Sidney here! I'll be sharing some healthy recipes/quick and easy food prep tips over the next several weeks on here and on our Instagram. But first I wanted to just share a little about what my diet consists of and why. My philosophy is simple, I believe in eating a whole food, plant-based diet. Lots of:
Starches.
Fruits.
Veggies.
I believe that one of the keys to good health is eating as much REAL food as possible, the less processed the better! As a student-athlete, I am really busy and I have had to find ways to make healthy, good tasting meals that are quick and easy, for example, THINK FOODS LIKE:
Cold Cereal with Fruit.
Oatmeal.
Pancakes with Fruit.
(whole wheat, buckwheat, potato, etc.)
Vegetable and Bean Soups.
Potatoes.
(boiled, mashed, baked, steamed, etc.) (Sweet, Idaho, russet, Yukon gold, etc.)
Breads.
(whole grain wheat, rye, etc.)
Pastas.
(wheat, buckwheat, brown rice, etc.)
Lasagna.
(whole wheat, vegetables, tomato sauce, etc.)
Pizza.
(whole wheat, vegetables, tomato sauce, etc.)
Rice & Vegetable Dishes.
Beans, Rice, and Corn
Get Creative! Corn tortillas baked into chips!
Most grocery stores now have fresh, pre-cut veggies which make things way easier! You can just throw the veggies in a pan with some spices (I love Mrs. Dash) and cover for 5 minutes, add some canned beans and you've got a fast, tasty dish! I personally use onions (which create their own moisture) as the "oil" or a little balsamic vinegar and try to limit using oils.
P.S. My favorite pans to cook with are these white ceramic pans. My sisters and I recently started using them when our grandmother got us each a couple of them, after she starting hearing that Teflon, or regular nonstick pans, are not good for you. Now, we aren't sure how true that theory is, but we do love using our new ceramic pans! They work really well and are much prettier than regular nonstick pans too ;)
Okay, now, meat. I personally don't eat a lot of meat, mostly because I ate a lot of crazy stuff while living in Indonesia and it kind of turned me off of it, haha. However, I think meat (preferably hormone and antibiotic free/grass fed) in moderation is fine. I don't think you need to eat it everyday, but eating it in moderation is perfectly okay (in my opinion). I also generally stay away from dairy because it isn't the best thing for me as a runner. It has been said that it encourages lactic acid build up in the muscles.
I also believe that moderation in everything is key! Yes, I love veggies, but I also will eat ice cream, go out for pizza, and have midnight pancake parties with my roommates. It's all about balance and having good daily habits of eating healthy, allow for some not so healthy stuff every once and a while.
Over the next several weeks I will be posting lots of quick, healthy recipes that actually taste good on Instagram so stay tuned!