Hi collegiettes™! Being on summer break means a lot of soaking in the sun, which means less time for the gym in our schedules. Personally, I struggle getting back into the swing of things in the gym after being on break for so long. But another alternative is to just start eating healthier. Here are some great healthy foods to eat:
1. Apples with Peanut Butter
This is my favorite snack of all times. Everywhere I go, I go with my apple. Usually apples with caramel is a popular choice, but peanut butter has less sugar and protein. It is just simply a delicious snack and you don’t feel guilty for eating more than one of them.
2. Natural Smoothies
Get away from smoothie packets and make them your self. It is actually really easy. Take one cup of freshly cut fruit, two or three tablespoons of vanilla yogurt (depending on how thick you want the smoothie), half a cup of juice (either cranberry or orange), and add some ice. Blend it up and you have a refreshing drink and meal replacer. This is great for a quick on-the-go meal.
3. Grilled Chicken with Vegetables
As much as we all love Chipotle, sometimes we have to limit our trips to twice a week instead of three. Go to the store and buy some chicken and vegetables. Heat up two sauce pans with some olive oil. Grill some chicken in one and veggies in the other. You can add whatever spices you want to either. Get creative! After about 20 minutes on the stove you have yourself dinner.
4. Summer Sandwiches
A summer sandwich is a sandwich between two lettuce pieces instead of bread. In doing so, you save yourself from some extra carbs and calories.
5. Spinach Salad
For a nice salad, put together some tomatoes, carrots, red peppers, dried up cranberries, cucumbers, and add grilled chicken breast for some protein. With a healthy salad, people tend to ruin it by dumping ranch or honey mustard all over this salad. With such high-fat products the meal becomes ineffective. So instead, take oil and vinegar and drizzle it over the salad.
6. Yogurt with Granola
This little snack is perfect for lactose intolerants. Take fat-free yogurt and just toss some granola in there and you have combined calcium with fiber.
7. Chocolate
I know right? Chocolate is actually healthy, but it has to be dark chocolate with 70% or more of cocoa. This awesome treat is good for your arteries, and the richness helps with weight gain because it makes you feel full faster.
8. Kale
This vegetable is high in vitamins A, K, and C, and is a great source of iron, calcium and potassium. You can throw this veggie in just about anything – smoothies, salads, soups, etc. Since it doesn’t have such a strong taste, it is a good ingredient to sneak into meals.
Now you can eat healthy and go to the gym another day!