Heart Healthy foods can easily be included into your daily meals.
Keeping your Heart Healthy and how you can eat healthier is top of mind during February – American Heart Month.
We all know the basic heart healthy diet: fruits & vegetables, whole grains, lean & healthy proteins and healthy fats…but do you know how to easily incorporate these foods into your daily meals?
Today I would like to offer some ideas for how you can include heart healthy foods in your diet every day.
Fruits & Vegetables
The following fruits and vegetables are especially high in antioxidants and are very heart healthy:
– apples, bananas, blueberries, blackberries, cantaloupe, kiwifruit, oranges, pineapples, raspberries, and strawberries
– carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, red, yellow, orange and green peppers, spinach, kale
For breakfast:
– Add whole or diced fruit to Greek yogurt, oatmeal, or whole grain cereal; add them to a smoothie; eat them plain as a side
– Add chopped vegetables to your omelettes; saute and add to your breakfast sandwich, eat them in a rice/breakfast bowl
For lunch or dinner:
– Add fruits as a side to your lunch or dinner dishes or add them to salads
– Add vegetables to your sandwiches, soups, and add extra to your salads
Whole Grains
The following whole grains will help maintain a healthy heart:
– whole wheat, whole oats, brown rice, soluble & insoluble fiber
For breakfast:
– Add whole grain bread, oatmeal, or use whole wheat flour to make pancakes, waffles, or muffins
For lunch or dinner:
– Use whole wheat bread, whole wheat bread crumbs, whole grain pastas, quinoa, brown rice
Lean & Healthy Proteins
The following are good sources of heart healthy proteins:
– salmon, mackerel, trout, tuna, skinless chicken, skinless turkey, lean beef (no more than 15% fat), lean pork (avoid bacon, sausage and other high sodium items)
– meat substitutes – eggs, dried beans, peas, lentils, or tofu
For breakfast:
– Add chicken to waffle, or egg dishes, breakfast bowls, breakfast burritos
For lunch or dinner:
– Eat fish 2-3 times per week, bake, broil, or grill rather than frying, use low-sodium as a rule (no more than 1500mg per day
Heart Healthy Fats
When eaten in moderation, healthy fats fit a heart healthy diet:
– almonds, cashews, pistachios, walnuts, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, avocado, ground flax seed, olive oil
For breakfast:
– Add to oatmeal, homemade granola bars, smoothies, or smoothie bowls
For lunch or dinner:
– Use ground nuts as breading, use avocado oil for cooking
– Add nuts and seeds to side dishes, salads, soups
– Eat nuts and seeds whole as a snack
It is also important to avoid certain foods, such as, sugars, fast foods, and refined/processed foods. The best way I know to get the needed heart healthy nutrients into your diet is clean eating. I have a short program (21-Day Clean Eating Transformation) that removes the biggest obstacles for folks trying to transition to healthier eating.
So, what does this mean for you? It is never too late to begin. Start by writing a list of the heart healthy foods you love and make your meal plan around them.
Here is a complimentary 7-Day meal plan for you to try:
Eat Healthier for Your Heart