Month: December 2020

Best Healthy Meals You Should Try

You can try out some healthy breakfast, lunch, or dinner recipes from the list given below:

1. Simple Poached Egg with Avocado Toast

These days avocado toast has become quite popular. But if you add an egg poach to it, it goes to a new level. This completes the trifecta of nutrition: fats, carbs, and proteins. Again if you add some fresh herbs and parmesan cheese on top of it, it will taste delicious and also look quite fancy.

2. Fried Eggs with Cheddar-Garlic Grits

The Southern classy and cheesy grits will not have to be full of calories and fat. You can cook them in water rather than in milk and not add butter to it. You will, however, have to keep the cheddar. 

If you add about 2 tablespoons of cheddar, then the dish certainly starts tasting better. This also provides about 10% of the daily calcium that your body needs. For staying power, you can also add some eggs and chopped chives that provides it with the flavor of onion and garlic. This makes everything taste all the better.

3. Hot Quinoa Cereal

Quinoa is certainly a fabulous dish, however, it takes some time to cook. Some people say that this can be nuked and takes more than 10 minutes to cook in most microwaves. The quinoa flakes are, however, very similar to oats and are the source of complete protein. You can cook them quite fast. You can also cook them with dried berries in your favorite milk. Add some nuts, nut butter, fresh fruits, and seeds.

4. Easy And Quick to Prepare Chicken Burrito

You can add the leftover chicken with a quick burrito. Now you can also mix it with cheese and avocado and then finally wrap it up with tortilla and then cook it. You can also add some peppers and onions to this dish. Prepare a few of them now and preserve the extras to cook your lunch all the more fast.

5. Salmon with Some Herbed Bean Salad

Bored with the same tuna salad every day? Now you can try some creamy cannellini beans, veggies along with fresh herbs to prepare a super easy meal. Though easy to cook, this meal is also quite delicious. You can make it either on Pita or on whole-grain crackers.

6. Creamy Buffalo Chicken Along With Black Bean Quesadillas

This lunch is creamy, spicy, and has lots of flavors. Black beans will bump up the protein and fiber and the green onions will help in adding that extra zing. You can also add some Greek Yogurt to this dish.

7. Tomato Salad Added with Stuffed Avocados

The avocados are not only good for moist desserts, guacamole, and rich smoothies, you can also stuff them. You will simply have to remove the pit and then fill the center with a mixture of tomatoes, onion, and feta along with some herbs. This will be quite a filling meal and this is appropriate for serving brunch. Every lunch and breakfast recipes don’t need to take hours to prepare. Even a healthy breakfast can be cooked faster.

8. Herb And Onion Frittata

This recipe normally has liquid eggs in it, however, if you want, you can substitute it with two whole eggs. You can also add some herbs either fresh or dried that appeal to you. The herbs have different flavors and bring in a different set of health benefits. The best part about a frittata is that like pizza and mashed potatoes, it tastes good when served hot or even when served cold. You can prepare this in a higher quantity and then eat the other amount for breakfast the next day.

9. Turkey Provolone Wrap With Avocado Mayo

This is not like any other Turkey sandwich. You can smear some mayo along with a heart-healthy avocado on a tortilla and then roll it with some tomato, provolone, and lettuce. This is a recipe that is creamy, soft, and also crunchy. You can also play it around with some other fillings.

 10. Zucchini Pasta with Vegan Cashew-Basil Pesto

If you add cashews to your diet, it certainly helps in building your bones. This is because this is rich in phosphorous, energy-producing magnesium, and other minerals. This makes pesto quite creamy. You can use a food processor to prepare the sauce or use a vegetable peeler. You can also combine the two.

11. Vegetable Fried Rice

You can prepare this with the leftover brown rice or if you want, you can also prepare some rice in the micro oven. To prepare this delicious rice, all that you will have to do is to add some peas, corn, eggs and toss it with some rice vinegar and salty soy sauce. Then you can mix it with any of the other vegetables. This will be tasty for sure.

12. Spicy Cilantro Shrimp with Honey-Lime Dipping Sauce

If you have a very busy evening, then shrimps are the perfect proteins for you. This is because you will be able to cook them quite easily. You can also season it with cumin, cayenne, paprika, and cinnamon. Cinnamon adds some warmth to the dish. You can also saute this with a bit of butter. You can also toss it with some homemade honey and fresh lime juice. These will temper the heat of the shrimp.

13. Low Carb chili

If you want to have chilli and you want to have it now, you should check out this recipe. If you buy salsa from the store, it will certainly speed up things. Moreover, there is also no dicing or chopping involved. You can use either ground lean turkey or beef.  Then you can finally top it up with corn, avocado, sour cream, and fresh-squeezed lime juice.

14. BBQ Chicken Pizza

No longer will you have to order frozen pizza. This pie will be made even faster. You will have to use a whole wheat pita as the crust and then top it with barbecue sauce, mozzarella, red onion along with some pre-cooked chicken. You will have to microwave it till the time the cheese melts down completely and then have the entire thing.

Summary

Quick and healthy meals will ensure that you eat healthy even during weekdays when you are extremely busy. A healthy diet also ensures that you lose belly fat. These delicious dishes can be cooked fast. You will thus no longer have to depend on junk foods for filling up your stomach.

The Mediterranean diet has received a lot of attention in modern times. This is because this diet is quite healthy. This diet reduces the chances of heart diseases, certain cancers, depression, diabetes, etc. It improves mental as well as physical functions of the body.

What is the Mediterranean Diet?

The Mediterranean diet is the food that belongs to the countries that surround the Mediterranean sea. This diet chiefly consists of:

• The abundance of plant foods and these include vegetables, fruits, nuts, and also legumes. These should also include whole grains and locally grown olive oil. 
• You should consume Yogurt and cheese regularly in low to medium amounts.
• Poultry and fish to be consumed in low to moderate amounts.
• You can take Red meat in small amounts.
• Fresh fruits along with sweets containing added sugar and honey. But you should eat this only a few times in one week.
• Wine in low to moderate amount. This should be accompanied by meals.

Health Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet

To know about the benefits of the Mediterranean diet, you should go through the discussion given below:

1. Preventing Strokes and Heart Diseases 

When you follow a Mediterranean diet,the consumption of refined bread, red meat, processed food is limited. Moreover, you are also encouraged to take red wine instead of hard liquor.

2. Will Help You to Keep Agile

The Mediterranean diet has a lot of nutrients in it. These help in reducing the risks associated with weakening muscles. It also reduces other signs of frailty by about 70%.

3. Reduces the Risk Associated with Alzheimer’s

A Mediterranean diet might improve the levels of good cholesterol. It even helps in maintaining the blood sugar levels of individuals. The overall health of blood vessels is also improved.

4. Chances of Parkinson’s Disease is Reduced

There is a very high percentage of antioxidants present in this diet. This prevents the cells from getting damaged. Therefore, the chances of Parkinson’s disease iscertainly reduced.

5. Increasing Longevity

This diet helps in reducing the risks of death to as much as 20%. This is because this diet reduces the risk of developing heart diseases and cancer.

6. Provides You Protection Against Type 2 Diabetes

This diet is rich in fiber content. These take time to digest and prevent too much blood pressure swings. It also helps in maintaining the level of blood sugar and prevents you from gaining weight.

Foods That Should be Included as Part of the Mediterranean Diet

If you are interested to get an idea about what type of foods should be included as a part of your Mediterranean diet, you can go through the discussion below:

1. Focusing on Whole Foods

Processed foods are not traditionally a part of the Mediterranean diet. If the food is coming as a package, then make sure that you check out the list. Foods that can be included as a part of the whole diet are whole grains, nuts, fish, legumes, fruits, and olive oil.

2. Vegetables Should be Included

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes that you should have at least 7 – 10 servings of fruits and vegetables in a day. Even having 3 – 5 servings each day will lower the chances of heart diseases.

You can add small quantities of vegetables to the meals. For example, you can add spinach to the eggs, load your sandwiches with cucumber and avocado. You can also have some nut butter with an apple.

3. Eat Fish Instead of Red Meat

Fishes are rich in protein. So you should include herring, tuna, salmon, etc. as a part of your diet. These fishes contain a high amount of protein and also omega 3 fatty acids. This reduces inflammation and also improve the level of your cholesterol. Both shellfish and whitefish are very good protein sources. If you are fond of eggs, turkey, chicken, cheese, and yogurt, you can have them weekly.

4. Use Olive Oil Instead of Butter to Cook Your Food

The total amount of fat consumed is not as important as the type of fat you are consuming. This diet encourages eating poly and mono-saturated fats and also heart-healthy fats. Saturated and trans fat increases the LDL level. Therefore, you should swap butter with fats like olive oil that is good for your heart.

Mediterranean Diet Throughout the Day

If you want to include some of the best and the most delicious food into your diet, you can go through the recipes given below:

1. Breakfast

• You can have whole grain bread with toppings of fresh tomato, a little bit of virgin olive oil, and low-fat cheese slices. 
• Another alternative breakfast can include a vegetable omelette with spinach, mushrooms, and onions with crusty whole-grain bread. You should cook it in olive oil.
• You can have plain Greek yogurt topped with fresh berries and also nuts.

2. Lunch

• You can have a Greek salad and this should include tomatoes, fresh parsley, kalamata olives, and feta cheese. You can dress it with extra virgin olive oil and squeeze some lemons on it.
• Chickpea and faro salad with spring onions, red pepper, and fresh oregano can also be a good Mediterranean lunch. You should also dress it with some extra virgin olive oil and also some lemon juice.
• The third alternative for a Mediterranean lunch can be a vegetarian pizza topped with part-skim mozzarella cheese, onions, roasted broccoli, carrots, and green peppers.

3. Dinner

• Green vegetables kababs with shrimp along with a toasted quinoa salad, mixed green salad with pine nuts.
• Chicken stir-fried in olive oil with cauliflower, broccoli, yellow peppers, and asparagus along with brown rice.
• Steamed mussels along with spinach-orzo salad and minestrone.

Summary

Mediterranean diet is undoubtedly one of the most healthy diets. The best part about this diet is that you can also make it delicious. Fish, eggs, chicken, turkeys, etc. can also be a part of your diet.

If you are interested to improve your eating habits, then the Atkins diet is a wonderful way for you to do so. This diet will help you to lose weight and also make you feel amazing. If you are reading this article, then you are already one step closer to the beginning of a healthier life. But before you start with this diet, you need to know about this in detail. This article will help you understand the important details of the Atkins diet.

4 Phase Plan of the Atkins Diet

You will have to follow the Atkins diet in 4 phases:

Phase 1

This is also called the induction period. During this time you should not consume more than 20 grams of carbs each day. You need to eat foods that contain high amounts of proteins and high amounts of fats with vegetables that have a lesser amount of carbohydrates. These include leafy vegetables. This will certainly help you to kick start the weight loss program.

Phase 2

This is the balancing phase. You will have to include more nuts in your diet. You should also consume low carb vegetables and little amount of fruits.

Phase 3

When you are close to the goal weight, you need to add more carbs to the diet. This will certainly help the weight loss to slow down. This is also referred to as the fine-tuning stage.

Phase 4

This is called the maintenance stage. In this stage, you can eat as many healthy carbs as your body needs without gaining extra weight.

Some people prefer to skip the induction phase altogether. They include plenty of vegetables and fruits from the very beginning. This approach can be extremely effective. Others prefer to stay in the induction phase for an indefinite period. This is also referred to as a very low carb ketogenic diet phase.

Foods That You Need to Avoid

When you are on the Atkins diet, you should avoid the consumption of the following foods. These include:

• Sugar
• Grains
• Vegetable Oils
• Trans Fats
• Diet and low- fat foods
• High-carb vegetables.
• High Carb fruits.
• Starches.
• Legumes

Foods That You Can Eat

The foods that you can eat are:

• Meats.
• Seafood and fatty fish.
• Eggs
• Low Carb vegetables.
• Full-fat dairy.
• Healthy fats
• Nuts and seeds.

Your meals should be based on a fatty protein source along with vegetables or nuts. It should include nuts along with some healthy fats. This will help you to lose weight.

Beverages That You Can Drink

You can always include the below-mentioned beverages when you are following the Atkins diet. These include:

1. Water.
2. Green Tea
3. Coffee.

You can also drink alcohol but you should have it in small amounts. Make sure that you should drink dry wines and there should not be any added sugar included in your diet. You should also avoid drinks like beer that have a high amount of carbohydrates.

Foods That You Might Eat

There are several delicious foods available that you can eat when you are following the Atkins diet. These include heavy cream, cheese, bacon, and also dark chocolates. Most of these are considered fattening because they contain a higher amount of fat and calorie content. But when you are on a low-carb diet, then your body tends to increase its use of fat as a source of energy. It also suppresses your appetite. This also reduces the chances of weight gain and overeating.

Atkins Diet Sample Menu

Monday

Breakfast
Vegetables and Eggs fried in coconut oil.

Lunch
Chicken Salad served with olive oil and also a handful of nuts.

Dinner
Steak and Veggies

Tuesday

Breakfast
Bacon and Eggs

Lunch
Leftover chicken with veggies from the last night.

Dinner
Bunless cheeseburgers with butter and vegetables.

Wednesday

Breakfast
Veggies and Omelet fried in butter.

Lunch
Shrimp salad dipped in olive oil

Dinner
Vegetables with Ground-beef stir-fried

Thursday

Breakfast
Eggs and vegetables stir-fried in coconut oil.

Lunch
Stir fry the leftover dinner from the night before.

Dinner
Have salmon along with vegetables stir-fried in butter.

Friday

Breakfast
Eggs with Bacon

Lunch
Chicken salad dipped in olive oil and a handful of nuts.

Dinner
Meatballs along with some vegetables.

Saturday

Breakfast
Omelet and vegetables are stir-fried in butter.

Lunch
Leftover meatballs from last night.

Dinner
Vegetables along with some pork chops.

Sunday

Breakfast
Eggs with Bacon.

Lunch
The pork chops that are left from the night before.

Dinner
Grilled chicken wings along with some veggies and Salsa.

You must add enough vegetables to your diet.

Guidelines to Know Before You Start the Atkins Diet

If you follow certain guidelines while you are on Atkins diet, it will certainly help you:

1. You need to Set Goals

Before you start with the Atkins diet and set your goals, it is important for you to stay motivated. If you set goals that can be achieved, then it will help you to keep the bigger picture in mind. You will lose weight and you will get something to look forward to.

2. Know how the Atkins Diet works

If you are committing to a program that will help you to lose weight, then you need to understand how the diet works. You also know what best you can expect by working so hard. In the first phase, you primarily shift from burning carbs to burning fats. This helps you to kick start the weight loss program. The most important goal is to lessen down the amount of carbohydrate intake to as low as 20 grams.

3. Make Sure to Stay Motivated

You might want to start the Atkin’s diet with a friend or with a friend to post in one of the communities of the Atkin’s group. It is also important that you hold yourself responsible for the diet plan that you are following. This will help you to stay motivated for the entire process. Losing weight becomes a lot of fun when you are doing it with other people. There will thus be more people who will support your diet goal. They will also help you to stay focused and motivate you to get going.

4. You Need To Familiarize Yourself With What You Can and What You Cannot Eat 

Before you start the process of dieting, you will have to read through the list of the foods that are permitted in Phase I. Now you can check the recipe books and find out certain recipes that will suit your stomach. When you are excited about the food you will eat, then it will be easier for you to start the diet.

Summary

Atkins Diet will certainly help you to lose weight. Therefore, before starting this diet you should have a full proof plan. You also need to stay hydrated when you are following this diet. Keeping yourself motivated will help you to reach your goal.

The South Beach diet is quite a popular weight loss diet that was created in the year 2003. This is a diet that was named after a glamorous area in Miami. At times, this is also referred to as a popular low-carbohydrate diet. This diet has a lesser amount of carbohydrate content and a higher amount of protein and healthy fats. This is a typical eating plan, however, this is not a strict low carb diet.

There is also a ketogenic version of this diet. A ketogenic diet includes less amount of carbs. The main function of the ketogenic diet is to force the body to use fats for energy instead of proteins or carbohydrates.

The main purpose of the South Beach diet is to change the overall balance of the foods that you eat. This helps in encouraging weight loss and helps you to follow a healthy lifestyle. The South Beach diet is quite a healthy way of eating irrespective of whether you lose or do not lose weight.

Know about the Details of South Beach Diet

This is a diet that consists of a wonderful balance of complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and lean proteins. This makes it quite rich in nutrient content. This diet is rich in fiber and you can follow this diet throughout your life. The sources of food from where you can get carbohydrates include vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, and beans. The bad carbs include syrup and baked foods that are made from white flour, sugar, etc.

There are also different kinds of dietary fats available. These fats prevent you from consuming unhealthy fats. This diet encourages you to limit the consumption of unhealthy fats while you eat more foods with healthier monosaturated fats. This diet encourages you to limit the consumption of fruits and vegetables along with whole grains. 

Phases of the South Beach Diet

There is a total of three phases of the South Beach diet. If you want to know about these phases in details, you can go through the discussion below:

Phase 1

This phase continues for two weeks. This is designed in a way to eliminate the hunger cravings by eliminating the foods that have high sugar content. This also encourages eliminating carbohydrates from your diet. These include pasta, bread, rice, and fruits. You also need to eliminate fruit juice and also any other alcohol. You focus more on eating lean protein that includes skinless poultry, soy products.

During this phase, you can also have vegetables that are rich in fiber. Apart from this, you can also have foods containing healthy, unsaturated fats, and low-fat dairy. These include nuts, seeds, and avocados.

Phase 2

This is a weight loss phase that is long term. You begin this phase by adding some of the foods that you were prohibited from having during phase 1. These foods include whole-wheat pasta, fruits, vegetables, brown rice, and also whole-grain bread. You stay in this phase till the time you reach your goal weight.

Phase 3

This is a maintenance phase. In this phase, you will have to maintain a healthy diet. You can continue with the lifestyle you were maintaining in the earlier phase. Here, in this phase, you will be able to eat all kinds of foods in moderate amounts.

Menu of a South Beach Diet

You can go through the discussion below, to get an idea of your diet for the entire day.

Breakfast

You can have an omelette with smoked salmon or baked eggs with spinach and ham. You can also drink a cup of coffee or tea.

Lunch

You can include some vegetable salad with scallops or shrimp. You can also take a glass of sparkling water or ice tea.

Dinner

Your dinner may include pork or tuna along with some grilled vegetables and also salad.

Dessert

The diet also encourages you to have a good dessert. These include ricotta cheesecakes or chilled espresso custard. This can be included even in phase 1.

Snacks 

If you want to enjoy some snacks during the day, you can do so as well. You can have some Munster cheese along with turkey roll-up or roasted chickpeas.

Benefits of South Beach Diet

If you want to know about the advantages of the South Beach diet, you can go through the points mentioned below:

1. It is Simple and Convenient

You do not need to count calories or measure anything much on the South Beach diet. You can choose to eat any food.

2. This is Quite Versatile

This also has a keto-friendly version. This is to be a low carb diet. This also contains high fat and high fiber. It also reduces the intake of the carb. This turns on the enzymes that burn the body fat without achieving ketosis. Thus people can achieve the benefits of a keto diet with much fewer restrictions.

3. You Can Also Encourage Experimentation

You can also encourage experimentation in this diet. People can pay attention to the different kinds of food that affect their bodies. You can also swap the morning bagel with eggs and vegetables. This will help you to stay full for a longer period. If you remove certain foods from your diet like carbohydrates, then try to add them back. This helps you to find out exactly what is not working well.

4. It Will Stop the Food Cravings

If you eat more carbohydrates, you will start craving for them all the more. This makes a lot of people gain unnecessary weight. But if you follow the South Beach diet, then it will lower your cravings for carbohydrates. They can do this by eliminating foods that include doughnuts, white bread, and sugary cereals. These tend to get digested easily and you start feeling hungry quickly.

Summary

South Beach diet can be healthy and tasty at the same time. You need to make sure that you exclude carbohydrates from the diet and include more fibers and proteins. This will also help you to lose weight.