Skip to main content

The Diet Of Costa Ricans And How It Keeps Them Healthy

Located between Panama and Nicaragua in Central America, Costa Rica boasts a proud culinary heritage. Many scorn Costa Rica food selections for being high in saturated fats, but in actuality Costa Ricans are far more active than other cultures.
Costa Rican’s, locally called Ticos, never eat excessively. Limiting their portions is one way they stay so healthy. Also, lunch is the most important meal of their day. In fact, like many Latin nations, businesses and schools close down for a couple of hours at lunch so that employees and students can go home and have a leisurely meal with their family. This allows both a strong focus on family life, but also on slowing down a meal. In America, a typical school lunch lasts a mere twenty minutes at most and work breaks are usually an hour tops, so many must eat at their desk or machine. A Costa Rican’s lifestyle is completely different.
Costa Rica food often revolves around rice and beans, such as Gallo Pinto, a dish that translates to “Spotted Rooster”. Gallo Pinto is a dish that includes black beans at a three to two ratio to rice. Also added are onions, garlic, and salt. Meats are eaten sparingly, while beans provide a high content of fiber. Fiber can help counteract the saturated fats. Costa Rica food choices rarely include dairy or cheese.
As Costa Rica has water on both sides with the Pacific to the west and the Caribbean to the east, fresh seafood is always available. Unfortunately, the seafood is also extremely expensive as the country exports the bulk of its seafood. Chicken, pork, and beef are the more popular meats. Costa Rica food supplies use organ meat as well; so expect to find dishes involving stomach, brains, and other organs on the menu. Other staples of Costa Rica food choices include fresh vegetables such as tomatoes and a variety of beans, fruits, including plantains, and rice.
Costa Rica’s capital city, San Jose, is packed with outstanding restaurants and cafes. In San Jose, one can experience bold foods and beverages. Staple beverages such as sugarcane soaked in hot water are second only to the nation’s delicious Costa Rican coffee. Drinks mixing corn meal and milk are also common. Plantains are similar to bananas in appearance, but they cannot be eaten raw. Plantains are pounded flat, battered, and fried tender.
As one travels to other regions, the choices for Costa Rica food also decrease and become more traditional with the beans and rice dishes. Beans and rice dishes are usually served alongside a carrot and cabbage or lettuce and tomato salad. Sometimes Arroz, (fried shrimp or chicken), are found on the table instead of beans and rice. The salads are typically larger than the portion of beans and rice and that helps the Ticos to stay fit.
It is possibly to choose healthy selections of Costa Rica food. Stick to plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables and enjoy the delightful blend of culinary flavors.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LISS Cardio – 3 Tips on LISS Cardio

LISS cardio is the exercise you need to get shredded! I’m sure you all have heard of HIIT cardio: High Intensity Interval Training. Well LISS is the opposite end of the spectrum: Low Intensity Steady State. You may be asking yourself why you would want to do LISS cardio. The answer is simple! To preserve that lean muscle mass you have worked so hard to develop!! This type of cardio essentially bypasses the body using carbohydrates as fuel and instead uses fat. 1) The key to LISS cardio is to keep your heart rate between 65% and 75% of your maximum and to make sure the session last no longer than one hour. Of course you can do more than one session in a day but do not do them consecutively. 2) Examples of LISS cardio: a. Take your dog for a walk! Perfect LISS cardio for you and great cardio for your dog! It’s a win-win for both of you! b. Ride a stationary bike at 65 RPM 3) Do not eat anything before you do your cardio! I personally like to do mine right after I wake ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tomatoes and the Candida Diet

Tomatoes, once thought to be poisonous and grown only for decorative purposes, are today one of the world’s leading vegetable crops. Tomatoes have always been a part of my diet as I am huge fan of marinara sauce and salsa. Fortunately, tomatoes are permitted on the candida diet which I currently follow. The candida diet also known the anti-candida or yeast free diet is the cornerstone of treatment for a medical condition known as candidiasis. Candidiasis is an overgrowth of yeast in the body which causes a wide variety of seemingly unrelated health problems. Research suggests that a variety of foods and ingredients can exacerbate this condition. The candida diet seeks to eliminate or greatly reduce the intake of such foods. Tomatoes seem to be pretty well tolerated by most candidiasis sufferers. I believe the use of tomatoes allow you to create a variety of tasty meals which is extremely helpful on a diet that restricts so many foods. Tomatoes are delicious both raw and cooked which is...
Post a Comment
Read more

Diet Therapy – Objectives and Treatment

Diet is called one of the most effective methods for treating any patient and even for any healthy person. A variety of alternative diets are offered for treating cancer, cardiovascular disease, and food allergies. Basically most of the diets focus on eating fresher and freshly prepared vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes. Allergy to food has become a major area of research. Diet has been strongly implicated in many forms of arthritis. Food can cause arthritis and it can also help in the cure. Many of these special diets originated from the observation that RA is not found in societies that eat a more ‘primitive’ diet. Computer Home therapy has made the PC into an excellent tool for therapy. This diet therapy program uses light and sound which means visual stimulation through the use of pictures, colors, and live imagery. These techniques have been researched over the past ten years in Israel. Objective of diet therapy To adjust the diet to the body’s ability to use certain fo...
Post a Comment
Read more