#VeggieLUV

“Eat your veggies” is a common phrase heard around dinner tables near & far – especially spoken by parents to children who don’t hold a particular affinity for those dark green crunchy things (broccoli in particular… I mean why does broccoli get such a bad wrap? What did it ever do to us?)…

But I digress...

Eating your vegetables is one of the tried and true recommendations for a healthy diet. And for good reason. Eating plenty of vegetables can help you ward off heart disease and stroke, control blood pressure, prevent some types of cancer, avoid a painful intestinal ailment called diverticulitis, and guard against cataract and macular degeneration, two common causes of vision loss (Harvard School of Public Health). 

Apart from the clear nutritional punch that veggies offer, they also serve as an awesome food for fat loss. They are packed full of fiber, which, as you know when combined/eaten with protein keeps you feeling fuller for longer! Feeling satisfied is one of the easiest ways to ensure that you won’t grab for that sugary snack later on in the day when overcome by a case of the munchies.  Fiber is the master manipulator – tricking you into feeling full, which delays the metabolic slowdown you get with fat loss.  

If you're replacing those nasty unluved carbs in your diet with higher amounts of veggies and smaller amounts of luved carbs, your body will be forced to burn off that stubborn body fat for fuel, leaving you leaner & lighter in the process. 

One of the easiest ways to get the benefits of more veggies is to EAT MORE VEGGIES… I know it really is quite a brilliant thought ;)

Sarcasm aside however, even though we know we should eat more veggies, how many of us actually do?

This week lets focus on being intentional about eating more veggies or a greater variety of veggies.  Try filling up your plate with at least 2/3 veggies.  You’ll feel more full, and I can pretty much guarantee that you won't be ingesting nearly as many calories per meal. 

So pack on those veggies, fill up that plate, & reap the numerous benefits that MORE veggies will bring!