All too often we find ourselves in an endless loop; pressed for time and eating processed foods because they’re fast. We dream of getting it together enough to eat healthier. But who has the time? Trading unhealthy eating habits for healthier options is not complicated when you start with these 3 simple steps; be realistic, reacquaint yourself with your grocery store and preparation.
The first step is being realistic. A part of that is keeping it simple and not tackling too much in the beginning. Don’t worry about going organic or wonder if you should get caught up in this Kale craze. Right now focus on adding more fruits and vegetables into your food rotation, buying exclusively non processed meats and trying new whole grains, like Quinoa.
It is not realistic to turn your whole food world and budget upside down and expect these changes to stick. Part of being realistic is understanding that true change takes time. It also means knowing what you will or will not eat. You can force yourself to eat pounds of broccoli. But if you don’t like broccoli this is not going to last long. You must be realistic about what you will eat and build on those foods.
Step one is now complete. You’ve decided to snack on nuts instead of potato chips and you’ve rekindled your love of Brussels sprouts. Now is the time to explore cookbooks and the internet to gather more healthy food ideas. Find vegetables that look appealing, in all colors and sizes, variety is the key here.
The second step in this process is getting reacquainted with your favorite grocery store. Now comes the fun part, SHOPPING! Make sure you stick to your budget, if funds allow for a limited amount of healthy meals don’t worry, better a few than none. It is all about progress right now, not perfection.
The main rule on this shopping trip; you are not allowed to stroll down any of the aisles. You are only allowed to buy items around the perimeter of the store, for example; the produce, dairy and meat sections. All the boxed, bagged and processed stuff we are trying to avoid are usually sold on those aisles. Bonding with the perimeter of the store is the theme for this trip.
By now you’ve figured out a few meals you want to make, snuck down an aisle to get some whole grain pasta or brown rice and didn’t forget the whole grain bread. Maybe you realized fresh vegetables aren’t going to work for your home, so you decided if you can’t go fresh then go frozen. Did you pick a leaner meat? Get any fish? There’s no boxed, bagged or canned food in your buggy, right? Good for you, be proud, this is a huge step.
It’s time for step 3, prepping for the upcoming week. Are you done schlepping all that yummy food inside yet? Good, grab some freezer baggies and portion the meat into your normal meal sizes. Now throw it in the fridge or freezer, whichever you feel is best for the foods safety. Food poisoning isn’t fun, so safety is mandatory. Make sure to wipe down the counters when done, raw meat juice goes rancid quick.
Take this time to chop, dice or cut up your vegetables in preparation for the coming week’s meals. Go ahead, put them in the freezer bags and pop them in the fridge. Cutting up everything ahead of time enables you to quickly throw dinners together after a long day of work and commuting. Cooking your rice, pasta or potatoes now and portioning them out is another way to save more time during the week.
Done? Good! Now pat yourself on the back for taking your first 3 steps toward eating healthier. Now you’ll come home and speedily get vegetables and healthy meats ready for dinner instead of unhealthy processed foods. This foundation will enable you to continue building a whole new healthy food lifestyle.
As always thank you for reading and feel free to get a hold of me if you have any questions, I’m always available via e-mail or the comment section. Don’t forget to come back next week for part 2 in my series on GMOs, “The pros, the cons and the perceived dangers of GMOs on our health and environment.” In case you missed part one of the series, you can find it here.
Comments