The Flexitarian Diet

The Flexitarian Diet

The Flexitarian Diet is a style of eating that encourages mostly plant-based foods while allowing meat and other animal products in moderation.

It’s more flexible than fully vegetarian or vegan diets.

If you’re looking to add more plant foods to your diet but don’t want to completely cut out meat, going flexitarian may be for you.

This article provides an overview of the Flexitarian Diet, its benefits, foods to eat and a one-week meal plan.

The Flexitarian Diet has no clear-cut rules or recommended numbers of calories and macronutrients. In fact, it’s more a lifestyle than a diet. It’s based on the following principles:

• Eat mostly fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains.

• Focus on protein from plants instead of animals.

• Be flexible and incorporate meat and animal products from time to time.

• Eat the least processed, most natural form of foods.

• Limit and sweets.

Due to its flexible nature and focus on what to include rather than restrict, the Flexitarian Diet is a popular choice for people looking to eat healthier.

Health Benefits Eating flexitarian may provide several health benefits. However, since there is no clear definition of this diet, it’s difficult to assess if and how researched apply to the Flexitarian Diet. Nevertheless, and vegetarian diets is still helpful in highlighting how semi-vegetarian diets may promote health. It appears to be important to eat mostly fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and other minimally processed whole foods in order to reap the health benefits of plant-based eating. Decreasing meat consumption while continuing to eat refined foods with lots of added sugar and salt will not lead to the same benefits. Heart Disease Diets rich in fiber and healthy fats are good for heart health. A study following 45,000 adults over 11 years found that vegetarians had a 32% lower risk of heart disease, compared to non-vegetarians. This is likely due to the fact that vegetarian diets are often and antioxidants that may reduce blood pressure and increase good cholesterol. A review of 32 studies on the effect of vegetarian diets on blood pressure showed that vegetarians had an average systolic blood pressure almost seven points lower than that of people who ate meat. Since these studies looked at strictly vegetarian diets, it’s hard to assess if the Flexitarian Diet would have the same effect on blood pressure and heart disease risk. However, flexitarian eating is meant to be primarily plant-based and will most likely have benefits similar to fully vegetarian diets. Weight Loss Flexitarian eating may also be good for your waistline.

This is partially because flexitarians limit high-calorie, and eat more plant foods that are naturally lower in calories.

Several studies have shown that people who follow a plant-based diet may lose more weight than those who do not.

A review of studies in more than 1,100 people total found that those who ate a vegetarian diet for 18 weeks lost 4.5 pounds (2 kg) more than those who did not.

This and other studies also show that those who follow vegan diets tend to lose the most weight, compared to vegetarians and omnivores.

Since the Flexitarian Diet is closer to a vegetarian diet than a vegan one, it may help with weight loss but possibly not as much as a vegan diet would.

Diabetes Type 2 diabetes is a global health epidemic. Eating a especially a predominantly plant-based one, may help prevent and manage this disease.

This is most likely because plant-based diets aid weight loss and contain many foods that are high in fiber and low in unhealthy fats and added sugar.

A study in over 60,000 participants found that the prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 1.5% lower in semi-vegetarians or flexitarians compared to non-vegetarians.

Additional research showed that people with type 2 diabetes who ate vegetarian diets had a 0.39% lower hemoglobin A1c (three-month average of blood sugar readings) than those with the condition who ate animal products.

Cancer Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains and legumes all have nutrients and antioxidants that may help.

Research suggests that vegetarian diets are associated with a lower overall incidence of all cancers but especially colorectal cancers.

A 7-year study on cases of colorectal cancers in 78,000 people found that semi-vegetarians were 8% less likely to get this type of cancer, compared to non-vegetarians.

Therefore, incorporating more vegetarian foods by eating flexitarian may reduce your cancer risk.

FOODS TO EAT ON THE FLEXITARIAN Flexitarians emphasize plant proteins and other whole, minimally processed plant foods while limiting animal products.

Foods to eat regularly include:

• Proteins: Soybeans, tofu, tempeh, lentils.

• Non-starchy vegetables: Greens, bell peppers, Brussels sprouts, green beans, carrots, cauliflower.

• Starchy vegetables: Winter squash, peas, corn, sweet potato.

• Fruits: Apples, oranges, berries, grapes, cherries.

• Whole grains: teff, buckwheat, farro.

• Nuts, seeds and other healthy fats: Almonds, flaxseeds, chia seeds, cashews, pistachios, peanut butter, avocados, olives, coconut.

• Plant-based milk alternatives: Unsweetened almond, coconut, hemp and soy milk.

• Herbs, spices and seasonings: Basil, oregano, mint, thyme, cumin, ginger.

• Condiments: Reduced-sodium soy sauce, salsa, mustard, nutritional yeast, ketchup without added sugar.

• Beverages: Still and sparkling water, tea, coffee.

When incorporating animal products, choose the following when possible:

• Eggs: Free-range or pasture-raised.

• Poultry: Organic, free-range or pasture-raised.

• Fish: Wild-caught.

• Meat: pasture-raised.

• Dairy: Organic from grass-fed or pastured animals.

The Flexitarian Diet not only encourages limiting meat and animal products but also limiting highly processed foods, refined grains and added sugar. Foods to minimize include:

• Processed meats: Bacon, sausage, bologna.

• Refined carbs: White bread, white rice, bagels, croissants.

• Added sugar and sweets: soda, donuts, cakes, cookies, candy.

• Fast food: Fries, burgers, chicken nuggets, milkshakes.

A Sample Flexitarian Meal Plan for One Week This one-week meal plan provides you with the ideas you need to start eating flexitarian. Monday

• Breakfast: Steel-cut oats with apples, milled flaxseed and cinnamon.

• Lunch: Salad with greens, shrimp, corn, black beans and avocado.

• Dinner: Lentil soup with whole-grain bread and a side salad.

Tuesday

• Breakfast: Whole-grain toast with avocado and poached eggs.

• Lunch: Burrito bowl with brown rice, beans and vegetables.

• Dinner: Zucchini noodles with tomato sauce and white beans.

Wednesday

• Breakfast: Coconut yogurt with bananas and walnuts.

• Lunch: Whole-grain wrap with hummus, vegetables and chickpeas.

• Dinner: Grilled salmon, baked sweet potato and green beans.

Thursday

• Breakfast: Smoothie made with unsweetened almond milk, spinach, peanut butter and frozen berries.

• Lunch: Kale Caesar salad with lentils and tomato soup.

• Dinner: Baked chicken, quinoa and roasted cauliflower.

Friday

• Breakfast: Greek yogurt with blueberries and pumpkin seeds.

• Lunch: Chard wraps with mixed veggies and peanut dipping sauce.

• Dinner: Lentil stew and a side salad.

Saturday

• Breakfast: Over-easy eggs with sauteed veggies and fruit salad.

• Lunch: Peanut butter sandwich with crushed berries on whole-grain bread.

• Dinner: Black bean burgers with avocado and sweet potato fries.

Sunday

• Breakfast: Tofu scramble with mixed veggies and spices.

• Lunch: Quinoa salad with dried cranberries, pecans and feta cheese.

• Dinner: Stuffed bell peppers with ground turkey and a side salad.

Eating a flexitarian diet is about limiting the consumption of meat and animal products while focusing on nutritious plant-based foods. Some people may choose to eat more or fewer animal products than shown in the above meal plan.

The semi-vegetarian Flexitarian Diet focuses on healthy plant proteins and other whole, minimally processed plant-based foods but encourages meat and animal products in moderation.

Eating flexitarian may aid weight loss and reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. It may even be good for the planet. However, planning your flexitarian food choices well is important to prevent nutritional deficiencies and reap the most health benefits. Source: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/flexitarian-diet-guide#bottom-line If you need help transitioning into a Flexitarian Lifestyle schedule your appointment to start your journey today!

Help Developing A Plan For Self Care

Do you want help developing a self care plan that works for your own busy schedule? Do you want accountability implementing a self care plan? If you or someone you love is struggling to maintain optimal mental and emotional health, consider reaching out to Spiced Life Conversation Art Wellness Studio and Botanica. We are a Metro Atlanta, Conyers Georgia area. We are a coaching and counseling practice with empathetic, skilled counselors and recovery coaches who can help you set goals, develop a self care routine and move forward to build a more fulfilling life. Our team would be happy to work with you either just for a couple of sessions to develop and implement a Self Care plan or longer term to work toward overall better mental health within our membership site or other programs.

About The Author:

Dr. Nikki LeToya White MSEd-TL, Ph.D. RHN is the founder, director and a full time board certified trauma-informed nutritionist, folk herbalist, and wellness consultant at Spiced Life Conversation Art Wellness Studio and Botanica. She created Spiced Life Conversation, LLC

Art Wellness Studio and Botanica to provide the Metro Atlanta area with a counseling and coaching services where clients are carefully matched with the right program for healing abandonment and childhood emotional neglect trauma that cause codependency, emotional eating, financial stress, and imposter syndrome as it relates to fear of success and being abandon. We help you begin your emotional healing journey with ease. Recently, we have expanded to include online membership site so we now provide support to people living all over the world. All of our recovery coaches provide at least one evidence based treatment to assist in your recovery. Dr. White is a big proponent of self care and helping people live a fulfilling life! She has been in full remission with both codependency and emotional binge eating disorder since 2016. In live a life in recovery from sugar addiction. Loving her low sugar balance lifestyle.