Many people today with health craziness and fitness, examine their different ideas for healthy eating. Some accept professional help, others opt for Doctors. Now we have to think: Is it really so difficult to eat healthily?
You need a good market: By 'market' I mean a place where from where you can buy fresh, seasonal, affordable, whole foods. And if you are in a small city or with a limited budget, then you forget about sophisticated food such as broccoli, red cabbage, lettuce, salmon, tuna, multigrain bed, etc.
When you can't get all this latest stuffs, It comes in your mind that you can't get healthy with local foods at all, as you are seeing guacamole recipe for your salad or multigrain sandwich. In this frustration, you will choose to have a pizza or a street-side roll, full cheese sandwich, which might be similar to all the fancy meals read or suggested to you be healthy. And the results are a problem such as overweight or underweight or other health disorders. It is only the first reason, why eating healthy is difficult and even if you cross this obstacle, there are others.
You need time for the shop: In this 21st century, our lives are in superfast mode. Some of us work for 60 hrs a week and come back home with all the tiredness, irritability, and basically with the need to sleep and rest. At that moment, healthy food shopping in the budget is nowhere in life. As most of us stay alone or both the partners working, along with a child to take care of. So time is a big hurdle too.
You need time and energy to cook: Now if you are able to buy fresh foods in your budget, you need to have time to cook all this for you or for your family. That again needs time and energy from you. Now, how you cross this hurdle?
You need cooking equipment and more than anything else you need cooking skill: It is tough to cut veggies on a plate with a butter knife or eat a curry with no salt and spice or make idli mold. And in that situation, you decide to leave healthy eating and opt for a pizza or dine out. All these hurdles after 50 to 60 hrs of weekly work will get on your nerves. Let me tell you, your feeling is absolutely normal.
Now, what next? Here are some possible solutions
Respect your struggle: Be realistic and learn from your failure. Almost every one of us knows fruits and vegetables are good, sugary foods are bad, even you know about portion control. But whatever suggestions you have received are not at all easy to maintain, you need to admit that. You need to know practice makes you perfect and you can fall in between.
Make a kitchen toolkit collection: With a smart choice of kitchen toolkit can make your work easy. A good knife, chopping board, peeler, slicer, dicer, and easy vegetable chopper.
Make a schedule for shopping and cooking: Make a smart grocery shopping list(with minimum preservatives) with a pre-planned meal for a whole week. Choose locally grown food, if you are in a small town or place an order online. If your area is covered to be delivered in supermarkets. you can even consult a qualified dietician for a healthy menu and recipes. Nowadays, it is very easy as online clinics are there. In this way, you can avoid scrambling your plan to eat healthily and save money by minimum food wastage.
Reduce your stress: Eating healthy will help you relax and you can use your resources of money, time, energy and ability properly. If you are in stress, you can't use any of it. So go for a walk, relax with music or book, go on vacation with your family and friends to manage your stress.
Simplify your cooking: You must not elaborate on your meals all the time. Think smartly and make a one-pot meal with maximum nutrition.
Ask for help or help each other: It's ok if you ask for help to eat healthily. So help your partner or mom in cooking or shopping or ask for help from a professional. As in India, t's quite easy to get a cook at your place. You can hire a cook for yourself or save money jointly with some friends.
Learn new healthy eating strategies: Healthy cooking needs more effort than you think. Search Dr. Google or learn from your mom or family or society for new recipes and customize recipes for healthy eating or you can join a cooking class for relaxation.
Eat outside once a week and eat smartly: Do you like to eat outside? Choose a day in a week and eat food outdoors at a meal. But choose less fat, less fried, less preservative, maximum nutrition options. You can opt for thin crust whole-wheat pizza with or sub wrap or sandwich with all veggies, baked or grilled filling with no extra cheese, idli with sambar, yellow dal with whole wheat, tandoori roti (no butter), grilled or baked or steamed options according to your choice. Learn about your healthy meal.
After reading all the possible solutions I am sure you will start eating healthy, learn and help others to eat healthily.
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