Healthy Eating Made Simple! Dinner

In my previous posts I talked about the importance of eating a healthy breakfast and lunch. The dinner meal is important for recovery after an afternoon workout. If you do not train in the afternoon/evening eating a healthy dinner is important as well. The key here is to make sure you have eaten enough for breakfast, lunch, and snacks to ensure you are not ravenous at the end of the day (ravenous = bad choices). I know some athletes who will save their calories for the end of the day and eat over half of their needed daily intake for dinner. This is not a good strategy for several reasons. The first reason being that if you are skimping earlier in the day you are not giving you body the right fuel for recovery. In addition, it might cause you to feel excessively tired during the day or suffer a mid afternoon slump. Not eating enough in the beginning of the day promotes higher body fat percentage by tricking your body into “starvation” mode during the first half of the day and then overfeeding at night. There is a term for this that I call “backloading” and it promotes fat storage by the body and muscle catabolism. The best way to eat is by eating a relatively even amount of calories during the entire day so dinner should be similar in size to lunch. This is variable depending on the time of exercise so it is best to talk to a registered dietitian (such as myself) to help with a specific meal plan that is right for you. Here are some healthy, fast and delicious ideas for dinner:

Healthy Dinner Recipes in a Snap!

1) Black bean & spinach Quesadillas

2 corn tortilla

1/2 cup black beans

2-3 tablespoons cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons low fat cream cheese

½ cup baby spinach leaves

Directions: Heat large skillet to medium heat. Spread 2 tablespoons of cream cheese on a one corn tortilla. Place the dry side of the tortilla on the skillet and pile on remaining ingredients. Top with the other corn tortilla. Cook one side until cheese is melted and tortilla is brown. Flip and cook other side of quesadilla.

Nutrition: Calories 300, Carbohydrate 40g, protein 25g, fat 8g.

2) Simple baked Tilapia

4 (4 ounce) fillets tilapia

2 teaspoons butter

1/4 teaspoon of favorite seasonings

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt, or to taste

1 lemon, sliced

1 (16 ounce) package frozen cauliflower with broccoli and red pepper

Directions: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees F). Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish.

Place the tilapia fillets in the bottom of the baking dish and dot with butter. Season with Old Bay seasoning and garlic salt. Top each one with a slice or two of lemon. Arrange the frozen mixed vegetables around the fish, and season lightly with salt and pepper.

Cover the dish and bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until vegetables are tender and fish flakes easily with a fork.

Nutrition: Calories 150, fat 3g, carb 6g protein 24g

3) Make a hearty salad

Step 1: 2-3 cups of salad greens. This can be mixed baby greens or baby salad or washed romaine lettuce

Step 2: Add additional veggies. The more non-starchy veggies the better. Ideas include tomatoes, cucumbers, sliced carrots, sliced celery or broccoli.

Step 3: Add protein. Add approximately 3-4 ounces of protein such as canned tuna, grilled chicken, beef or fish, and lean ground beef are a few examples.

Step 4: Add additional toppings. This could include ½ cup beans or nuts, and cheese Additional ideas include adding fruit such as diced apple or mandarin oranges.

Step 5: The dressing. Choose a vinaigrette made with olive oil instead of a cream dressing.

Nutrition: Calories 400, fat 15g, carbohydrate 50g, protein 40g.

4) Make a stir fry

Step 1: Choose your protein. 3 ounces Beef, chicken, fish, tofu, or pork are some ideas. Slice the meat into bite sized pieces.

Step 2: Choose you seasonings. Garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and hot pepper are some examples.

Step 2: Choose your veggies. Great veggies for stir fry include bell peppers, carrots, zucchini or summer squash, bok choy, broccoli, celery, mushrooms, green beans, bean sprouts, spinach, and onion.

Step 3: Choose optional starch: This could be 1/3 cup of brown rice or soba noodles.

Directions: Heat oil in a large skillet or stir fry pan and add garlic and ginger, stir fry for 30-60 seconds, then add protein and cook meat. Set meat aside and add veggies. Cook veggies until tender and add meat back, add soy sauce and cook another 60 seconds.

Nutrition: Calories 300, fat 5g, carbohydrate 30g, protein 30g