Start today!
“Someday is not a day of the week.” (Denise Brennan-Nelson)
On Sunday I am going to do the washing. On Monday I will go to the gym. By Tuesday I will start with a healthy habit… We’ve all heard that someday never comes, but it’s just too effortless to push things back to that very vague “someday”, right? In this moment, you start to rationalize that you might do something, or might get something one day, just not today. But the reality is that it’s probably not going to happen, not today and not tomorrow. You just can’t bear the thought of it not happening. It’s hard to monitor yourself for this type of thinking. But you’ll want to do your best to eradicate it from your mind. But if it’s really important to you, set a deadline for it or you probably won’t ever end up getting the thing you want to to so badly done. My simple, but effective advice for you today is:
START TODAY!
All these “New Year resolutions”, “Monthly challenges” or “start the week right” saying don’t work unless you keep doing them regularly. Today while I am writing this is Tuesday and let’s start a new habit just now. Why not? Don’t say “because it’s Tuesday and I have missed the start of the week.” Your body doesn’t care about the day of the week, only your mind does. It is like intuitive eating. There is a reason so many health advocates are spreading the message to eat when your body craves for food and to stop when you are full – intuitively. Your body does not care if it is 8 or 9 o’clock.
Here is what I have started to change in my daily life: I am starting EVERY day (no matter what day of the week it is) with a healthy and silent breakfast (on my balcony). Without my phone, without my computer. Just me and my food. These days it’s usually a delicious smoothie bowl, granola with coconut or oat milk, banana bread with nut butter, or a simple avocado spread on bread. It makes me look forward to every day, before I head off to work and get confronted with the daily hassle, which is called life. Sounds too easy to be true?
Believe me when I tell you that there was a point in my life where it felt impossible to follow my intuition, to nourish my body and soul and do something that helps me to integrate a healthy diet in my work day. This is why I want to share some tipps and tricks that have made my life so much easier since I started to introduce them into my life.
3 tips about how to skip FAST food & prepare GOOD food as fast as you can
1. Prep your snacks.
Have your kitchen stocked with something of every craving.
You know that feeling when you crave something sweet after a meal and you know that the kiosk downstairs is still open? It is so tempting to just go down and get a bar of chocolate or ice cream in between work meetings. My advice: Try to have some alternatives somewhere on hand, e.g. some sweet granola, dates and energy balls or salted nuts or prezels when you are craving something savory. There are so many quick and simple recepies out there, so I will not spam you here. (As I am usually very lazy, I go for a simple banana with almond butter or some granola.)
2. Prep on the weekend for seamless weeknight meals.
Sure, a delivery pizza is always a comfortable and quick option, but there are healthier alternatives for us lazy people out there. Buddha bowls, for example, are simple enough to put together – if you have taken the time to prepare the ingredients beforehand. You think, all that chopping, cooking, and mixing can take serious time? Spare yourself the colorfulful, instagramable bowl agony by loading up on starches and veggies, chopping them all and storing them in the Fridge. Pre-cook some protein and grains (I love brown rice and quinoa), and make a large portion of dressing to use all week (like a creamy tahini-mustard dip or hummus). When you are hungry or about to head off to work, simply use some of your fridge-stored grains, potatoes (or whatever you cooked on the weekend), chop some veggies, sauté some protein (I use tempe or tofu), add some (canned) beans, lentils, chickpeas, etc. toss with some dressing, and viola! Assembling will take five minutes tops.
3. Turn to soups and stews.
For those among us who think that this is still too much work (and btw not every weekend will offer the time to pre-cook the Buddha bowl ingredients), here are some alternatives you can turn to. Besides being one of the healthiest comfort foods out there, soups are a great way to save time and money. Just make a large batch at the beginning of the week (or some other time). I sometimes roast up some veggies for dinner (a mix of potatoes, beets and carrots) and blend them up the next day when I don’t feel like chewing them again. When you made too much to eat at once just freeze leftovers in single-serving Tupperware, and thaw as needed. Don’t worry about getting bored—healthy soup and stew ideas are endless (and usually taste even better after re-heating them)!
You see, it is really not that hard! The most difficult thing is to get started. But remember that “someday” is not a day of the week. No matter wether it is a workout a healthy diet or another important routine, it can be a Monday, Tuesday, or whatever other day of the week. It really doesn’t matter. What matters is that you start at all!
Thank you for reading.
Xx Nila
