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One of the critical determinants of your quality of life is your diet. Healthy eating usually goes out the window when handling a busy schedule. It seems like too much work to carefully select foods beneficial for the body. However, experts say you can work around this and not constantly feel guilty for eating whatever is on the takeout menu. Considering that 75% of Americans claim to make healthy food choices, you can make some adjustments to your eating habits.
Make breakfast a priority
Understandably, your morning routine may involve waking up and getting ready for the day. Breakfast may be the last thing on your mind. However, one way to ensure that you adopt a healthy eating habit is to prioritize a simple breakfast. Something as simple as bananas with probiotic yogurt can do wonders for your body. Again, whipping up a smoothie with edible fiber-filled seeds is also healthy for your body.
This trick is to make breakfast as simple as possible but packed with dense nutrients. They don’t take much time to prepare. In as little as five to ten minutes, you’re good to step out of the house with a healthy but simple breakfast that provides enough fuel until lunchtime. Admittedly, it takes commitment to stick to this routine. Hopefully, you will be spurred on by knowing that busy schedules can only be maintained when you’re strong and healthy.
Dedicate your downtime to easy-to-make meals
No matter how busy your schedule is, you still have rest days. Even when those days are far apart, you can use them conveniently. Pick one or two different meals that take very little time to cook. Fortunately, there is a host of them, and you wouldn’t struggle trying out a few. For example, you can try this Mexican chicken casserole that takes less than an hour to cook. An exciting thing about easy-to-make meals is that they maintain their taste and flavor even when stored in the freezer. After reheating, you’ll be glad that you used a free moment to cook a healthy meal.
Swap highly-processed foods with healthy options at home
It is easy to slip into a cycle of consuming junk foods whenever you’re home. This is probably because you’re too busy to cook anything healthy for yourself. According to research conducted on the lives of busy people, it was discovered that they are twice as likely to keep ultra-processed foods at home. The reason is that these seem to be more accessible and have a longer shelf-life. However, ultra-processed foods are high in fats, sugars, and salt. These tend to taste better and perform the primary hunger-satiating role. Unfortunately, they don’t contain beneficial nutrients.
Therefore, to avoid falling into that cycle of eating highly processed foods, it’s beneficial to keep healthier foods at home. For example, keeping vegetables, fresh fruits, and high-fiber food options are excellent. Some of these can be prepped and used when you’re ready to cook. It saves time and likely does not affect your busy schedule. Fortunately, cooking yourself allows you to store enough for a period. This way, you wouldn’t have to constantly rely on processed foods.
