One of the foremost questions on the mind of someone striving to slim down is: How do I deal with hunger? One of the best solutions to combatting hunger is… to eat your heart out!! (Music to our ears?) But when you are looking to satisfy that rumbling inside, do it with FreeVeg. Repeat after me: FreeVeg, FreeVeg, FreeVeg!! I want you to get to know and love this term….

 

FreeVeg refers to vegetables that are so low in calories, that you can eat them to your heart’s content without consuming a significant amount of calories. They are unfortunately not free to purchase (though it is totally possible to eat FreeVeg on a budget!), but they are almost free on the tab when it comes to your Calorie Rx. As an added bonus, FreeVeg will provide your body with all sorts of wonderful vitamins and minerals!
For example:
– 1 cup alfalfa sprouts: 10 cal
– 1 cup celery (raw): 19 cal
– 1 cup spinach (raw): 25 cal
– 1 cup broccoli (raw): 30 cal
The very best FreeVeg are the green, leafy type, just like the examples above. Red peppers are 46 cal per cup, so you can eat 4 times as many sprouts (volume-wise), or twice as much celery, for the same caloric intake\Most vegetables are pretty low in calories, with the big exceptions being the starchy ones: peas, corn, carrots, potatoes, yams. These big hitters are mostly carbohydrates and should be portion controlled, such as you would limit your intake of rice, pasta, or bread. (And having done research in the area of portion control, I promise you much, much more about portion control as we go on together!).FreeVeg can be consumed raw, steamed, or boiled, with as much herb & spice as you like. Remember that if you cook them using oil or sauces, or if you drizzle something on top of them, they are no longer FreeVeg, and should be portion controlled instead.So… feel free to belly up, and go for the FreeVeg! You have everything to benefit, and nothing to gain!

Dr. Sue