Healthy Habits:Eat your greens!

WHEN I WAS A CHILD, I LOOOOVED MY VEGETABLES.  Then when i became pregnant with my son, all that changed- i wanted nothing to do with vegebles, and eating them was a massive chore.  Now I am trying to get back into my veggie-loving ways. As a parent I know that my child is an echo of my language and my habits.  I want him to love vegetables and to really embrace a healthy lifestyle. So these are the the habits that i have been trying to institutionalize in my household- starting with me.

1. VEGGIES ARE NUMBER ONE.  In order to make sure that i get my day's worth of vegetables, i make sure that every meal has veggies. I throw veggies in my omelet, snack on baby veggies (baby sweet peppers or carrots with hummus, now peas/bean pods, beets drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice salt and pepper, for example), have a salad with beans and rice and will usually have a salad or veggie soup for dinner. Also, i try to eat my vegetables first, so that i get want i need  versus gorging on what looks tasty ( lasagna I am lookin right at you).

2. BE SNEAKY.  I read once that Jennifer Garner sneaks veggies into the family meals, and that she favors putting squash into the maccaroni and cheese.  Since then i stole her tip and i put vegetables into everything i can.  If a soup calls for a chicken base, i just puree tomatoes and zucchini's and use that as my base instead. If i make a bean burger, i dice vegetables up and add it to the patties (usually this is whatever vegetable is starting to look sad and limp in my crisper).  When I make smoothies or juice, it mostly vegetables with a pear, apple, or orange to sweeten it up.

3. HAVE A BIG GULP. Since i mentioned juice and smoothies, i think i'll elaborate.  Make a smoothie or a juice for breakfast or to accompany breakfast.  That way you consume what your body needs up front- you will be more productive and have more energy throughout the day.  It is important to note that i try to drink my juice within the first hour of preparing it; the nutrients and powerful antioxidants in these vegetables start to oxidise after exposed to air, so gulp it up to reap the most benefits of intact nutrients.

4.  FAT IS YOUR FRIEND.  Some people dont like to eat salads because it doesn't keep them satieted for very long. So add some fat! Fat is actually good for us, it is essential to brain function, and it composes the cell walls of every single cell in our body- they are an essential allie and should be treated as such.  Don't eat your greens with nothing on them; add avocadoes, make an olive oil based vinaigrette ( My favorite dressing is equal parts EVOO and balsamic vinager, pink himalayan salt and freshly ground black pepper). Salad dressings take literally seconds to prepare and are so good for us its shocking.  So don't buy into all the hype that you have to go fat free- a healthy fat is exponentially better than the chemical-ridden, fat-free options on the shelf.  In addition to fat being essential for our existance, they are also much better at keeping us satieted for longer periods of time than veggies alone.  It takes the stomach a long time to break down fats,keeping you feel fuller longer.  Also, vitamin A, D, E, and K cannot be absorbed without fats-so thoroughly enjoy that guacamole with your salad!

So, there you go! these are the things i have been doing to make vegetables part of my all day, everyday lifestyle.  I'd like to know, what do you do to make sure you get your veggies?

Have a lovely day!

Celina