How to Maintain a Balanced Diet in Busy Schedule

Healthy eating might be difficult when you're busy. Maintaining healthy eating habits requires preparation and planning, but it is easier than you would think—and the benefits are well worth the effort. A nutritious diet can help you enhance your health, boost your energy and immune system, reduce stress, and safeguard your general well-being.

SHAMIMA BEGUMHEALTHFOOD

Shamima Begum

7/17/20244 min read

How to Maintain a Balanced Diet in Busy Schedule
How to Maintain a Balanced Diet in Busy Schedule

How to Maintain a Balanced Diet in Busy Schedule

Cooking three nutritious meals from scratch every day seems like a fine goal in theory, but for most of us, finding out how to eat healthy while busy does not seem possible. When your days are filled with work, kids, family, friends, and a million other obligations, you may wonder how you can find time to order takeout, let alone chop, cook, and clean up afterward.

However, eating a good diet is not only vital for your long-term health, but it may also help you stay energized and healthy in your current lifestyle.

But how exactly do you do it? Here are my top 10 suggestions for maintaining a balanced diet despite a busy lifestyle.

  1. Prepare Breakfast Ahead Of Time: Eating breakfast has been shown in studies to have various health benefits, including keeping your circadian cycle consistent. However, for many of us, mornings are the busiest times. Cooking a complete breakfast is most likely only achievable on weekends, whether you're trying to fit in a workout or have kids to care for.

  2. Meal Prep for Lunch and Dinner: Personally, I find lunch to be the toughest part of keeping a healthy diet with a busy schedule. And, especially in the city, ordering takeaway is an all-too-easy fallback. One of the most effective methods to avoid the drive-through or takeout is to prepare your meals ahead of time. Yes, it takes time to plan and prep, but putting in a few hours on Sunday will save you from having to cook the rest (or most nights) of the week.

  3. Make or Assemble Snacks For The Week: When we're busy, we tend to skip meals and snack throughout the day. And these snacks are usually not the healthiest. Rather than settling for empty calories, have some snacks prepared for the week. While it is still recommended to meal plan meals and snacks, at least having nutritious snacks on hand, you can substitute one of those for a meal if needed.

  4. Have Healthy Frozen Meals as Backup: Whether you didn't prepare enough meals, ran out of time, or simply don't want leftovers, it's always a good idea to keep a few frozen meal options on hand. Finding the "best" frozen meal option is entirely dependent on your health goals. However, in general, I recommend opting for products with a brief ingredient list that includes foods you recognize. In addition, you can look for ones that have at least 10 grams of protein (preferably 20 grams) and include some vegetables. If necessary, you can also combine one frozen meal with a bag of cooked frozen vegetables.

  5. Spend Extra For Convenience: While buying goods in their natural form saves money, it does not always save time. And when you are busy, time is money. Rotisserie chicken, pre-marinated salmon filets, veggie platters, pre-spiralized vegetarian noodles, and even pre-sliced fruit can all help you save time during the week and make healthier choices.

  6. Keep Staple Foods On Hand: A balanced meal does not have to be complicated. After all, as long as you get enough protein, fiber, and healthy fat, you're fine to go. Stir-fry, grain bowls, tacos, and pasta are all quick meal alternatives that require only a few pantry components.

  7. Invest In A Slow Cooker Or Instant Pot: As previously said, planning at least one slow cooker or instant pot meal will save you a significant amount of time during the week. You may make a large amount at once, and there is usually little prep needed.

  8. Keep An Organized List Of Recipes: I'm not sure about you, but looking for recipes might become a perilous rabbit hole. And before I knew it, I'd wasted an hour or more looking for recipes to make for the week when I should have started making my grocery list and getting ready to go shopping. Moreover, Pinterest is my favorite way to accomplish this. Simply create a few boards to organize your recipes into.

  9. Order Extra Vegetables: Even if you've followed all of these previous suggestions, there will be times when you need (or prefer) to order takeout. Ordering more vegetables is one of the most effective strategies to maintain a healthier diet. For example, if you're having Chinese or Thai food, ask for steamed vegetables on the side. If you're ordering pizza, order a family-sized salad to split.

  10. Set Reminders: Anytime you start a new habit, it can take time to get into a rhythm. To help you stay on track, I recommend adding reminders to your calendar or using phone alarms. Whether you need help remembering to stop and eat or a nighttime reminder to prepare meals for the next day, find a strategy to support yourself so you don't fall back into old dietary patterns.

Conclusion:

It is important that we feed our bodies with nutritious food for productivity and health. It allows us to offset the demands of a busier schedule. If we're not taking on enough to nourish ourselves with what's 'correct' to keep our physiological functioning going, we will start to feel low in energy, lacking attention, and our immune system weakens. It may be difficult, but try to spend as much time supporting your health as you can. After all, we have one beautiful body.

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