How many times have you said “Monday… Monday is when I’ll start eating healthy.” You’re feeling motivated and ready and it’s a brand new week! And then you get to Wednesday and you’re losing steam. Maybe Thursday you indulged a bit and Friday it all went straight down the drain! Humpf. Sorry to be a downer, but it’s all too common and its the same cycle. So let’s reevaluate.
When you get down to it, the issue is we’re making all of these huge dietary and lifestyle changes in 1 day. That’s just not realistic. Long term lifestyle changes take time and the best way to maintain these lifestyle changes is by making small, maintainable changes.
There’s no reason to change everything at once. Here’s 5 simple strategies that have proven helpful in getting the ball rolling.
1. Eat a plant-based breakfast
The first word of this is key: EAT. I talk to people every day who skip breakfast. This leaves them starving at lunch and full of hunger hormones into the evening. After a long time without food it’s nearly impossible to avoid the drive through or choose something healthy. Set yourself up for success by starting with steel cut oats, breakfast hash, fruity nut butter toast, an acai bowl or an on-the-go Howie Bar. Not to mention, if you’re trying to eat more plant-based meals this is usually the easiest one to plant-ti-fy.
2. Make a big pot of grains
Before the week begins, make a batch of whole grains for the week. This can quickly be turned into a meal by topping it with steamed veggies and peanut sauce, stuffing it into a bell pepper or adding it to a big salad. When eating a plant-based diet people often find themselves hungry because they’re eating all fruits and veggies. This usually means they’re not getting enough starches. These are our fuel!
3. Hold a chopping session
Invest 30 minutes in chopping up tons of fresh veggies – bell peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers, carrots, celery, radish. Imagine this… you get home after a long day and open the door of your fridge and the veggies are already washed and cut. How likely are you to munch on these rather than reaching for some processed, nutrient-lacking, last-forever-on-the-shelf snack? A million times more likely than if the veggies were unwashed and un-chopped.
4. Find a favorite plant-based meal
This doesn’t have to be a long-term commitment, you can pick a new favorite every month. Just always have a favorite and always have the ingredients for it on-hand. This way you will never be thrown off course if you didn’t make it to the grocery or lack the energy to try out a new recipe. In our house it’s comforting to know that we can whip up spicy black bean patties, crock pot tacos, nut butter toast and a veggie hummus wrap at a moments notice.
5. Stay junk-food free
If nothing else, keep the processed food out of the house. This makes the biggest difference for a lot of people. If it’s there you’ll eat it. If it’s not, you won’t. Don’t use the kids, the husband or the dog as an excuse. No one benefits from keeping it around.
Thank you! These strategies are enabling. #4 is the best. I’ve recently read that no one can always have willpower. Eventually we give in to it. So it’s smart to have a healthy favorite around all the time. That way we have a healthy treat to give in to. I even take a healthy favorite in my car so I’m not tempted to stop somewhere or drive through to get junk then feel bad and mad at myself for deviating from my plan. It’s amazing how my taste buds light up to this healthy food now and repulse fried, sugary and processed junk. The temptation for it is gone – and that makes me happy.