At Superstore, I peek at people’s groceries. The porkiest shoppers buy pop, cookies, or chips. Junk food spans up to half their cart. The beefy (but not obese) shoppers buy processed foods like frozen pizzas, white breads, and wieners. But the leanest shoppers buy mounds of fruits and veggies. I can guess waist sizes by peering at shopping carts.
For top health, model your diet on tips from fit friends. My best female friend prodded me to eat beets and read health books. (She has a PhD in Biology.) Gradually, she switched my diet to mainly veggies. Soon, I salivated over celery and swiftly dropped weight.
My friend also urged me to swig apple cider vinegar mixed with water and sea salt. A healthy brew. But I got hooked on the sea salt. Out of the blue, I got cravings for salty popcorn, macaroni, and canned ham. I didn’t cave to the cravings, but still, my waist widened. So, I threw out the salt. Now, I savor celery again—and my waistline shows it.
So, savor veggies to stay lean—and healthy. Martin Meadows show how to crave veggies in his book How to Eat More Vegetables: A Concise Guide to Help You Eat and Enjoy The Most Important Food for a Fulfilling Life.
- Why gobble veggies? They get you grinning: “In a study on over 80,000 people, individuals who ate more fruits and vegetables felt happier and had a higher life satisfaction than people who didn’t eat enough portions (well-being peaks at approximately 7 portions per day)” (location 27 of 1037, 3%).
- And veggies give you vigor: “Many people lack energy, struggle with depression, obesity, high blood pressure and other unpleasant conditions largely because they lack key nutrients vegetables provide in spades” (location 42, 4%).
- Munching veggies shines your skin: “The more veggies you eat, the better you look” (location 42, 4%).
- So, how do you gobble more veggies? “The simplest strategy to eat more vegetables is to include them in every meal” (location 352, 33%).
- Blend a stem of kale into your cereal milk: “Make sure that each meal consists of at least one of the following: a salad, raw vegetables, soup, a vegetable smoothie, veggie sauce, spread, or dip, or as a last resort, a greens supplement” (location 533, 50%).
- Better yet, blend two stems of kale into your cereal milk: “Doubling the amount [of veggies] is an easy way to eat more vegetables without affecting the flavor” (location 392, 36%).
- Eat carrots dipped in hummus instead of potato chips: “Try replacing your usual snacks with some vegetables” (location 364, 34%).
- If au naturel veggies make you gag, try the saucy kind: “The easiest way to keep vegetables interesting is to pair them with different herbs, spices, and sauces” (location 753, 73%). Sprinkle some Herbes de Provence, a blend “of savory, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and oregano” (location 613, 58%).
- No need to eyeball a butter-drenched Mac and Cheese; you’ve now got the love of celery. “Soon, you’ll develop cravings for veggies instead of processed foods” (location 157, 15%).
My washroom breaks take at most 45 seconds. Any longer and I pinpoint which food caused the delay. Veggies free-flow, pizza plugs.
So, don’t clog up with chips, cakes, and deli meats. Instead, heap your bowl with veggies.
