Instead of cooking or preparing meals at home, due to lack of planning or time, busy people often buy fast food, which are usually loaded with saturated fat, sugar and non-nutrient calories.
We call this food like substances.
Lets face it, life happens and sometimes this is the option we have to take, however, doing this too many times will have long term consequences and will start to show up with disturbed sleep, low energy, mood swings, brain fog, and headaches, just to name a few symptoms.
These are just the beginning stage symptoms, eventually, your body will show up with DIS-Ease of the body from long term eating of non-nutrient dense foods.
So how do we maintain a busy career life, busy family life and still have time to eat healthy and cross off all the items on our bucket list? Well, I'm here to tell you there is a secret for eating healthy.
It's called planning! We've all heard, "If you need to get something done give it to a busy person?" Well, busy professional people know that we need to schedule in meetings and have a project manager to accomplish the steps in order to be successful.
If you want to attain health, we need to plan our health and work our plan.
So here are some tips that I have incorporated into my client teachings and my families life to accomplish healthy eating for busy people.
Schedule a block of time - Each week, (the day may change each week) take inventory of what you currently have, create a meal plan or have Inspiring Health prepare one for you.
Make your shopping list and go shopping.
When you return from the store, clean, cut and prepare single servings of fruit or veggies.
Make one or two items on the stove top and one or two in the oven and place in separate containers to freeze and / or put in the refrigerator.
This may seem like a lot, but it can be done in about 3-4 hours at a time.
This will save you lots of time during the week, where you will be just heating up your food and not having to prepare everything during the week.
My best day to do this is on a Sunday or Monday evening.
Cook Once, Eat Twice - One of the favorite things to save me time is to grill, or George Foreman up several chicken breasts.
Then prepare Salad in a jar.
Add the dressing at the bottom of a mason jar, with lots of veggies and then stuff the jar with lettuce.
Place in the refrigerator for up to 5-6 days.
Each morning you just pull out your salad for lunch to take with you.
When you do make a dinner, make sure to make enough for the following days lunch or dinner, or to freeze to eat at a later date.
Eat Real Foods - Eating God given foods provide higher nutrient value and we don't have to count calories this way.
If man altered our foods it probably has little nutrient value and will leave us with cravings and not feeling full of energy, thus not being as productive as we need to be or should be.
Use the Crock-pot - This kitchen tool is a must have for any family and busy professional.
The night before put all your ingredients in the crock-pot and leave it in the refrigerator.
overnight.
When you wake plug it in and program it for the desire time to cook.
Hopefully you have the crock-pot with a timer, and it switches to the warm setting when it's finished cooking.
Wha-la, dinner is ready when you arrive home.
I love the crock-pot to save me time.
Carry a small cooler in the car - This one has saved me in a pinch and kept me on track.
Depending on the outside temperature and what you are packing; pack your cooler daily or every couple of days with healthy foods to tie you over or fill you up.
Suggestions are, veggie sticks with hummus, or raw nut butters, fruit, organic cheese, hard boiled eggs, raw nuts, coconut water, protein powders, etc.
Protein Shakes - At the office I always had a drawer of food items that I could fall back on.
One item was to always have my shaker bottle and my protein shake.
If I need a quick meal replacement or pick me up the protein shake was fast and convenient.
You can always find water to add to your protein shake.
Choosing the right quality of shake is important.
Inspiring Health can help you with that.
Eating in Balance - Many people wait too long to eat and when they do eat they don't eat in balance.
What I mean by that, is eating a clean protein, clean healthy fat and a carb.
Carbs in my book equal veggies and fruits.
The goal is to eat 1-3 cups of veggies per meal and half that for a snack.
You will feel fuller longer with fiber and eating the balance of fat and protein.
Also, make sure you eat every 2-3 hours, smaller amounts throughout the day.
If you wait too long in between your blood sugars will drop and you won't be as productive or clear headed and will have low energy.
Hydrate with water- Many times we feel hungry when in reality we are thirsty.
Drink 16 ounces first thing in the morning when you wake and 1/2 your body weight in ounces throughout the day.
You will have more energy, better digestion, better skin and less pain when you properly hydrate with water.
Designate a glass at work or sealed bottle that you ONLY put water in it, so you always have it available.
These are just a few of the ideas that makes our lives a little simpler and more productive.
A little planning goes a long way to create health long term.
Remember, if you don't make time for wellness, you'll be forced to make time for illness.