STEPS 6 - Pump up the fruit and veg

Source:  www.heraldsun.com.au

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, or perhaps even a boulder for the last few years, you would have heard the old slogan, 'eat 2 fruit and 5 veg a day'.

And yet sadly only 15% of Australian men and 13-14% Australian women actually achieve this target*.  When I ask myself why the stats are so low, I think, is it taste? Cost?  Meat and carbs portions taking greater share of the plate?  The influx of 'snacks' on the market taking away share from good old fashioned fruit?.....

Basil, spinach, zucchini, macadamia and feta pesto

Pesto is a funny thing.  Most people buy it in a jar these days, and yet at the same time it is seen as quite a 'gourmet' meal.
Maybe its the Thermomix that makes me wonder why you'd buy it in a jar, and why anyone would consider it 'gourmet'!
This dish is what I would call 'fast food'!  Perfect for those nights when you have 30 minutes to get dinner on the table.  And yet it is so so nutritious - bursting with vitamins and minerals, enhanced by minimal cooking.

STEPS 5 - Reduce added sugar

C'mon, you knew it was coming didn't you??!!
And yet for most of us this one is probably already creating anxiety.  How am I going to be able to do this?  How can I possibly live without my chocolate or ice cream fix each night after the kids go to bed, bikkie with a cuppa at the office, two sugars in a latte to kick start the day.....

OK, I want to start this conversation with my personal experience with sugar.  Because before it, I don't think I really understood or believed the power sugar has on us.  I actually do think it is an addictive substance for many of us, and its not until you make the effort to 'get off it' that you realise the hold it had over you.