It can be so daunting to hear when the FDA says that the average adult should eat three to five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. That is quite a few different types of them to get into your diet in a day. For many people they may not even enjoy that many different types of fruits and veggies and to then try to find a way, other than to drink them in the way of fruit juice (which generally contains too much sugar) is an unthinkable task. It may be like it is something that is unthinkable but with the summer months upon us there are so many more fruits and vegetables available for us to eat now.
If I think about each meal as an opportunity to get at least two fruits or vegetables into my body then it is not as hard to get the three to five serving in during the day. This does not count the snacks that I may want to have during the day. I have found that the hardest part of this is making sure to go to the grocery store on a regular basis because I either go through the different fruits or veggies quickly or they may go bad on me. So this means having to go out in the heat more than I would like to, but it is for my own health and well-being.
While there are very few vegetables that I found appetizing in the very early morning, I am more of the breakfast meat type of person, I do find that I enjoy having some placed into an egg white omelet. Doing this with a side of sliced oranges or strawberries and I find that I already have two servings of the recommended three to five servings done for the day. As the day moves along it is easier for my stomach to accept the more fibrous vegetables into it and I am not opposed to having an artichoke for lunch or having broccoli and cauliflower with a sandwich.
When it comes with my dinner options, it is easier to add some bell peppers into a stir-fry or even to steam some veggies to go along with some sort of protein that is going to be on a plate. Even having a salad with some sort of cooked protein on top when it is hot outside can sound more appealing than making the entire kitchen hot by preparing an entire cooked meal. It is all about finding what is going to make the complete family happy and not having to make something different for everyone. Doing any one of these things and then adding some fruit on the side and you have a very balance meal that includes all the fruits and vegetables that are recommended. Not only that but you have cut out tons of calories that are not needed in our diet.
I have found that it is all about finding the fruits and vegetables that are liked by everyone in the family and then introducing them in a variety of ways to make them fun and exciting. Sometimes adding them into a smoothie for breakfast can show someone who may not have liked blueberries realize that they are not as bad as they first thought that they were. However, if someone really does not like raspberries because of the seeds in them there is no way around that and there is not going to be a way to get them to like them so you just have to accept that and find other fruits that they may like instead. It doesn’t mean that they won’t find others just that you have to find different ways to get the recommended fruits and vegetables into their diets.
Comments are closed.