Love affair with fruits and veggies

Picture taken from: http://newmexicodietitian.wordpress.com/2010/09/07/fruit-and-veggies-month/

I used to think that in all of weight loss, exercise, and living healthy, diet was the biggest sacrifice. That was my own opinion since food has always been my weakness. Chocolate chip cookies, brownies, Dairy Queen, cheese, anything with lots of butter, etc. I can commit to exercise, do a regimen, stick to my goals. But a healthy diet has always been fleeting. I just couldn't break the habits, and I think that is due to a number of factors.

I didn't have anything to replace the bad foods. Now I am learning about cooking differently, replacement ingredients that can lessen sugar or fat content. But the most life-changing replacement has been my new love affair with veggies. Cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, peas, corn, asparagus, broccoli, green beans... I never knew they were so good. Plain. Not cooked, not fried, not dipped, just plain. Amazing. I never knew. But now that I do, I sometimes replace sweets with veggies. Not always, but sometimes.

And then there are fruits. Apples-skinned. My stomach never agreed with apples until I started skinning them. Though much nutrition may be found in the peel, I think it is better to eat a peel-less apple than no apple at all. Bananas. Grapes. Oranges. Strawberries. Pineapples. Pears. Peaches. Mmmmmmmmmm. Just naming them makes me want to go have a bite. Fresh. Not canned, not in juice, just fresh.

I can't wait until summer when I can go outside and pick some of these fruits and vegetables off of my own plants. I can't wait to go down to the farmer's market in my town, which should open in a few weeks.