What’s in Your Fridge?: Top 10 Fit Foods for This Female
Thursday, February 21st, 2013
7 commentsWhen my now boyfriend first visited my place, he asked if he could look in my fridge. This was like his second question after his first visit to my place. I thought this was a little odd, but I just went with it. Heck, as you know, I’d seen WAY more odd!
He opened the fridge and simply stated, “Oh, it’s like a normal fridge, just healthier.” I started laughing and just nodded my head. What did he expect to find? I later asked him. He said he had no idea, he just really wanted to know what was in a nutritionist’s fridge.
So, what is in my fridge? Now, I’m not going to go through every single food I have in my kitchen–who cares about that! But, I am going to share with you the foods I always have on-hand. Consider them my healthy kitchen backbone. They’re surely nothing fancy–but they’re whole healthy filling foods that help me feel full, fit, and energized.
My Top 10 Fit Foods
- Eggs: One of my favorite snacks is a hardboiled egg with a dash of salt and pepper and a piece of fruit, like an apple, orange or banana. So filling and so satisfying. An egg provides the perfect protein punch (about 6.5 grams) for only 80 calories. Plus, loads of nutrition, such as choline and the antioxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin. I love a hardboiled egg and banana after a good sweaty workout.
- Bananas: I’ll pair this portable-friendly fruit with a protein food, like a light string cheese, hardboiled egg, Greek yogurt or turkey as a snack or simply cut it up and heat it up in oatmeal! The banana and oatmeal thing is totally new to me, as of like 3 weeks ago. But, I must say that I love it! 1/2 cup old fashioned oats + 1 banana + cinnamon + dollop of Greek yogurt or natural peanut butter and you’ve got some serious yum factors going on.
- Whole-grain bread: I love love love Alvarado St Bakery Essential Flax Seed Bread at only 100 calories per two slices or in fact, I love any of their products. I’m also a huge fan of Ezekiel bread. When I’m looking for bread, I’m looking for a bread that has whole grains as the 1st ingredient, is less than or about 100 calories per slice and has at least 2.5-3 grams of fiber per slice. I use my bread for sandwiches. You’ve got that right! I eat sandwiches! And do almost every day for lunch! Bread + 3 ounces turkey (about 4-5 slices turkey) + spicy mustard + a dollop of guac + lettuce/tomato/cucumber = awesome, satisfying and waist friendly (less than 400 calories).
- Natural peanut butter: What can I say? It’s simply wonderful and wallet friendly! Nuts, salt … and that’s about it. I’ll have a tablespoon for a snack or on toast with banana or apple slices for breakfast, or as a heartier snack. And yes, I do measure it, for the most part. It’s about 100 calories per tablespoon and if ya start spooning straight-up (which I’m surely not saying I’ve never done), the peanut butter can start making your bootay a lil’ extra buttery
- Grapes: Some girls spend extra dough on fancy shoes or cocktails … I spend mine on grapes. I have an obsession. It’s super hard for me to walk into a grocery store and NOT buy grapes–even if $6.99 a pound … or more. I just love them. So, 90% of the time, you’ll see grapes–both kinds, red and green (I don’t discriminate), –in my fridge. They’re perfect frozen for a sweet dessert or just as a simple pick-me-up. As a snack, I’ll eat a handful with a tablespoon of nut butter or a few almonds or mix-in with some plain Greek yogurt. Oh, the possibilities!
- Turkey: You’ll always find organic nitrate-free turkey slices in my fridge. Perfect for my sandwiches or as a quick snack with a piece of fruit. Or, sometimes as a snack, I top 2-3 slices with a couple tablespoons of hummus and/or guac and heat it up. Place it on a slice of bread and add more toppings and you’ve got an open-faced sandwich too!
- Oatmeal: A huge canister of Quaker Old Fashioned Oats sits in my kitchen–forever and always. Who knows when the mood will strike for oats? And, I choose these because I like the texture better than quick one-minute oats, and I’m way too impatient for steel-cut oats.
- Mushrooms: Shitake, button, oyster, crimini, enoki, Portobello, white mushrooms–I mean so many possibilities! I so adore these lil’ buttons of love. Research has shown that these guys help boost your immune system; can increase your intake of Vitamin D, if they were exposed to the sun; provide antioxidants, helping fight inflammation; and they’re a good source of B Vitamins, which help you stay more energized. And, at 20 calories per cup–I’ll take ‘em. Nutrition and calories aside, I really just love them because they’re delicious! Sauteed mushrooms as a side, roasted portobellos for a snack, shiitake mushrooms in an egg-white veggie omelet … start thinking!
- Baby tomatoes: I roast them, saute them for a pasta sauce, or use them in a stir-fry with other veggies to bring out the flavor. Or, after sauteing in light olive oil, I use them as a healthy topper to lean proteins, like fish, turkey, or chicken with a little parmesan cheese to make for a heartier dish. They’re the perfect flavor booster to any meal! And when you cook them, the super antioxidant lycopene is better absorbed by your body. Nice.
- Non-fat plain Greek yogurt: The perfect breakfast or snack food–high protein (approximately 20 grams per cup), low sugar, but more importantly, no added sugar, and only about 120 calories per cup. I also use it as a mix-in for salads, in place of mayo, such as tuna, chicken, or egg salad. My favorite way to dish it up is simple though–1/2 cup yogurt topped with a 1-2 tablespoons slivered almonds and 1/2-1 cup berries, depending on how hungry I am! Easy, simple, whole.
BONUS: Seasonal fruit and veggies and lean proteins. These aren’t single items, so they didn’t make the list! But they’re essential to my lifestyle. In terms of produce, I always have what’s in season. I try to make sure I have at least one serving of fruit and/or a veggie each time I eat. I also like to have lean proteins, like veggie burgers, extra lean ground turkey, pork tenderloin, fish, shrimp, tofu, or bison on hand to help me feel full and satisfied.
PS this isn’t a food, but make sure you drink lots of water! Us healthy active gals, need at least 2 liters per day or enough so that what you see in the bowel is clear or almost clear. I guzzle about 3-4 liters a day to stay hydrated, energized, and to keep up with my activity!
Great list! All generally in my kitchen too, though I’d like to keep more mushrooms on hand (and maybe a little less peanut butter – too dangerous!). Bananas and yogurt are my go-to.
Glad to hear we like the same foods! And, yes–that pb can be dangerous!;) Thanks for reading!
AFter taking your Slim in 4 class at RH, excited to see I have 9 out of 10 items in my fridge too! Just need to add the mushrooms to make a perfect 10. Thanks for the encouragement
Aw!! Thanks Kim! So happy to hear it and that you’re doing so well:) Keep up the amazing work!
Love this list! I like the simplicity. I also loved the personal story of your boyfriend. Too funny! Thanks for sharing
All delicious foods. Except the yogurt, I’ve always hated yogurt haha. But I have all of them in my fridge and they taste amazing. Healthy too. Mm.
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