350/365 Plantz a-Make Her Dance: Tips for Getting More Vegetables into Your Diet

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

We know fruits and vegetables are great for us but are we eating them as often as we should? According to the USDA, we are supposed to consume 3-5 servings of vegetables a day. I know it can be hard to add them into your diet but here are a few techniques I use that may be helpful to you:

- If you eat salad, put all of your chopped romaine, spinach, Bibb/Boston, etc. lettuce in a container at the beginning of the week.I have been reusing the same giant, plastic container I got months ago when I bought Earthbound Organics's Spring Mix. Every weekend I go to the grocery store, chop up all my lettuce for the week, and store it in that container. It makes it so easy for me to put handfuls of salad into my container to take to work in the morning.

egg white omelette with broccoli, celery, onions, and mushrooms

- I've always loved omelettes but, never thought I'd ever have time to make them. Not so! My dad is a genius when it comes to working smarter and not harder. He stores all his chopped veggies in a container so he can just take a handful to fry (in grape seed oil, of course) when he's ready for breakfast. You can be so creative with these. This week I'm enjoying red bell peppers, onions, shitake mushrooms, and Chinese eggplant. Putting in that extra effort to chop everything ahead of time cuts down breakfast making by half. This meal also gets an A+ if you're paleo, more on that later.

- Though it's better to have fresh vegetables over frozen, I understand it's hard to take time to chop your vegetables every week. An easy way to prepare vegetables is to steam them either in the microwave or on the stove. If you're microwaving, pour your veggies in a bowl and fill the bottom with water. Microwave it for 3-4min. They should be vibrant and tender. If they aren't, microwave them a minute more at a time until they are.

- If you've got a little more time and want to be a little more ambitious, try roasting your vegetables. Set the oven to 350F. Get your vegetables together. I recommend broccoli, bell peppers, cauliflower, and potatoes to start. Chop them all about the same size and put them in a bowl. Pour oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder over the vegetables. Toss until they are evenly coated. Spread the vegetables onto a pan and bake them for about 25-30 minutes. Your veggies should be fragrant and a little brown but, not burnt, toasty on the outside and tender. Who knew vegetables could be so dynamic? Roasted vegetables are amazing. I love them. I could eat them literally every day AND since they shrink down and are so tasty you can scarf a whole mess of them down without even realizing it. Heck, you could easily get all 5 servings from roasted vegetables. Moving on...


Vegetables are not as grab-and-go as granola bars or yogurt cups but they are definitely great for you. If you're not convinced that vegetables are super cool or want more of a challenge, watch this video. Jose Andreas is just the coolest:

In health,
Lauren

313/365 Sweet Kiwi

I see the resemblance  :)

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

Kiwi fruit or kiwi is native to China and receive their name from the kiwi bird of New Zealand. They have about as much potassium as a banana, are loaded with Vitamin C, and provide a good amount of dietary fiber. They also have proven to be helpful for asthmatic children; shortness of breath was reduced by 32%, severe wheeze by 41%, night time cough by 27%, chronic cough by 25%, and runny nose by 28% even by eating the fruit only once or twice a week.

Pick a kiwi that gives when you squeeze it between your thumb and index finger. If it's hard, it will need a few days to ripen at room temperature. A kiwi that is soft to the touch will be overripe and mushy. You can eat kiwi plain with or without the skin. Toss it with some other fruit for a happy, colorful salad.

In health,

Lauren

http://kiwi-fruit.info/
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=41

65/365 Zucchini Chicken Bake/Paleo Meal

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

I decided that I am not ready to commit to whole day of following the Paleo Diet. Instead, I decided to have a Paleo Meal using the zucchini I still had from the market and frozen chicken breast.

Half eaten, sorry! It just smelled so good!

Ingredients:
2 tbsp grape seed oil
1 clove of garlic, smashed
1 zucchini, sliced into thin rounds
1 yellow squash, sliced into thin rounds
1 bell pepper, sliced
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 c. diced tomatoes (the spice mix I used included dehydrated tomatoes)
1 frozen chicken breast

Recipe:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Heat oil in skillet until warm. Add garlic, cook until fragrant
3. Add zucchini, yellow squash, and bell pepper; saute until soft.
4. Place frozen chicken breast in baking dish. Drizzle oil on top, sprinkle seasonings of choice.
5. Top frozen chicken breast with sauteed vegetables.
6. Bake uncovered for 40 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked through.

I thought this was fantastically simple and delicious. I made it up and it ended up turning out well, yay! And it's so healthy. Fresh veggies, skinless chicken breast, garlic? Mmm mmm yum!

In health,

Lauren

57/365 The Paleo Diet

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

In honor of my friend Sean, whose birthday is today, I shall write about the Paleo Diet. He suggested it to me as a topic for my blog.

The Paleo Diet is fairly simple. If you were living in the Paleolithic Era, what would you eat? You would eat a lot of lean meat, tons of fruits, tons of vegetables, seafood, nuts, and seeds. That's all! No dairy products, no starchy vegetables, legumes, cereal grains, sweets, or salt-containing foods. This website gives you a much more detailed list of those foods.

Why on earth would you subject yourself to this? The idea is that this diet is high in protein without excessive fat and high in fiber (from the fruits and vegetables). Protein takes a longer time to digest keeping you satisfied. It also provides the same amount of energy as carbohydrates. Fiber will keep you satisfied too and is of course good for flushing out your system. Fruits and veggies will provide vitamins whether you do the Paleo Diet or not. Your carbohydrates will also come from the fruits and vegetables too. Nuts, seeds, and seafood provide the omega 3 fatty acids. This diet will help you lose weight while providing you with enough energy and nutrients.

My verdict: Give it a try. As you can see, it's a big commitment personally and financially. I believe that the idea behind the diet is good since our ancestors were clearly healthy enough to pass their genes to us. It also will deter you from the often fattening grain (processed) products out there. They also discourage the use of refined sugar, honey, and salt which is good since we can get carried away and are then unable to taste what is naturally in our food.

Still, I think that there is value in grains like oatmeal and brown rice as long as you know how to eat them. I also happen to like legumes, black beans for me thanks, and appreciate the fact that they have 0 cholesterol.

I would love to give the Paleo Diet a go when I have more money and more discipline. For now though, I will adopt some beliefs of the Paleo Diet. In fact, I will choose a day next week (after I go to the grocery store) to do the Paleo Diet. I'll be sure to let ya'll know how it goes and how I feel.

In health,

Lauren