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There is no better time than summer to give your diet a makeover. Why? Because of this favored season’s abundance of fresh produce. It’s rarely easy to swap out candy bars and fast foods for fruits and veggies, but it’s doable when the produce is as fresh, delicious, and flavorful as it is in the summer months.
Why Your Body Loves Fresh Summer Produce
Your body loves fresh produce better than just about any other type of food. This is because fresh fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of a huge variety of diseases when consumed regularly. Also, they provide large amounts of vitamins and minerals. Fruits and vegetables are practically perfect foods (unless, of course, they have been restricted by your doctor). They are also easy to integrate into your diet.
Ways to Eat More Fresh Fruits and Veggies
If you think regularly consuming fresh produce is difficult, you’re wrong. It’s far easier than coping with a disease that results from a poor diet. You can painlessly integrate produce into your daily diet by taking actions like these:
- At the start of each week, cut up fresh veggies like onions, peppers, and sweet potatoes and store in zip-up bags. Add these veggies to scrambled eggs and salads.
- Serve fresh fruits like apples, peaches, nectarines, and pears with cheese, crackers, and nut butters. This makes an awesome snack or meal.
- Add spinach to smoothies. A handful of spinach will turn your smoothie green, but you won’t be able to taste this amazingly healthy vegetable. To make the perfect smoothie, blend a frozen banana, half a cup of almond milk, a little honey, a few frozen strawberries, 2 tablespoons of almond butter, and a handful of fresh spinach leaves. Your body will love you for it.
- Make shopping for produce fun by going to a farmer’s market. This is more enjoyable than shopping at a grocery store that you’ve been to hundreds of times.
- Top your morning yogurt with sliced, fresh strawberries and drizzle with honey.
- Instead of eating your favorite hummus with pita chips, try it with baby carrots and cucumber slices.
If you’re not sure that you like these ideas, just give them a try. They might help you learn to love fresh produce.
The Benefits of Eating Local
Eating foods that have been locally grown is a healthy practice that is growing in popularity. It has become somewhat of a trend in the past few years, but it’s a trend that’s tremendously beneficial to us. There is simply no substitute for eating locally grown foods, and it’s convenient to do so in summer due to the presence of farmer’s markets. Local fruits, veggies, meats, honey, dairy, etc., tend to be tastier than their imported counterparts. Also, local produce may contain a higher amount of nutrients than other foods. Give local foods a try and find out for yourself if you prefer them.
Adding fresh produce to your diet is a great way to shed excess weight and get in shape (See this resource for the top 29 vegetables that help speed fat loss). So is participating in a physiotherapy program. Physiotherapists are experts at helping people, injured or healthy, achieve their fitness goals. Contact a physiotherapist today to learn more.
What’s your favorite way to add fresh produce into your diet? Share with us in the “comments” section below.