Ways To Get More Fruit And Vegetables In Your Diet

I am not a perfect eater but, I try to add fruit and vegetables as much as I can everyday. I am not a vegetarian either (although, I think it's a very good way to eat food) but I am a firm believer that the more fruit and vegetables you incorporate into your daily diet the longer you will live and the less chance you have developing diseases and obesity.

For Fruit - What I do is, I get all of my favorite fruits like strawberries, blueberries, apples (I like ambrosia apples) bananas, and sometimes peaches or oranges (oh, and watermelon) and cut them up and put them into a couple of plastic containers and throw them in the refrigerator, then when I want a snack, I just grab the container and eat it. Sometimes I add things to it to make it more interesting like cinnamon, nuts or put a little honey on the fruit.

There are lots of other combinations you can do but this is my favorite. I got the idea of adding extra goodies to my fruit because I do this with oatmeal too. It's kind of a family tradition, My grandmother used to make what she called designer oatmeal. She would of course prepare oats the normal way and then she would add some brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts and a little wheat germ. So, I do this with my oats too and I thought why not do it to other food to jazz it up a bit. I do it with fruit, and now yogurt too! It really makes it fun to eat and adds texture too. Try it, you will like it!

For vegetables - I like to make homemade soups like minestrone with my favorite vegetables. I make a giant pot of it and then just eat the leftover soup through the week.

Another good way to get your vegetables is make a big salad ahead of time - put all of your favorites in it. ( I like romaine lettuce, spinach, carrots, avocado and tomatoes)  and put it in a big salad bowl and get a little bit out every night and eat it with your dinner.

If you tend to snack at work, take a couple of little sandwich bags or small containers with you to work and put healthy fruits, nuts or vegetables to snack on through the day. It helps add to your daily intake of more fruit and vegetables and it will curb your cravings later on.

I also drink green tea and water during the day and that seems to help me make healthier food choices through the day.