I love eating...healthily, that is. I believe that we should all educate ourselves on the foods that we are putting into our bodies everyday, considering they are our main source of energy. Various diets permit and limit us from certain types of foods, whether it be any range of vegetarianism to straight up Paleo.
What is important, no matter what diet you may follow, is that you are feeding your body the proper nutrients and amounts of each to keep your body in tip-top shape to tackle anything that life may throw at you.
This past week, I made a hearty attempt at following a vegetarian diet. I had to put extra effort into my meals to get complete proteins and proper amounts of it, so here's a menu of what I typically ate daily:
What is important, no matter what diet you may follow, is that you are feeding your body the proper nutrients and amounts of each to keep your body in tip-top shape to tackle anything that life may throw at you.
This past week, I made a hearty attempt at following a vegetarian diet. I had to put extra effort into my meals to get complete proteins and proper amounts of it, so here's a menu of what I typically ate daily:
Breakfast: I start my day off with a wholesome bowl of warm oatmeal. I cook the oats in hot water with a tbsp of chia seeds first until they are creamy and puffed up, then stir in a dash of cinnamon and a sliced banana. Topped with a drizzle of honey for sweetness, this breakfast is deliciously vegetarian!
Lunch: My mid-day meal is a simple sandwich that's easy to transport to school. I toast two pieces of multigrain bread which I then smear with hummus (which contains lots of good, vegetarian proteins!), stacking it with thick slices of vine-ripened tomatoes and a few pieces of spinach. Goat cheese would be a great addition to this sandwich, however I didn't have any in my fridge at the time!
Snack: I made some killer home-made granola bars with oats, Vega-One protein powder, flax seeds, applesauce, agave nectar, peanut butter and egg whites. There is a lot of protein in the egg whites, some healthy fats in the peanut butter, and good slow-releasing carbs in the oats. For a snack, I heat the granola bar up and top it off with a Tbsp of peanut butter for the creaminess to compliment the softness of the warm bar. So good!!!
Lunch: My mid-day meal is a simple sandwich that's easy to transport to school. I toast two pieces of multigrain bread which I then smear with hummus (which contains lots of good, vegetarian proteins!), stacking it with thick slices of vine-ripened tomatoes and a few pieces of spinach. Goat cheese would be a great addition to this sandwich, however I didn't have any in my fridge at the time!
Snack: I made some killer home-made granola bars with oats, Vega-One protein powder, flax seeds, applesauce, agave nectar, peanut butter and egg whites. There is a lot of protein in the egg whites, some healthy fats in the peanut butter, and good slow-releasing carbs in the oats. For a snack, I heat the granola bar up and top it off with a Tbsp of peanut butter for the creaminess to compliment the softness of the warm bar. So good!!!
Dinner: Although breakfast is my favourite meal of the day, dinner is a close runner-up. I am a sucker for quinoa, and as it is the only grain that actually has complete proteins in it, it was perfect for my week of vegetarianism. For my last meal of the day, I made a cold quinoa salad bursting with fresh ingredients like cherry tomatoes and kale chiffonade. These flavours are complimented with a light lime & olive oil dressing. I prepared the salad ahead so that it could refrigerate and its flavours could enhance.
As a very, very broke student, I found it relatively easy to be a full-time vegetarian. I mostly eat vegetables anyway, and as proteins can get expensive quite quickly, my wallet thanked me for the week. I tried to stay creative in the dishes that I prepared for myself, so as not to get bored too quickly. I think that most people would assume that eating veggies and fish all-day-every-day would get real old, real quick. However, with a bit of education, one can learn that the world of a vegetarian can be just as exciting as a carnivore if they know the products that they have to work with (which is thousands).