Vegetables are a large part of a healthy diet. Many of us know that vegetables provide nutrients that are important and essential for keeping you healthy. However, vegetables are also low in calories, filling and can help you manage your weight.
When my clients come to me looking to lose weight or maintain their weight, I recommend that they prioritize vegetables when planning meals and some snacks. Here are some easy ways to add more vegetables to your diet.
1. Prepare Your Vegetables Right After You Buy Them
Many of us have probably gotten into the habit of washing our groceries when we get home from the grocery store. Take it one step further and cut up your veggies. This makes them more convenient to snack on and easier to prepare.
It probably doesn't make sense to do this with all of your vegetables. For example, you wouldn't want to cut up an avocado days before you use it because it'll spoil faster. I recommend doing this with carrots and celery as these are vegetables that most people enjoy snacking on. Just store the cut-up carrots and celery in a container filled with water.
2. Find a vegetable dip you like
Most people don't like to eat raw vegetables alone and I don't blame you! You can buy hummus, black bean dip or another vegetable dip. Just find something you like. My favourite vegetable dip is my own hummus recipe, the recipe can be found in Your COVID-19 Food Guide. Another veggie dip you can try is mixing onion soup mix with plain Greek yogurt.
Choosing your snacks is much easier when all you have to do is take your pre-cut veggies and veggie dip out of the fridge.
3. Sneak Veggies Into Your Favourite Dishes
If you hate eating veggies on their own you can add some to your favourite dishes. You can sneak veggies into omelettes, soups, curries, stews and pasta dishes.
If you want to go one step further, turn your veggies into noodles (example: zoodles).
Above are some examples of dishes I've added veggies to do. Both of these recipes can be found here.