I am so excited to have my friend and colleague Jill Weisenberger, MS, RDN, CDE, FAND on my blog today to talk about her new book, which offers wonderful advice for good nutrition when you’re overworked—a problem many of us share!
Over the years, I’ve worked with thousands of people who feel that time is their enemy when it comes to healthful eating and physical activity. Lack of time and lack of energy are real hurdles to a good diet, but they are not insurmountable hurdles. This book is filled with time-saving strategies and mini nutrition and health lessons. It doesn’t matter how busy you are, there are strategies you can use to create a healthy plate.
What is the biggest stumbling block to good nutrition overworked people face?
There are many obstacles, but perhaps the most common is lack of planning. Too many people try to just wing it, but achieving a healthy diet requires thought. I have three meal planning tools in The Overworked Person’s Guide to Better Nutrition. They range from very structured to very flexible, so there’s something for just about everyone.
I want people to have a plan and a backup plan for those times when something unexpected happens. Stocking your pantry, refrigerator and freezer with foods that you can toss together for an impromptu meal is a smart strategy. This idea for a burrito is one of several ideas in the book. Another backup plan might be takeout. The key to making this fit a healthy eating style is also to pre-plan. I suggest creating a list of at two good choices for each fast food or take out restaurant you might go to. You can create this list on index cards or in your smartphone. When you’re time-crunched and find yourself in a takeout line, ignore the menu. Instead, order one of the choices on your list. All too often, the busy person loses focus and orders the first thing that comes to mind or whatever item the person in front just ordered.
What sort of advice does your book offer busy people who hope to eat well to support optimal health?
The first chapter focuses on organizing your kitchen and stocking it with nutritious foods and time-saving appliances and utensils. Then it moves into meal planning techniques and offers a couple faster cooking methods. There are a handful of recipes to use as ideas too. The rest of the book is a collection of 50 health-boosting strategies. Some include time-saving tips such as visiting your supermarket’s salad bar for a large selection of washed and cut vegetables to cook at home. Others are actions plans that are easy to read and understand, so you can use new nutrition knowledge right away. The book is designed to allow you to read it piecemeal. You can open any page, start reading and learn something new. You don’t have to read the whole book at once or read several concepts to start making changes. It’s ideal for someone who doesn’t have a lot of time.
What is your best nutrition tip for eating while being busy?
Do not throw in the towel. I know too many people who think of healthy eating as an all-or-nothing proposition. But it’s not! People who follow the all-or-nothing approach often completely give up their good intentions with the idea that when things calm down a bit, they’ll eat healthfully again. But this won’t get you anywhere. So what if you strayed from your plan for a meal or a day, just get back on it or as close to it as possible right away. Not next Monday or next month or when the rush in your life is over. I tell people it’s like having a fender bender and then deciding it’s okay to crash your car because it’s no longer perfect. That doesn’t make any sense either. It’s best to just minimize the damage and move on.
So instead of trying to be perfect, aim for good enough. Use your take-out list; rely heavily on your pantry staples; dig into your freezer for a healthier frozen meal. You can put healthy meals together quickly if you have a plan.
Portion control is something that we can grab hold of even when we’re busy. This is especially important when the food choices are less than ideal.
Do you have a plant-based quick and easy recipe that you’d like to share?
