Day 28: Eat Vegetables, Lose Weight | 30-Day Weight Loss-athon
It’s time for Day 28 of the 30-Day Weight Loss-athon.
All tasks in the 30-Day Weight Loss-athon are adapted from my 52 Weight Loss Missions program.
Read the steps first, then take 10 minutes to think about and complete them. Ready?
What You Need:
- Willingness to see vegetables differently.
Step 1
Our first step today is to remind ourselves why vegetables and legumes are such an asset on the weight-loss journey:
- They contain lots of fiber – which helps to fill you up, so you’re less likely to overeat
- They’re packed with nutrients – so you’re less likely to have cravings for something you’re not getting
- They help your skin look good – and when you look good it can motivate you to take better care of your diet and exercise
- They help you feel good – so you have plenty of energy to perform well
- Perhaps best of all, they can crowd out other foods – people tend to eat the same weight of food most days, so eating lots of nutrient-dense vegetables and legumes simply leaves less room for poorer choices.
Okay, so it makes sense to eat heaps of them. So how do we get ourselves to do that?
Step 2
You may not love vegetables, but you can talk yourself into liking them more. Yes you can. I think a little self-deception is a small price to pay for looking and feeling great.
- Choose the vegetables you do like and eat more of them. Become aware of enjoying them so you’re more inclined to eat them more often.
- Try vegetables you’re not sure about and be open to discovering things you like about them. Maybe the crunch of capsicum or sweetness of carrot is rather pleasant after all.
- Don’t make a big deal about the ones you hate. If you really hate them, then don’t eat them.
- Experiment with different ways of eating vegetables – perhaps you dislike salads but enjoy roasted vegetables, or hate well-cooked vegetables but like them with plenty of crunch.
Choose what you can like about vegetables.
Step 3
Next, with your vegetable-friendly mindset from Step 2, choose ways to eat more vegetables and legumes. Here are some ideas:
- Start a habit of having salad as a starter before dinner
- Add vegetables as a side to any meat, fish or poultry dish
- Swap half your pasta or rice portion for vegetables
- Swap half your meat portion for vegetables
- Add salad to ham, tuna, cheese or chicken sandwiches
- Keep canned or frozen vegetables so you always have some on hand when you prepare meals
- Experiment with new recipes that have plenty of vegetables
- Pre-cut vegetables and store in sealed containers in the fridge for quick snacks
- When cooking, add more vegetables than the recipe calls for
- Add a range of vegetable colors (orange, green, red) to make dishes look appealing
- When you’re busy, distracted, in a rush or don’t care much what you eat, choose something with lots of vegetables
- Serve yourself more of the vegetables you like; don’t feel you have to eat the ones you don’t like
- Revisit Day 21: Set Up A Weight-Loss-Friendly Recipe System and tweak your recipes to include more vegetables and legumes
- Create a self-perpetuating habit: eat more vegetables and you’ll start to like them more. It’s true! Ask anyone who’s lost weight.
How will be be upping your vegetable intake?
Bonus Step For 52 Weight Loss Missions Members
- Review Mission 20: Create A Smart Pantry System so that your pantry is always well stocked with vegetables.
- Review Mission 27: Eat More Vegetables And Legumes for the additional hints.
Check in!
And you’re done!
Be sure to leave your comment below to check in and stay accountable. If you’re reading this by email or in a reader then please click here to leave your comment.
See you tomorrow!
Great article.
In my opinion 3 best vegetables for weight loss are:
Cucumber
Broccoli
Cauliflower
additionally, here are a few foods that you can use with your weight lose plan.
http://blog.papaorder.com/2016/03/04/50-foods-that-help-you-lose-weight/
this is great guide for losing weight quickly. I have started following all these steps.
Agree with Ann – love those brussel sprouts!
It is easy for me too, I love vegetables, both raw and cooked.
I don´t have problems with this one. I usually have veggies and fruit for dinnner but my body doesn´t like lettuce too much 🙁
i´m now eating much more veggies than five weeks ago… and I like it. And my body likes it too. That´s very motivating to explore all kinds off veggies, salads and fruits. I´m feeling better every day with my new habits! And there are so many new things to discover! New sports, new meals and soon 😉 a total new style of clothes will fit and look good!
We have a campaign here called “5 a day” – 3 servings of vegetable – nice as sticks and dips with herbs – and 2 servings of fruit a day – yummy with sweetend joghurt dips.
I love my veggies too! I found that out after I gave up meat this past Lent.
Easy enough to do. I eat vegetables with most meals.
Love me so vegetables! I have some with every meal!
That’s why the “Mother’s Manual” always says, “Eat your Vegetables”.
Working on this one. Roast anything and it gets gobbled up around here! Trying to make veggies 1/2 the plate.
I eat a salad every day before lunch and dinner and have started having broccoli and carrots on hand for snacking.
I love veggies and trying out new recipes with them. I am constantly asking my friends for suggestions on ways to prepare them, just to mix it up.
I’m already eating lots of veggies, but I have to be careful around cabbage and not eat as much since having my gall bladder out. the only two veggies I will not eat is Brussels sprouts and beetroot and I don’t think beetroot is a veggie so only one.
I have been adding veggies consistently for the last three weeks and it works. I feel like I’m eating so much food during the day, but when I tally it on myfitnesspal.com I’m still falling under 1200 calories a day! I’m full and I’m losing weight…14lbs so far.