4 Ways Busy People Save Time Eating Healthy
One of the most common obstacles I hear from busy individuals is that they don’t have time for eating healthy. As a registered dietitian, I work with busy clients in my one-on-one practice all the time, so today I’m sharing 4 Ways Busy People Save Time Eating Healthy.
There are a two common myths I repeatedly hear from clients in my private practice, from members in my Facebook group, and from members of my online community on Instagram.
Two common healthy eating myths:
- Healthy eating is too expensive.
- Healthy eating is too time consuming.
I’m here to tell you that NEITHER is actually true.
Today we’re going to focus on the latter – “Healthy eating is too time consuming.”
I truly don’t believe that healthy eating has to take over your life. You don’t have to slave away in the kitchen for hours meal prepping. You don’t need to make an entire afternoon out of food shopping and reading nutrition facts labels. And you certainly don’t have to make everything you eat from scratch to be healthy.
Instead, focus on these 4 ways busy people save time eating healthy:
1 . Busy people order groceries online.
If you’re not ordering groceries online, you’re spending extra time traveling to the store, perusing the aisles of the store, waiting on line, forgetting an item and going back through the maze of the store to find it, and then finally checking out, transferring the bundles to your car, and traveling home.
If you have kids, add in wrestling kids throughout the entire process.
Food shopping happens to be a hobby of mine, BUT it’s a time suck.
What to do instead: ORDER GROCERIES ONLINE.
Some of my favorite online groceries include:
- Amazon Prime Now (from Whole Foods)
- FreshDirect (the best customer service)
- PeaPod
- Local grocer deliveries
Not only does ordering groceries online save you time, but it:
- Helps you plan better – you have to think ahead to what you want to make for dinner to have the right ingredients on hand
- Eliminates impulse purchases
- Saves money (as a result of less impulse purchases and better planning)
- Reduces stress
- Allows you to take your time (counterintuitive, but saves time in the long-run)
Have I convinced you yet?
2. Busy people time block planning
Prior planning prevents poor performance.
Read it and internalize it!
Planning is how busy people save time eating healthy.
By setting aside 10-15 minutes to plan each week, you’ll be more organized when you place your online grocery order and you’ll feel confident that you have healthy meals in your future.
Seriously, it only takes 10-15 minutes to make a list of meals you want to eat the following week.
Here’s a sample schedule:
Friday: Make a list of meals for the following week and place online grocery order (15-30 minutes total)
Saturday or Sunday: Groceries delivered. Spend 30 minutes to one hour on mix and match meal prep (see below)
Monday- Friday: Spend less than 20 minutes preparing dinner and leftovers for lunch each day.
By spending 1-2 hours TOTAL planning and prepping, you’ll set yourself up for success when you’re extra busy throughout the week.
3. Busy people use a mix and match meal prep method.
After ordering groceries, as part of the time block of planning, busy people use my proven, tried and true mix and match meal prep method.
As I mentioned previously, you only need 30 minutes to one hour to mix and match meal prep.
Take some time over the weekend to prepare components of meals. I’m not talking about making 2 full meals and portioning them out for the week (that’s boring). Instead, prepare various components of meals that you can mix and match throughout the week.
I created a Mix & Match Meal Prep Guide to help you get started with proteins.
This guide includes 5 proteins prepared simply:
- Lentils
- Black beans
- Salmon
- Ground meat/chicken/turkey
- Chicken breasts
Then for each protein, I shared 3 different 20-minute meals you can make with the prepared protein. So if you prepare 1-2 proteins over the weekend, dinner can be on the table in 20 minutes or less every night throughout the week.
If healthy eating is a priority for you, you can find 20 minutes each night!
You can do the same with starches/carbohydrates as well. For example, roast sweet potatoes and prepare a batch of quinoa. Then use them for different meals throughout the week, like a buddha bowl, stir fry, or burrito bowl.
4. Busy people have a well-stocked pantry.
Instead of getting takeout or delivery when you’re in a pinch to make dinner, you can craft a quick, nutritious, and delicious meal if you have a well-stocked pantry, refrigerator, and freezer.
Here’s a personal example from the other night…
On Thursdays I’m a stay at home mom with my 7-month old son. If I didn’t prioritize food prep over the weekend, I typically prepare dinner during his nap time. We were just back from traveling over the holidays so I didn’t meal prep this week, and guess what – nap time dinner prep didn’t happen either on this Thursday. After bedtime and doing my “chores” (washing bottles, picking up toys, making our apartment look semi-decent), I was absolutely exhausted. The last thing I wanted to do was slave away in the kitchen, but I knew I’d FEEL better if I prepared a home-cooked meal for my husband and me. Groceries were sparse by Thursday, so thank goodness I had pantry staples!
I used mostly pantry-staples to craft a quick, well-balanced, nutritious meal:
- Lentil pasta
- Canned artichokes (I order on Thrive Market for the best prices)
- Canned tomatoes (I order on Thrive Market for the best prices)
- Frozen sliced peppers
- Olive oil
- Spices (some of my favorites in my Amazon shop)
So what do you think about these 4 ways busy people save time eating healthy?
With a little prior preparation and foresight, healthy eating is doable, fun, and easy!
Questions? I’d love to hear from you!
XO