Can I Lose Weight Without Eating Fruits and Veggies?

I know there are a lot of weight loss diets out there. Most of them recommend avoiding processed sugars and carbs and to eat more fruits and vegetables. However, what can I do when there aren’t fresh fruits and veggies available to me? Also, if I do have access to these healthy foods what can I do to make sure I get a variety of them?

This is a very pertinent question as our modern-day lifestyles have become far busier in the last decade. With the advances in technology and social media, the pace at which we operate has increased exponentially. Because of this accelerated pace it seems we are always on the go. In fact, even when we do stop for a breath we are still on the go. We email through our phones, we have business meetings through video and we even text while we are driving. There is a sense that everything needs to happen now.

This “on the fly” lifestyle has created the demand for an entire generation of packaged foods that can be eaten, like everything else, in a hurry. The problem is that these packaged foods rarely have much nutrition. So if we wish to eat healthy amounts of fruits and vegetables while always on the go we have to have a plan. This plan involves developing habits that will make it much easier to have fresh fruits and vegetables readily available in most circumstances. The following is a list of these habits and an illustration as how these habits develop into a routine that will allow you to have a variety of fruits and vegetables readily available to you in most situations.

• Buy More Fruits and Vegetables. The great thing about fruits and vegetables is that they are incredibly easy and fast to pack. In fact, most fruit has its own packaging in that it has an outer peeling. But you can’t pack it if you don’t have it. So plan one day a week to do your produce shopping. When you do this shopping have your weekly schedule in mind. This will ensure that you have plenty of fruits and vegetables to last until your next shopping trip.
• Make Tupperware Your Best Friend. Tupperware is without a doubt the most used product in my kitchen. I have just about every size and shape they come in and I use them all. If you are trying to develop the habit of taking your nutrition with you, having a convenient way to do so is invaluable.
• Find a Local Farmers Market. You mentioned variety in your question and the answer is to find your local farmers market. The produce at your local farmers market will constantly provide variety because it will generally only have produce that is in season. When you buy produce at a large grocer, much of that produce has been transported in from other areas of the country or even from other countries.
• Plan Ahead. The above habits make it much easier for you to plan ahead. But if you are well stocked with a variety of fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables along with a convenient way to pack them, the majority of your work is done. You will begin to find that there are very few situations where you can’t take your own produce. Whether running errands, taking a flight, on the golf course or on a road trip you can easily take your nutrition with you.

On a final note, it is important to recognize that there will be times when you simply cannot take fresh foods with you. That’s just the way life is at times. But if we are doing it the other 90% of the time then I think we can rest assured that we are getting plenty of fruits and vegetables in our diet.