Are you hydrated?! (Am I?? You’ll have to check out the video to see.) If you feel like you need to catch up, you can check out weeks 1, 2, and 3 if you want to, or just join us here in week 4.) I’m here with your fourth tiny change this week and some healthy snack suggestions, but I want you to make sure that you keep up with your prior weeks’ changes, too!
Prefer to see a video instead of reading? Check out this week’s tip on our YouTube channel instead!
As you may already know, I named my studio Tiny Fitness because I know that the tiny changes are the ones that bring us the biggest results. If you’re tired of starting and stopping, getting “on” and “off” the wagon, plugging away on the treadmill but not seeing any results, or just not sure where to start your fitness journey, this series is for you.
I’ll be posting tips on the blog (use the box on the sidebar to subscribe via email), Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube each week for 12 more weeks. If you miss a day (or more) of work or a week (or more) of tips, just jump back in when you’re ready. You don’t have to “make up” or “catch up” on anything you’ve missed – just keep swimming along with us and we will all make it to the finish line together with some amazing results.
Week 4: Include a fruit or vegetable at every meal or snack.
It’s easier to get things done when we work on them consistently, one piece at a time…so I’m here to help you stop realizing that it’s 10pm and the only vegetable you ate today was popcorn.
(On the other hand, you might already be a pro eater, or getting enough fruits and veggies for your nutritional needs – like your 5+ servings a day that cover your necessary vitamins – so you have an easy week to sit back and gloat about your nutritional greatness.)
But I don’t have time.
Me neither! Luckily, lots of fruits and veggies can be fast, although speed and flavor don’t usually go together. But…
- Berries only require a quick rinse right before you chow down
- Citrus is already wrapped and ready to go, right from the tree
- “Baby” carrots are pretty much everywhere
- Firm frozen vegetables like peas, green beans, asparagus, and broccoli (not the four-veggie mix that you grew up eating, unless you like it) bounce back from being frozen quite nicely in a hot skillet with a little olive oil and garlic
- Apples go great with nut butter and/or cheese
- Veggie trays at the grocery store are pre-cut, pre-washed, and ready for snacking
- Boxed and canned soups are full of vegetables
- Salad is a thing
- Dried fruit, correctly portioned for your needs, makes a great snack (it just gets a bad rap because it’s so easy to eat too much at once since its nutritional value is concentrated)
- Smoothies can hide a lot of stuff – you won’t even taste a big handful of raw or steamed spinach when you blend it up with a few berries and half a banana
- Indian, Ethiopian, Lebanese, Greek, and many other cuisines handle vegetables way better than typical American meals in my opinion, so, yes, I’m telling you to order takeout
- Veggies on pizza count, especially if there’s more than one leaf of spinach
…hopefully at least one of those inspired you. (And if you’re my client, I have a dozen veggie-centric cookbooks at the studio for a reason. You don’t have to hate vegetables or eat sad boring food!)
Is this really a tiny change?
I think it’s easier to eat a fruit or veggie at every meal and snack than to strategize any other way because fruits and vegetables just become a part of every plate that you prepare. Rather than having to stress about a dinner vegetable or making sure you eat an orange every day at lunch, your fruit and veggie intake is spread out throughout the day – and if you end up eating with co-workers and missing out on your veggies one day, it’s no big deal because you’ve eaten well at your other meals and snacks that day. No giant salads at dinner required, unless you like them!
On that note, I took on a challenge from a local juice bar to eat a side salad with every meal when I was in high school, and I found out I really liked having something green and crunchy around. I know that vegetables can seem stressful – they spoil, they have to be seasoned, you might not like them as much as you like brownies (duh) – but the best way to get through this jungle is to go straight through it, mouth wide open.
That being said, these tiny changes should make you feel great, not stressed or worried. I’ll bet you’re already eating some fruits and veggies most days, so you might just need to add a handful of berries to your 4pm snack bar or make sure you put lettuce on your sandwich at lunch. When you look at what you’re eating, you might find out that you’re already eating like this, in which case I say GREAT JOB, keep it up, and I’ll see you here next week for week 5.
Always make sure to consult your health or fitness professional before modifying your fitness program, and work at a level that feels right for you. If you need to stop at any time, stop!
Need more accountability for these 16 weeks? Comment on our Facebook post for each week’s challenge and I will check in with you to make sure you’re still hanging in there!
