carrot Medley

Need
1 pound (450g) of carrot varieties ie, orange, purple, white or parsnip. Chopped lengthways in 4 inch sections and down the middle.
1 tsp of olive oil ½ tsp of All-purpose seasoning
Salt and pepper
Serve with 1 tbsp of dip (hummus or low-fat spinach dip)

How
Prepare in a baking tray lined with a drizzle of olive oil, chopped carrots. Sprinkling with seasoning, salt and pepper. Bake for 1 hour on 400 degrees F. Cool and serve 4 - 6 and enjoy with low fat spinach dip or hummus dip.

Veggies - How many do we need?

Vegetables provide nutrients vital for health and maintenance of your body! The list of benefits Veggies provide is ongoing but below are a few of the important ones!

• Can help you lose weight
• Are high in important nutrients including potassium, folate, vitamin A, vitamin C and the list goes on…
• Can reduce your risk of certain cancers, chronic diseases (such as diabetes) etc.
• Help to keep you immune system strong, heart & skin healthy
•Keep your gut, digestion and brain healthy

HOW MUCH?
Adults need to be eating a minimum of 5 serves of veggies! For kids 4 - 7 years they need at least 4 serves and 8 -18 years at least 5 serves of vegetables.

WHAT IS A SERVE?
A serve of vegetables or legumes (yes legumes such as lentils & beans count as veggies!!)
1 serve =
1/2 cup of cooked veggies
1/2 cup of dried beans, peas or lentils
1 cup of salad veggies

If you are struggle to include your 5 serves of veggies into your diet, My Nutrition E Book & 7 Meal Plan E Book are jam packed with veggie inspired recipes! And you can still receive 30% OFF my 7 Day Meal Plan Ebook! You can add your details here or shoot me a message for the discount code!

Hydration - Quick Tips

Did you know that on average, Americans drink a little more than four glasses a day!! By not hydrating yourself adequately you can affect your workout, your weight — even your brainpower. Here are just a few quick tips to help you hydrate!

1. Make drinking water a daily habit

2. Feeling thirsty or experiencing dry mouth, flushed skin, fatigue, or head-ache can all be signs of dehydration. Hydrate the body with some water before reaching for panadol

3. Plain water too boring, try adding fresh lemon or lime juice or a handful of berries.

4. To increase your fluid intake, enjoy a few pieces of fruit a day, as well as some
homemade vegetable soup. For example 1 cup cooked sliced zucchini  contains 6 oz of water!!

5. If you find you get to the end of day without finishing your water bottle set a timer as a reminder to drink a glass of water every hour or so!

And remember you don't need to guzzle a gallon of H2O during your exercise session, simply drink to satisfy your thirst and you'll take in what you need.

Lets talk about FIBER..

As people are becoming more and more fixated on finding the perfect diet to help with lose fat or gain muscle people are overlooking the hire component of fat lose, FIBER!

Fiber, often referred to as roughage or bulk, is a component indigestible part of the plant based foods that pushes through our digestive system, absorbing water along the way and easing bowel movements.

There are three different types of fibre which all have different functions and health benefits.

 Soluble fiber helps to slow the emptying process in our stomachs, which helps us feel fuller for longer! Foods rich in this type of fiber include oatmeal, nuts, beans, apples, and blueberries

·     

Insoluble fiber absorbs water to help soften the contents of our bowels and supports regular bowel movements. This is found in the seeds and skins of fruit (so always eat your peels) as well as whole-wheat bread and brown rice.

 Resistant starch is not digested in the small intestine and instead proceeds to the largeintestine where it assists the production of good bacteria and improves bowel health! Foods rich in this type include bananas, potatoes and cashews.

 Fiber is hugely important for gut health and the absorption of nutrients, therefore aiding digestion as it bulks up food in the digestive tract which makes your feel fuller for longer!

The minimum fibre intake should be no less that 20g for females and 25g for males but no more the 40g for females and 50-60g for males. But with most things too much of anything can be bad for you! If you fibre intake is too high is can reflect badly on you gut health and nutrient absorption. You need to focus on finding that SWEET SPOT!

Here are my TOP TIPS FIBRE TIPS!

1.     Eat Breakfast. Breakfast is a great place to start adding fibre.

2.     Add seeds. All kinds of seeds are high in fibre so aim to add 2 tablespoons of seeds into your diet each day!

3.     Eat more beans!! Lentils and beans are very high in fibre, especially soluble fibre. Try to have beans at least 3 or 4 times a week.

4.     Add Vegetables. As a good rule of thumb, salad or vegetables should make up 1/3 of your lunch and 1/3 of your dinner. Short on time? Frozen veggies are just as good!

5.     Eat Fruit. A piece of fruits will give you over 2g of fiber!! So aim to have 2-3 pieces of fruit everyday! Try slicing banana for brekky, adding apple to your salad and enjoying an orange a snack.

6.     Snack on nuts and dried fruit. Snacks like mixed nuts and raisins are high in fiber and make a great alternative to crisp and sugary snacks! All you need is a handful to help boost your intake

7.     Drink water.

** Remember it is normal to feel some bloating and to pass a little more wind when you first start to add in more fibre. This will settle down in a week or two.