1. Planning is key
To ensure that you eat well daily, a certain amount of planning is necessary. If you fail to plan, once hunger hits you won't worry about the healthier choice and you might end up reaching for that pisang goreng. Take time on a Sunday to think about what the week ahead looks like and jot down when you'll be able to cook something healthy and if you need to eat out, what your healthier choices would be.
2. Re-stock your pantry
A well-stocked cupboard ensures that you have the base ingredients hand to cook with. This will deter you from taking the easy way out and heading to a restaurant. Buy airtight containers and fill them up with grains, pulses, legumes, pastas, and noodles. With these on hand all you'll need are a few fresh ingredients to cook up a complete meal. Stock spices, oils, vinegars and sauces to give a delicious kick to your meals, and nuts and dried fruit are a healthy snack to have on hand.
3. The freezer is your friend
Our freezers are often underutilized, but can be a helpful tool when it comes to eating well. Carve out some time over the weekend and cook up meals you can freeze and easily defrost over the course of the week. Curries, stews, and soups do well in the freezer. Freeze baggies of diced fruit to blend with soy milk and honey for a quick smoothie. In ice cube trays, freeze pesto that can used when you cook up pasta. Add a few fresh loaves of bread to the freezer that can easily be heated up in the oven when ready to eat.
4. Shop on the outer edges of the grocery store
Have you noticed that supermarkets have their own healthy map laid out for you? On the outer edges is where all the fresh produce is stocked and in the inner shelves is where you'll find the processed foods. Try as much as possible to shop on the outer edges where there are fresh fruits and vegetables, meats and seafood, and dairy products. As long as you keep away form the shelves of sugary biscuits, savoury chips, and canned goods, you'll find that you're diet will be instantly more nutritious.
5. Prep your ingredients the minute you get home
It can be easy to just throw your store bought ingredients into the fridge and forget about them until it's time to eat. If you take a few additional steps when you reach home, you'll find yourself breaking down another barrier to nutritious eating. Wash your vegetables and fruit and portion them in the fridge. This will make them easier to use. Meat can also be separated into individual serving Ziploc bags and kept in the freezer. This will help prevent overeatinga and wastage.
6. Do away with bad fats
To prepare healthier meals, toss the oils that have low nutritional value. If you're looking to do high heat cooking opt for grape seed or coconut oil that have a high heat point; to eat raw in salads, go for extra virgin olive oil. These oils are a healthy fat to add into your diet an you won't feel so guilty consuming them.
7. Go brown
To add more fibre and nutrition into you diet, go for brown, whole grain bread, rice, noodles and pasta.
8. Bake, grill, steam and boil
When cooking, try to stay away from frying your food. Bake, grill, steam or boil instead. If you must fry, opt for pan-frying with just a touch of oil. Instead of pouring the oil into pan, you can rub some oil onto the meat, this way you don't overdo it.
9. Serve the food on a separate table
When food is within reach, it'll be easier to eat more than necessary. If you serve the meal on a separate table or in the kitchen for example, this will deter your from eating more. You'll think twice each time you have to get up to serve yourself another portion.
10. Eat on a smaller plate
Tick your brain into wanting less by eating your meal on a dessert plate rather than a large dinner plate. The more full your plate. The more full your plate appears, the more satisfied you'll be with your meal.
No comments:
Post a Comment