Why You Should Eat More Fruits And Veggies

So it’s been a crazy couple of years for health as we’ve all had to deal with our own issues as well as the pandemic of COVID-19 making its way around the globe and causing mass unrest. It’s been a living nightmare. People have been unable to go to gyms, work out properly and even their diets have been thrown off balance for a while because everything has just gone to pot.

Many people are still focusing on getting healthier and staying that way, not just to lessen the risk of COVID-19 but also every other health problem out there. Self care comes in so many forms but the best one of all is knowing that you’re doing the best to maintain yourself by putting in the best fuel possible for your body. We are all trying to get back to being our best selves. Good nutrition goes a long way. Our bodies are our temples aren’t they? If our bodies don’t run well, then we’re facing so many problems. And it’s not just physical because eventually it takes over our minds too.

But the good thing is, there are a number of things you can do during these crazy times to get healthy and the one thing I want to talk about is including more fruits and veggies in your diet and here’s 5 reasons why:

1: They promote healthy, glowing skin.

2: They’re packed full of vitamins and minerals as well as other essential nutrients.

3: They aid natural weight loss.

4: They increase energy levels.

5: They reduce the risk of disease.

The easiest way to include more fruit and veg in your diet is to adjust your meals so it includes more fruit and vegetables. They used to say at first that getting 5 a day was enough, but recently doctors and scientists have recommended that we have at least 8 portions of and vegetables per day. It does seem impossible. Generally we only have up to five meals a day, depending on your meal plan if you have one. If you don’t it becomes even harder.

With vegetables and fruit, there are a couple of ways you can try to include more in your diet:

1: You can add fruit and veggies to your breakfast.

The most important meal of the day, a lot of people have been known to forego breakfast, either due to being busy or not having something decent to eat for breakfast in their cupboards. The nutrients you get are a total plus for your health and you can imagine the energy boost they’ll give you first thing in the morning. Try opting for a fruit or veg smoothie instead of your regular coffee. Or even an omelet packed with vegetables.

2: Try making homemade soups with vegetables.

This is especially great for people trying to watch their weight or maintain a healthy diet. When you’re having soup, you tend to eat fewer calories, but the nutrition levels still remain the same from the vegetables. Soup is an amazing way for eating more veggies because you add as much as you like to your soup pot. One of my favourites is carrot and butternut squash soup.

3: Choose fruit or vegetables when snacking.

Snacks are a great way to help filling up between meals and to keep the body fuelled and going. It’s also a great way to help you get more fruit and veg into your diets. Try things like carrot sticks or cucumbers dipped in hummus. Or even prepare some fruit for yourself. You’ll be amazed at how tasty it is and even better for the body, because you’re getting filled up on good stuff and getting your nutrition in too!

4: Turn your veggies into noodles.

Sounds weird, right? But it’s actually a great way to eat a lighter meal but still feel full. You don’t always need to use pasta for this, which is where your veggies come into it. You can use sweet potatoes, carrots, zucchini etc to make the noodles. You can buy something to spiralize your veg so it comes out as long noodles. The great thing is, it produces a plate that is worthy of a photo shoot. If you love being creative in the kitchen, this is a bonus for you!

5: Try kale chips.

This is something I was so sceptical about trying but my sister had made me some and I couldn’t really say no. Plus they actually didn’t look too bad! Even better, they tasted quite nice. It helped to fill up the quota on veggies so I couldn’t complain. All you need to do really with those is buy fresh kale and sort of bake them in the oven after putting on a light amount of olive oil and sea salt. If you haven’t tried them before, I definitely recommend this!

If you’re wanting to try any of these things, I’d recommend finding a great recipe online! There are so many people willing to share their knowledge out there and it would be a waste if we didn’t try to learn.

We can try our best and see how we get on with trying to include more in our diets. I’ve personally found it enjoyable seeing as I am predominantly plant based so the majority of my meals include vegetables or fruit. But I feel that sometimes it isn’t enough so I found myself also including wholefood nutrition capsules made only of fruit and vegetables, packed with vitamins and minerals and a welcome addition to my diet plan seeing as it doesn’t interfere in any way.

Obviously supplementation isn’t for everyone and it is something that doesn’t work well for some people’s lifestyles. Personally, seeing as I work a full time job with a few extra side hustles, spend a lot of time working out and also writing, I’ve found them a great way to help me stay on top of my nutrition.

Fruit and vegetables have always been part of our diets for centuries, and there is no reason why that should change or we should see reason to stop eating them. A lot of people tend to be worried about pesticides used on produce, so only tend to try and shop organically. There are other means too. You can, if you have the space or the time, try to grow some fruit and veggies yourself. During this time I’ve noticed a lot of people in my area taking to their gardens to start their own little veggie patches or using window boxes to grow herbs like mint, lemongrass etc. There is a power in growing your own stuff. Firstly, it’s free! Secondly, you know what goes onto your produce, seeing as it’s you maintaining it.

Try it. Try taking your health and nutrition levels into your own hands. Try including more fruits and veggies into your diet. I couldn’t recommend it enough. But I can only tell you what I think. If you do try it, feel free to message or email and we can have a discussion about why it did or didn’t work for you. Happy eating folks!

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