Healthy Natural Meal Replacement Ideas

Make your food palette colorful to keep you interested in eating natural choices.

Trying to lose weight can seem like a losing battle. Replacing some daily food choices with healthier natural options will help you lose weight. This also helps in establishing a healthier lifestyle which is required to keep the weight off and feel good. You don't have to eat out of a frozen box to do this. There are healthy, preservative-free and natural ways of replacing meals. The main idea is to replace fats, empty carbohydrates like starches, and sugars with alternatives that are more beneficial for the body.

Smoothies

Smoothies are a healthy way to replace meals, get your nutrients from natural sources and eat something that still tastes good. Make your own smoothies in a blender. Commercial smoothies are often loaded with sugars, hydrogenated oils and artificial flavors. Use plain yogurt to avoid the artificial ingredients and extra sugars in the flavored yogurts. Add fresh fruits, greens like kale and spinach, and natural fruit juices. Other additives that are natural and beneficial include nutrient powders, nut butters, nut and soy milks, water and ice.

Salads

Instead of eating a meal with high carbohydrates, get your nutrients in a low calorie green salad. Vegetables like spinach, carrots, cucumber and broccoli are protein rich foods that are low in carbohydrates and go well in a salad. For some natural sugar, make a salad from fresh fruits. To prevent browning, sprinkle lemon or other type of citrus juice over the fruits. Green salads are perfect meals to top with nuts, beans, legumes and dried fruits.

Replacing High Carbohydrate Dishes

Replace high carbohydrate dishes with natural substitutes. Mashed potatoes, for example, is a traditional dish that is high in starch and carbohydrates. Replace this dish with mashed cauliflower to reduce the amount of starch and still maintain texture and good flavor. Replace white breads, which are barren of nutrients and packed full of preservatives and sugars, with whole wheat breads. The carbohydrates you get from whole wheat will provide your body with nutrients and prevent you from overeating. This rule is the same for cereal. Avoid cereals made with bleached white flour and added sugar. Eat whole grains.

Replacing Meat

Red meat is a high source of sodium and fat. According to a Mayo Clinic article, Americans who eat more red meat have the highest death rate from all causes. Planet Green says that eating meat is an inefficient way to get the same nutrients that you would get from eating the plants cows eat. You're just eating them along with the waste product and fat of the animal. Replace meat with protein rich, natural foods that are low in sodium and fat to aid your body in losing weight. Tofu is a soy product that is low in fat and sodium and offers as much protein as meat. Beans, whole grains, green vegetables, nuts and nut milks are other natural replacements for meat in a daily meal.

References

• Sunshine Wellness Institute: Smoothie Replacement Ideas
• Only Cookware: Healthy Meal Ideas for when You Don't have Time to Cook
• Protein Rich Foods: Fruits and Vegetables that are rich in Protien
• Mayo Clinic: Nutrition and Healthy Eating

Resources

• Slash Food: Replace Mashed Potatoes with Cauliflower
• Plant Green: How and Why to Eat Less Meat