Eating healthy should be at the top of your priority list, regardless of how healthy you feel. The consequences of eating food that is poor in critical nutrients are significant. Your physical health will suffer, and you will be more prone to diseases like heart issues or diabetes. Your mental health will suffer too. A diet loaded with sugar will only make you feel sad and anxious in the long run.
Cooking healthy meals does not mean giving up your busy lifestyle or work if that is not what you want. With some thinking ahead, conscious shopping, and a good planner, you can eat healthy all week without spending too much time in the kitchen. The following are some of the best ways to eat healthy on the go.
1. Use a planner
A healthy living planner is a sheet or a notebook that categorizes different goals you can jot down and tick as you go along. Planning is essential if you hope to eat healthy because it is trickier to do so on a whim if you do not have healthy ingredients. In your planner, there are a few things you can jot down to make this an easy transition.
For starters, you can write a standard shopping list of your favorite and essential healthy food, so it is always there for reference. You can also write down your food goals and tick them as you go along. You may want to consume one dinner a week of fish or avoid meat altogether. You can go vegan for four of the seven days of the week. Whatever your goal, a template on your planner will help remind you to stick to your plans.
2. Cook and prep in batches
You may not have time or energy to cook every day, but it is still possible to eat healthily every day. Cooking and prepping food in batches is the way to go here. You can find many tips and tricks online to keep food from spoiling for days. For instance, if you love carrot sticks as a snack, you can chop a whole batch and keep them in water.
3. The freezer is your friend.
You cannot freeze a salad, but there are various other healthy meals that you can freeze. Pasta, grilled chicken, sauces, soups, and falafel are all great dinner ideas that you can cook in advance in batches and freeze for when you are too tired to cook.
4. Cook double-duty recipes
Use your kitchen appliances and the time you have for double-duty cooking. If you are grilling veg and chicken for dinner, why not grill a batch of squash with them so you can make soup for another day?
5. Think about what meals you need on specific days
A healthy eating planner is not a diary to impose your highest expectations but a point of reference to help you lead a healthy lifestyle. So if Thursday is your busiest day, think about what you will look forward to for dinner to make this lifestyle easier. If soup is not enough, opt for a carb-rich meal or something you know you will want after a long day.
6. Have your meal plan integrated into your calendar
These days, very few people on the planet do not have an online calendar. With a busy lifestyle, calendar apps are essential for never missing appointments, meetings, or other occasions. Your healthy lifestyle should be just as important, so why not add your meal plan to your calendar? In doing so, you will know if you need to prepare or cook after work and have more freedom to relax when you know dinner is already waiting in the freezer.
7. Order groceries online
Online shopping is one of the biggest luxuries of our generation. Shopping for groceries online is an excellent way to avoid impulse buying, stay on budget, and manage your time. Using the template on your healthy eating plan, you can follow the list and add other items when trying new recipes. Consider shopping for groceries every week on the same day and buying the items you will need for the coming week. In doing so, you will have no excuses to opt for takeout or the first thing you find in your cupboard.
8. Use leftovers for healthy lunches
Dinners are not the only time we should be going healthy. Eating a suitable lunch is essential to avoid the afternoon slump at work. Cooking in large batches allows you to use some food for lunch. Use your leftover grilled chicken to make a healthy sandwich, or use some of that large batch of quinoa to prepare a protein-loaded lunch.
Conclusion
Eating healthy does not have to be boring, but it can take time for your palate to get used to the new food, especially if you are addicted to processed food and sugary items. With some planning, perseverance, and a lot of water, you can lead a healthy lifestyle to improve your physical and mental health.
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