With any weight loss plan, it's important to measure your portion sizes.  If you overeat, even relatively healthy foods, you can gain weight.    Decreasing your portion sizes can be a fairly simple way of decreasing your overall calorie intake, which can result in weight loss.  When planning and serving your meals and snacks, follow these standard portion sizes: 1 serving of fruit is 1/2 cup or 1 small whole fruit, 1 serving of grains is 1 oz or 1/2 of a cup, 1 serving of lean protein is 3 oz, and 1 serving of low-fat dairy is 1 cup (milk and yogurt) or 2 oz of cheese.  If you do eat some vegetables, 1 serving of vegetables is 1 cup or 2 cups of leafy vegetables. Counting calories is another fairly simple way to lose weight.  Cutting out a few calories from each meal and snack may help you lose weight.  You can also try swapping out higher calorie foods for lower calorie foods to help decrease your total calorie intake each day.  Losing weight safely means only dropping one to two pounds per week.  In terms of calories, that equates to eating about 500 calories less each day. If you cut out more than 500 calories daily or are eating less than 1200 calories daily, you could be at risk for nutrient deficiencies.  Weight loss achieved with very low calorie diets is generally not sustainable long-term. Fruits and vegetables are one of the main sources of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in your diet.  Avoiding or minimizing the amount of vegetables you consume can minimize how many nutrients you get through the foods you choose.  Focus on consuming adequate fruit daily to maximize the nutrition content of your diet.  It's recommended to consume about two servings of fruit daily.  This equates to two pieces or two cups of fruit.  Each color fruit offers you a different nutrient.  Choose a variety of fruit and different colored fruits each day to maximize your intake of different nutrients.  Also, eat nutrient-dense fruits.  Although all fruit is a healthy choice, some fruits offer more nutrients than others.  For example, try these:  oranges, grapefruits, blackberries and strawberries. Juicing has recently become a more popular way for people to consume fruits and vegetables.  If you're not a fan of raw or cooked vegetables, adding them to a juice might make them more palatable.  Vegetable juice is available at grocery stores.  Try a few brands to see if any of them are tasty.  If so, add one to two servings of vegetable juice to your meal plan. If buying a fruit/vegetable juice combo from the store, make sure to buy 100% juice.  Do not purchase juice mix cocktails, juice concentrate, or any products with added sugar.  Try making your own juice at home.  You can purchase a juicer and make a variety of combinations yourself.  Many times, vegetable juice is completely masked when mixed with sweet fruit like pineapple or apples. Like juices, smoothies are another method of getting in a few servings of vegetables.  Many vegetables, like spinach, are almost tasteless when mixed with frozen fruit and other flavorings.  Try different combinations of fruits, vegetables and mixing liquids to see if there is a combination that strikes your fancy. Vegetables that mix well with fruit smoothies include:  spinach, beets, and carrots.  These vegetables are slightly sweet and blend well with sweet fruit. Another benefit of smoothies is that you're keeping the entire fruit or vegetable whole, which means you're consuming the fiber from these foods. With any weight-loss program, it's important to eat a balanced diet.  Although you may be avoiding vegetables, consuming foods from the protein, dairy, and grain group is important to a well-balanced and healthy diet.  Choose lean protein if possible.  Items like these are considered lean protein:  poultry, lean red meat, pork, seafood, lentils/beans and eggs. Dairy foods are excellent sources of protein, calcium and Vitamin D.  These should be low-fat if possible. Choose from: low-fat milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, and cheese. 100% whole grains contain fiber and vitamins that will support your weight loss.  Choose items like these whole grains:  brown rice, quinoa, barley, 100% whole wheat pasta or millet. Vitamin and mineral supplements may be a good idea to take when you're following a diet and especially when you're following a diet with limited vegetable intake.  There are a variety of nutrients found in vegetables that will need to be replaced by other foods or supplements.  Vegetables provide high amounts of potassium, magnesium, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, and antioxidants.  Take a 100% complete multi-vitamin/multi-mineral each day. Note that supplements are not meant to fully replace foods or entire food groups in your diet.  Think of a supplement more as a "back up" then a full replacement. Even though you may not like vegetables or want to minimize them in your diet, it's important to understand they are a valuable and nutritious food group that should be included daily.  If you're having trouble finding a vegetable that you enjoy, work on finding new ones to try or different recipes that you might enjoy.  Try, try, and try again.  There may be a vegetable that you don't particularly enjoy, but haven't tried it in a while.  Give it another go.  You might be surprised your taste buds have changed. Buy a vegetable you've never tried before.  Maybe there's an exotic or interesting item you'd be willing to try.  Bring it home and prepare it to see if it's something you'd be willing to eat more regularly. Try preparing vegetables with different cooking methods.  A steamed brussels sprout might not be appetizing, but when they're roasted, they're nutty and delicious! Try vegetables that you're more willing to like.  Many vegetables are slightly sweet and don't have a strong or bitter flavor.  Consider trying:  peas, green beans, carrots, tomatoes, and bell peppers. Try to avoid putting a lot of sauce, gravy or dressings on vegetables.  Although a cheese sauce makes broccoli tasty, it's generally higher in fat, calories and sodium.  Overdoing it with sauces like these can work against your weight loss. A great option is to purchase kale or spinach, puree it until it is in small pieces, freeze it and add it to recipes. You may not enjoy a side of steamed vegetables, but there are some tricks to sneak in a few vegetables into different meals and recipes.  Puree extra vegetables in soups or sauces.  This works great for tomato sauce.  You can also add pureed carrots or butternut squash to your mac and cheese. Vegetables are also well-hidden in baked goods.  Try adding pureed vegetables to items like meatloaf or meatballs.  You can also add shredded zucchini, summer squash, or carrots to foods like muffins and cakes.
تحديد حصتك من الطعام. حساب سعراتك الحرارية. تناول حصتين أو ثلاثة حصص من الفاكهة يوميًا. صنع أو شراء عصائرك المفضلة. عمل عصير السموزي. تناول البروتين خالي الدسم والحبوب الكاملة. تناول المكملات الغذائية. تجربة أنواع جديدة من الخضراوات. إضافة الخضراوات إلى وصفاتك.