Too Busy To Cook Regularly? 6 Ways To Eat Healthier

Everyone is busy.

Work, home chores, children, exercise, and social life.

Then there’s meal planning, grocery shopping, and cooking.

It all can get too much.

When life gets busy, nutrition is usually what suffers first.

Somehow healthy eating becomes less important, so we reach for whatever is most convenient.

If you have been feeling sluggish and don’t want fast food to become part of your life, then read on.

The advice below will help you nurture your body and eat a balanced diet.

Don’t skip breakfast (it’s fast to make too)

A lot of people skip breakfast because coffee gives plenty of energy, or because they think it takes too much time.

In reality, breakfast is super fast to make. Anyone can cook these meals:

• Boil porridge oats in water or milk (takes 10 minutes only)
• Have raw porridge oats with yogurt and fruit (takes 3 minutes)
• Fry eggs, add beans and bread (takes 5 minutes)

There are no special culinary skills or much time needed to prepare a quick nutritious breakfast.

Try high-quality food supplement

Food supplements shouldn’t substitute real meals, but they can be occasionally handy.

There are times when you are highly focused on your work and have no time to think about food.

Instead of reaching for something nasty, turn to something that nourishes your body and provides with adequate amounts of essential nutrients.

The market is currently packed with different options, more or less beneficial. One of the products that have gained a lot of attention recently is the Patriot Power Greens supplement.

If you’re not familiar with it, you can browse this page to discover the Patriot Power Greens health benefits. Experts claim that Patriot Power aids in fighting inflammation and boosts energy.

Use a reminder to alert you to eat

Don’t leave too many hours between meals as it increases blood sugar levels and causes unnecessary cravings. 

If you are one of those people who “forgets” to eat, then use reminders on your phone.

It’s great knowing that you can keep busy without skipping a snack/meal.

Chose a healthier option/food substitutes

The typical situations when you can pick a healthier option include:

✔ If you’re going to the local café, choose veggie frittata instead of cake or croissant

✔ If you are at a bakery, buy a smaller sourdough bread as opposed to white bread. Sourdough bread contains higher levels of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants than other bread. It also contains lower levels of phytate and therefore allows your body to absorb the nutrients easier.

✔ If you’re at the petrol station, buy a protein-rich snack like a chicken sandwich, chicken salad, or nuts instead of a chocolate bar.

✔ Replace granola with nuts. While granola may seem like an innocent yogurt topper, it’s almost always loaded with added sugar.

✔ Replace mayo with hummus

✔ Swap fries for a side salad

✔  Swap fruit drinks for whole fruits. Whole fruit has more fiber (a nutrient that can lower heart disease risk and help control weight) and fewer calories than the juice that’s squeezed from it, making it the smarter pick.

✔ Ditch sour cream for greek yogurt. It will save you calories and fat and add some additional protein to your plate.

✔ Replace ice cream with frozen banana blend. To make it, simply add two frozen bananas to a blender with a tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder and blend until you reach that creamy consistency of soft-serve ice cream.

✔  Ditch milk chocolate for dark chocolate

✔  Eat brown rice instead of white rice. Brown rice has more fiber and nutrients than white rice. The fiber also makes it more filling.

✔  Drink sparkling water, green tea, or kombucha instead of soda or juices

Meal plan ahead and shop for the whole week

Think of 1-3 meals you want to make from scratch and buy ingredients for them all at once. 

Bulk buying will save you time and effort and it usually ends up cheaper too as you will not be tempted to buy convenience food.

If you create a shopping list to stick to, you will more likely to buy healthy food.

Besides fruits and veggies, you can also buy lean protein and dairy products.

So next time you go shopping, bring your shopping list with you to avoid forgetting to buy certain anything. 

Eat whole foods

Whole foods are foods that don’t come in packaging. Whole foods are fresh fruit, vegetable, whole grains, and lean meat.

Eating whole foods helps to regulate your appetite because they are more filling than processed foods.

Processed foods are tempting because they’re tasty and easy to make.

Sadly they’re often high in unhealthy ingredients like saturated fats, added sugars, and sodium.

They can also be low in important nutrients like fiber, protein, and vitamins.

The bottom line

It takes small modifications in your daily routine to lead a healthier lifestyle.

Making healthy swaps for everyday foods and beverages can also be simple and delicious.