Cooking, Diet

VEGETABLES ARE CARBOHYDRATES

Written by Christina Hamler on . 8 Comments

When I advise my nutritional clients about how to improve their eating habits, I commonly start with how to include more vegetables into their meals. Most people understand how to include protein, but they fail to consume enough veggies (and sometimes FAT, but that’s for another day) throughout the day. Carbohydrates in your diet should come predominantly from vegetables & small amounts of fruit. Vegetables are HEALTHY carbohydrates….yes, veggies are CARBS….I can’t tell you how many people do not understand this basic idea. How many vegetables are you eating every day? How can you get more into your day? Roast a bunch so you have them on hand. Then puree roasted veggies (think butternut squash, broccoli, or cauliflower) with some chicken stock & 1/2 cup of coconut milk for a hearty soup. Stick them in your morning omelette. Add roasted veggies to your salad for some variety & interest. Include at least 2-3 with your dinner….it all adds up. Just get them in. Your body will thank you!

How to Roast Veggies

 

 

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About Christina Hamler

I became a certified personal trainer through The National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and Super Slow, a specialized strength training program. Here, I discovered specific exercise techniques that were more appropriate for my body type. My nutritional journey began when I attended The Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN). As a graduate from IIN, I learned how food and healthy lifestyle choices could empower me to life my life more fully.

8 comments:

  1. Veggies are an important part of your diet and I try to load half my plate with them. However, I try to avoid those that are high in carbs, such as potatoes, peas, corn, and bananas. Add butter and spices and they are delicious. Just don’t go for packaged spice mixes, they can contain sugars. It’s easy to create your own spice mixes and store them in containers.

  2. I just learned from another comment that bananas are vegetables. The things you learn on blogs… huh.

    1. I think Kathleen was referring to bananas being a higher carb food, not that its a vegetable. I usually advise purchasing the smallest bananas available & eating 1/2 banana as a serving. I peel over-ripe bananas & break them in half, throw them in parchment paper & freeze them for smoothies. Fall & winter are not trypicaly appropriate seasons for smoothies, as we need more warming foods for Thermic body heat.

  3. Unless eating raw, steaming or roasting are my favorite way to prepare vegetables. With steaming you leave in the crunchiness. Roasting brings out a sweetness in them that makes them really flavorful.

    1. I love a variety of cooked veggies in my plate. For maximum nutrient absorption of veggies, it’s important to include a fat source, like olive oil, coconut oil, butter, or ghee. Avocados have themselves covered, loads of yummy fat in a serving (no more than 1/2 avocado). A little goes a long way!!

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