Tweak: Daily Fruits and Vegetables
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Tonight at the dinner table over a plate of pasta, my teenaged daughters told me an astounding story. A year or two ago they went to a friend’s birthday BBQ. What was on the menu? Spaghetti with ketchup and barbecued hotdogs. I’m here to tell you that no matter what the USDA may say, ketchup is not a vegetable 
Research shows that eating at least 5 to 9 daily servings of nutritious fruits and vegetables can slow down your aging process and significantly reduce your risk of cancer, stroke, heart disease and more. But if you are in a rut, depressed about the state of the house and/or your struggles with weight and eating, eating habits can really suffer.
I found myself in this situation back in 2001. Even though I love lots of different fruits and vegetables, I was so deep in despair and apathy about my life that I had stopped grocery shopping regularly. My son and I ate a lot of takeout :( I had already made my first Tweak — switching out regular Coke for Diet Coke — but I knew more positive changes were in order. I could not face the idea of another failed diet, but I decided to at least introduce some healthy food so that we would be getting the nutrients we needed.
A nice coincidence happened around this time. I began working on a community project with a couple who owned an organic vegetable farm and who were creating a weekly “food guild” (also known as CSA or farm subscription). For $25 a week I began to get a bushel basket every week filled to the brim with fresh organic veggies and even some fruit. (You can find a CSA program near you at http://www.localharvest.org/csa/ and many CSAs will even deliver straight to your doorstep.)
Once I had the bushel of veggies every week, I knew I had to cook them and serve them so that I would not be wasting my money and my farmer friends’ incredible efforts. We ate delicious salads with cherry tomatoes and amazing mesclun salad greens. I boiled, roasted and even fried the vegetable bounty. And guess what? Our takeout orders and drive-thru runs dropped in number dramatically!
How much fruit and vegetables should we eat? I found an interesting calculator on the US government site FruitsandVeggiesMatter.gov and plugged in my info. According to the calculator, a 38-year-old female who does 30 to 60 minutes of brisk exercise per day should eat about 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of veggies. (Now, if you are diabetic or following a low carb or low glycemic index eating plan, you’re going to want to substitute vegetables for most of that fruit. Berries are a good low glycemic fruit choice.)
I typically eat more than 2 1/2 cups of vegetables a day — I say pile on the non-starchy veggies like spinach, leafy lettuces, broccoli, cauliflower, artichokes, etc. as much as you like — as long as you don’t completely drown them in fat, vegetables are always a healthy indulgence!
Remember:
Choose no more than one tweak per month – don’t try to pile them on! Practicing a single tweak for at least a full month gives you the best chance of forming a real habit and life change. Do not try to add another tweak until the previous tweak has become a habitual part of your life (this can sometimes take longer than a month).
This is all about loving yourself and creating a joyful life! Therefore, when choosing a new tweak to practice, pick one that is appealing and gives you a sense of anticipation.
Read all the fruit and veggie posts here.
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Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/muammer/
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