5 Easy ways to get your daily fruits & vegetables

Add a few of these tips into your daily routine, and you'll look and feel better, plus have more steady energy throughout the day.

Snack your way to 5

Instead of snacking on a cookie or bag of chips, something that has roughly the nutritional value of an old shoe, replace it with a handful of fresh vegetables. This will also help you avoid the drop in energy that comes after eating a high-sugar snack. An average carrot may contain as few as 32 calories, celery as little as 8. If the veggies themselves are too boring, add some hummus dip for some protein or a low-fat yogurt-based dip, but skip the dollop of ranch dressing.

Add fruit to your breakfast

Adding something extra to your breakfast is another really quick and simple way to increase your fruit intake. If you have yogurt or cereal at breakfast, sprinkle a handful of fruit into the bowl. Raspberries, blackberries and blueberries taste great and they're packed with nutrients. Fresh berries can be expensive, but you can just as easily thaw a handful of frozen berries in the microwave and add them to your cereal. Adding a chopped banana will provide you with a little energy boost at the start of the day.

Combine servings

It may sound simple, and it really is! At lunch and dinner, try increasing the amount of vegetables you put on your plate. Many people place much less on their plate than the standard portion size of 80 grams of vegetables. To make sure you're getting your five a day, try to have two different types of vegetables in a meal. Forget the popular misconception that fresh vegetables are expensive. Compared to microwave meals and other processed goods, vegetables are surprisingly affordable, and frozen vegetables can go a very long way and last a very long time in your freezer without compromising their healthiness.

All varieties count

Fruits and vegetables that have been canned or frozen retain their nutrients just as well as fresh vegetables, and in some cases, even more effectively. Frozen veggies are quick to prepare, which means getting your five a day gets even easier. A selection of canned and frozen vegetables with your main course, and some canned fruit for dessert (avoid fruit that is in syrup) and you can easily consume five portions of fruits and vegetables in just one sitting.

Make them CONVENIENT

The key to choosing fruits and veggies over 'convenience' foods is to make them convenient as well! Don't leave the fruits and veggies in the refrigerator drawer when you bring them home. Instead, keep a bowl of fruit within easy reach on the kitchen counter or your desk at work so that you can grab a piece of fruit when hunger strikes. Cut the vegetables into bite sized pieces to save prep time later.

With a little planning, you'll give yourself a huge nutritional boost and inadvertently find some unexpected benefits like lower shopping bills, more energy and a slimmer waistline.