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Have you tried dragonfruit? Yum!! Great snack high in vitamin C (3x more than carrots!) and fiber and you can just scoop it out with a spoon! #dragonfruit #healthysnacks

So… I guess it is better that this is late than never! I am a week late posting this, but I have a pretty good reason why I haven’t! We were in Playa Mujeres, Mexico celebrating President’s Club for my work. It was an amazing place and the weather could not have been more perfect. Plus, there were a ton of fruits and veggies! My breakfast every morning consisted of a vegetable omelet with hearts of palm and a huge serving of fresh papaya, pineapple, honeydew, guava, peaches and pears… delicious!

The last week of the fruit and veggie challenge activities:

Weekly Goal: Eat at least 5 total servings of fruits and vegetables each day this week.

Daily Activities:

Sneak an extra serving of vegetables to a meal this week. For example, throw in some mushrooms and onions to a burger. I completed this with the turkey burgers I made with onions and mushrooms.

Check out a farmers market and/or a local produce delivery service. Nam Dae Mun Farmers Market is awesome! It is right down the street from me and has great produce. It also has a great selection of international products.

Are you storing your fruits and vegetables properly? Read this article to get some tips you might not know about!

Make sure to add fruit to your breakfast this morning. Try adding blueberries to your oatmeal. I ended up adding a side of papaya to my norm.

Make it a goal to make at least half of your plate fruits and vegetables today. You get bonus nutrients for eating from the rainbow.

Wednesday:

Egg + egg white + 1/2 cup tomatoes (1/2 veg) + 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit)

2 cups romaine (1 veg) + 1/2 cup tomatoes, baby corn and hearts of palm (1/2 veggie) + turkey burger patty

Green beans, pistachios, roasted beets and burrata salad (app. 1 veg) w/ 3 chicken wings w/ hot sauce

1 cup papaya, 1 gala apple

Veggie servings: 3

Fruit servings: 2.25

Thursday:

Coffee + yogurt and granola parfait with strawberries (1/2 fruit)

1 cup hearts of palm salad (mixed greens, hearts of palm, avocado, tomato and baby corn) w/ fried fish (1 veg)

1 cup mixed greens w/ 1/2 cup hearts of palm, 1/2 cup sauteed asparagus (1.5 veg), 1 cup mixed vegetables (zucchini, etc.) (1 veg)

1 cup mixed fruit (1 fruit)

Veggie Servings: 3.5

Fruit Servings: 1.5

Friday:

2 egg omelette w/ mushrooms, onions, spinach, tomatoes and asparagus (1 veg) w/ 1 cup fresh fruit (1 fruit), 1/2 cup hearts of palm (1/2 veg) and veggie green juice

1 cup hearts of palm salad (mixed greens, hearts of palm, avocado, tomato and baby corn) (1 veg + 1/4 fruit) + corn tortilla w/ grilled fajita beef

Chicken broth w/ veggies (1/2 veg), spaghetti w/ tomatoes (1/4 veg) and shrimp

Veggie servings: 3.75

Fruit servings: 1.25

Saturday:

2 egg omelette w/ mushrooms, onions, spinach, tomatoes and asparagus (1 veg) w/ 1 cup fresh fruit (1 fruit), 1/2 cup hearts of palm (1/2 veg) and veggie green juice

Steamed white fish w/ 1/4 cup brown rice, 1 cup hearts of palm salad (mixed greens, hearts of palm, avocado, tomato and baby corn) (1 veg + 1/4 fruit)

1 cup salad (1/2 veg), 1 cup mixed fruit (honeydew, pineapple) (1 fruit)

Veggie servings: 3

Fruit servings: 2.25

Sunday:

2 egg omelette w/ mushrooms, onions, spinach, tomatoes and asparagus (1 veg) w/ 1 cup fresh fruit (1 fruit), 1/2 cup hearts of palm (1/2 veg) and coffee

Taco salad (no shell or cheese) – lettuce (1/2 veg), probably 1 cup of diced tomatoes, guacamole, jalapenos (1 veg)

Grilled chicken wrap (lettuce, tomato, habanero sauce) (1/4 veg) w/ 1 cup celery and carrots (1 veg) w/ ranch and habanero

1 apple

Veggie servings: 4.25

Fruit servings: 2

Monday:

Coffee + coconut yogurt

Artichoke burger (1/2 veg) + wheat bun + 1 cup romaine (1/2 veg) w/ 1/2 cup tomatoes, baby corn and hearts of palm (1/2 veg)

3 oz broiled chicken breast w/ 1 cup steamed green beans (2 veg) w/ parmesan and 1/2 cup roasted yukon potatoes (1 veg)

Snacks: 1 cup papaya (1 fruit), 1 Ataulfo mango (1 fruit), 1/2 cup papaya “ice cream” (1/2 fruit)

Veggie servings: 4.5

Fruit servings: 2.5

Tuesday:

Egg + egg white + 1/2 cup tomatoes (1/2 veg) + 1/4 avocado w/ 1 cup fresh fruit (papaya and mango) (1.25 fruit)

2 cups romaine (1 veg) + 1/2 cup tomatoes, baby corn and hearts of palm (1/2 veggie) + 3 oz broiled chicken breast

3 oz boneless skinless chicken thighs w/ 1/2 cup brown rice + 1/2 cup sauteed carrots and onions (1/2 veg) w/ 1 cup romaine (1/2 veg) + 1/2 cup tomatoes, baby corn and hearts of palm (1/2 veg) w/ 2 Tbsp homemade carrot ginger dressing

Snacks: 1 Ataulfo mango (1 fruit), Silk dairy free yogurt

Veggie servings: 3.5

Fruit servings: 2.25

So, the 2nd week of the challenge did not go so well but I think I did alright overall. I ended up with 100 points for completing weeks 1, 3 and 4 and 25 bonus points for completing my weekly goals for those weeks. I earned a total of 375 points! That is a nice boost to start out our new quarter. Our wellness points start over each quarter, so I am happy!

This week flew by! I didn’t realize how many days had passed without me documenting my journey through the fruit and veggie challenge! So, this will be a bit of a long post to make up for it 🙂

The activities I completed this week were:

Meatless Monday: Went a full day without eating any meat! The point of doing this is to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables since a diet high in fruits and vegetables is better for your overall health. Research has shown that following a vegetarian diet may decrease your risk for chronic diseases and certain cancers.

Aim to get one fruit and two veggies for breakfast today. I just added some fresh fruit at breakfast.

Free Day! Glad I got one freebie for the week. I didn’t track on Saturday, so I took advantage of the free day!

Double veggies in a recipe. I doubled my spinach serving from 1/2 cup to 1 cup.

Stock up on frozen fruit. I had a lot of fruit leftover, so I cut it up and threw it in the freezer for later. I also always have Kroger’s Private Selection mixed fruit in the freezer, too. It is a great mix of mangos, pineapple, peaches, strawberries and grapes.

Monday:

1.5 cups mixed frozen fruit (1.5 fruit servings)

More crockpot BBQ plus 1 cup of broccoli (1 veggie serving) and 1/2 cup brown rice.

Grilled chicken wrap with lettuce and tomatoes (1/2 veggie serving) with celery and carrots (1 veggie serving)

1 cup papaya (1 fruit serving)

Veggie servings: 2.5

Fruit servings: 2.5

Tuesday:

1 egg + 1 egg white w/ 1/2 cup diced tomatoes and spinach (1/2 veggie serving) w/ 1/4 avocado (1/2 fruit serving)

And more crockpot BBQ over 1/4 cup brown rice with 1/2 cup steamed broccoli (1/2 veg serving) w/ 1 cup romaine (1/2 veg serving) w/ garlic lemon vinaigrette with 1/2 cup diced tomatoes, hearts of palm and onion (1/2 veg serving)

3 oz broiled turmeric chicken breast w/ 1 cup sautéed asparagus (lemon, garlic, turmeric, olive oil) (1 veg serving) and 1/2 baked sweet potato w/ lemon juice (1/2 veg serving)

1 cup papaya (1 fruit serving) and 1 cup sliced mango (1 fruit serving)

Veggie servings: 4

Fruit servings: 2.5

Wednesday:

1 egg + 1 egg white w/ 1/2 cup diced tomatoes and spinach (1/2 veggie serving) w/ 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit serving) + coffee w/ coconut creamer +  1 cup papaya (1 fruit serving)

3 oz broiled chicken breast + 1/2 baked sweet potato w/ lemon juice (1/2 veggie) + 1 cup romaine (1/2 veggie) w/ 1/2 cup diced tomatoes and hearts of palm (1/2 veggie)  w/ garlic lemon vinaigrette

1 cup grilled asparagus (1 veggie) + 1 cup frisee w/ garlic lemon vinaigrette (1/2 veggie) + 3 oz sirloin

1 cup papaya + 1 banana (2 fruits)

Veggie servings: 3.5

Fruit servings: 2.25

Thursday:

1 egg + 1 egg white w/ 1/2 cup diced tomatoes and spinach (1/2 veggie serving) w/ 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit serving)

2 cups romaine (1 veggie serving) + 1/2 cup tomatoes, onions and hearts of palm (1/2 veg) + 3 oz chicken + 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit serving)

3 oz chicken + 1 cup sauteed spinach (1 veggie serving) + 1/2 sweet potato (1/2 veggie serving)

1 apple (1 fruit serving) + 1 orange (1 fruit serving) + 1 cup mango slices (1 fruit)

Veggie servings: 3.5

Fruit servings: 3.25

Friday:

1 cup papaya (1 fruit) w/ coffee and coconut creamer

I had another salad from Taco Cantina today. Soooo good!!! Lettuce, pico de gallo, fresh corn, cilantro, jalapeños, black beans, white onions, guacamole, salsa (app. 1.5 veggie servings)

Black bean veggie burger in a lettuce wrap (1 veggie serving) + side salad w/ lemonette dressing (1 veggie serving)

1 orange (1 fruit serving)

Veggie servings: 3.5

Fruit servings: 2

Saturday: I used today as a free day 🙂

So at the end of week 2 (day 8-14), I did not meet the 3 fruits and 3 veggies each day 😦 No bonus points for the week for me… I was close, but getting 3 fruits is tough! The veggies aren’t an issue. Week 3’s goal is to vary my fruits and veggies to add in something new. I ordered my Fresh Harvest basket this week, so I will get to try purple sweet potatoes at home for the 1st time!

 

Happy Sunday! Here is an update from the past 3 days of the fruit and veggie challenge. It is my hubby’s birthday weekend, so we have been celebrating for most of it! Hope you all are having a great weekend, too 🙂

Daily Activity: Pack a snack of fruits or vegetables. I typically do this every day that I am in the office. I will bring either a cup of grapes, a banana, orange or raw veggies to snack on. I brought in fresh fruit 3 days last week.

Daily Activity: Try a new recipe or a new dish that incorporates vegetables in the sauce, soup or entree. I took my Crockpot BBQ recipe and changed it up a little bit to make it “new” again. I added a little Worcestershire, more pepper, a little ketchup and more stewed tomatoes and onions to the sauce.

Day 9:

Egg + egg white + 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit serving) + 1/2 cup diced tomatoes, onions and mushrooms (1/2 veggie serving)

Taco Cantina veggie salad: If you have not been to Taco Cantina yet, you are missing out! Their veggie salad is amazing! Lettuce, corn salsa, cabbage, pickled onions, cilantro, jalapeños, guacamole, white onions, salsa, black beans, spicy shrimp with lime juice as the dressing (app. 2 veggie servings + 1/4 fruit serving). I order the salad with a taco on the side and put the taco filling on the salad. Today I went with spicy shrimp, but the steak is also really good!

Homemade Crockpot BBQ: I love a vinegar based BBQ sauce. I made some brown rice and steamed broccoli to go with it. Delicious! 1 cup steamed broccoli (2 veggie servings) + 1/2 cup BBQ sauce (1 veggie serving)

Snacks: 1 cup grapes (1 fruit serving), 1 small apple (1 fruit serving), 1/2 cup blueberries + grapes (1/2 fruit serving), 1.5 cups avocado oil popcorn

Veggie Servings: 5.5

Fruit Servings: 3

Day 10:

Egg + egg white + 1/4 avocado (1/4 fruit serving) + 1/2 cup diced tomatoes, onions and spinach (1 veggie serving)

We had a chili cook-off for lunch on Friday. It was a fundraiser for the 2017 Ride for Myriam. We have a team of cyclists racing from Montreal to Boston this summer to raise funds for cancer research and is in memory of a former employee who lost her battle with cancer.

I am not sure exactly how many veggie servings I had, but I’ll estimate 1 veggie serving with all of the tomatoes and onions I ate 🙂

Beets and beans salad: Roasted beets, green and white beans, pistachios, burratta cheese, grilled salmon with balsamic glaze (1 veggie serving)

Snacks: 1 apple (1 fruit serving), 1 cup sliced mangoes (1 fruit serving), 1 banana (1 fruit serving)

Veggie Servings: 3

Fruit Servings: 3.25

Day 11:

1.5 cups frozen mixed fruit (1.5 fruit servings), 1 cup green grapes (1 fruit serving), 1/2 cup sliced mangoes (1/2 fruit serving)

1.5 cups hibachi vegetables (1.5 veggie servings) + 1 cup miso soup + 1 cup white rice + ginger sauce

We went out to La Parilla for my hubby’s early birthday dinner with friends. I had the veggie fajitas with black beans and rice. It had tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, spinach, corn and peppers. I probably ate about 1.5-2 cups of veggies. Plus, about 1/4 cup of guacamole and probably 1/2 cup salsa 🙂 So yummy!!

Veggie Servings: 3-3.5

Fruit Servings: 3

Happy Sunday!!