Search
Language
You wish to eat healthily, but you're short on time? Tips for busy individuals
Table of Contents
1. Meal planning
Careful planning of our meals can save us a significant amount of time. Ideally, we should plan at least a few days in advance to optimally organize our weekly diet. Bringing a shopping list can save us a lot of time, as we will not constantly need to buy necessary products. Meal planning can also simplify the preparation process. We can use the already prepared vegetables, meat, or grain products to prepare other dishes as well. Cooking several portions of one dish in one day can be a good solution if we have little time for cooking. Preparing larger amounts of food requires approximately the same amount of time as cooking a single portion, so using larger quantities of products can be beneficial to prepare several portions of meals. Some of the prepared meals can be stored in the refrigerator, and some can be frozen.2. Fruit preservation for smoothies and beverages
There are various types of meals that can be successfully frozen, such as soups, snacks, roasted meats, sauces, pies, and pastries, but avoid freezing fresh herbs and vegetables with high water content, as they will lose their freshness and crispness after freezing. A good solution is also to preserve fruit in containers or bags, which can serve as the basis for cocktails or smoothies. Just take the prepared mixture of frozen fruits in the evening and in the morning mix it with a portion of milk or yogurt. Fruits such as bananas, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, apples, and peaches can also be used.3. Healthy and quick snacks
Opt for swift and wholesome snacks, which might be your preferred fruit, such as an apple, orange, banana, peach, a handful of strawberries or blueberries, a serving of vegetables, like bell peppers or cucumber sliced into strips, a bunch of cherry tomatoes, as well as a portion of almonds or nuts. It's crucial, however, that these snacks are strategically planned and incorporated into our energy balance. Bear in mind that overconsumption of snacks could significantly impede achieving the anticipated results.4. Expedited salads
When our time is limited, we can consider preparing an expedited salad. We can simply use a portion of any type of salad, such as rolls, rosemary or spinach. In stores, we can find portions of salads that are already washed and ready for immediate use. Then we add a portion of raw vegetables, such as cocktail tomatoes, bell peppers or cucumber. After that, we add a protein source in the form of smoked fish, ham slices, boiled egg, cottage cheese or legumes. In case we have no time to cook legumes, we can resort to canned products such as peas or chickpeas. Finally, we pour the whole mixture with a little oil and it's ready.5. Adequate hydration
Frequently, when we are occupied, we have a tendency to consume excessive amounts of coffee and juice and sugary drinks, which replace our well-balanced meals. Therefore, we should carefully ensure that we provide our body with sufficient water. Consuming very high doses of caffeine per day can lead to dehydration of the body. Juices and drinks have a high sugar content and a high energy value. To ensure the proper level of hydration, we should primarily choose mineral water and herbal teas and lemon. We should try to limit the excessive consumption of coffee and sweetened drinks. If we do not like the taste of pure water, we can add mint, a little lemon juice, or fresh fruit to it.
