6 Healthy Eating Tips for Busy Professionals

Eating healthy is crucial for maintaining overall health and well-being. Despite knowing this, many people find it challenging to stick to a healthy diet due to busy lifestyles, work schedules, and lack of knowledge about what constitutes healthy food choices. In this article, we will discuss six simple ways to maintain a healthy diet.

1. Don’t skip breakfast

What you eat in the morning fuels your entire day, so investing time and energy in having a healthy breakfast is crucial. Eating a protein-rich breakfast will give you the energy you need to power through your morning while incorporating fiber can help lower your risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, improve the health of your skin, and help you lose weight. In addition, if you start your day by incorporating as many nutrients as possible in your first meal, you will find it much easier to reach your recommended daily allowance of vitamins and minerals.

Here are 5 healthy breakfasts that are quick to whip up:

• Spinach & egg scramble on sourdough bread
• Mix berry and banana smoothie with spinach, protein powder, and flax seeds
• Overnight oats topped with your choice of fresh fruits and nuts (to increase the protein content add 1 scoop of protein powder).
• Whole grain toast with nut butter, banana & hemp seeds
• Baked smoked salmon egg cups with spinach

2. Meal prep on your days off

If you find yourself frequently using the excuse “I’m too busy to eat healthy”, meal prepping assures that you always have a healthy meal ready to go. It’s also a great way to control your portions, and over time will help you develop a better relationship with food. By dedicating a portion of your weekend to prepping all of your meals for the week ahead, you’ll not only find it easier to stick to a healthy diet you could also save money, as having pre-cooked meals at the ready means you’ll be less inclined to spend money on snacks and eating out.

If you don’t have time to dedicate to meal prep over the weekend, there are many meal prep companies that do all the hard work for you. Tastily, Muscle Food and Detox Kitchen are just some of the meal prep companies out there that cater to every diet.

3. Be conscious of what you’re eating when eating out.

If you’re focused on trying to eat healthy, bringing a packed lunch to the office is by far the best option, but it’s not always practical. Here are a few simple tips to help you stick to your healthy diet on days when you have to go out for lunch.

• Don’t fall prey to buzz words like ‘free from’, ‘organic’, ‘natural’, and ‘low-fat’. Always read the full list of ingredients in the back in order to truly understand what you’re eating. Look for food that has been steamed, grilled, or poached. In general, these cooking methods use less oil than fried foods and therefore contain less fat and fewer calories. Items made with whole grains, such as brown rice or quinoa, are more nutrient-dense than those made with refined grains, such as white rice, couscous, or pasta. Finally, try to avoid refined sugar (eating lots of sugar is a surefire way to raise your risk of many different diseases).
• We often eat things as a ‘unit’, eating the whole thing regardless of size, this is called auto-pilot eating. Don’t push past the point of fullness just to finish your meal. If the portion is too big then don’t be afraid to leave it, or request a doggy bag if you’d rather save it for later.
• If you’re eating with other people try ordering your food before everyone else. Other people can influence our decisions without us really noticing, which can lead us to make poor food choices.

4. Schedule your meals at the same time every day

By scheduling your meals, you’ll avoid rushing and making poor food choices. Your body’s metabolic processes, such as appetite, digestion, and the processing of nutrients, follow a pattern. By eating at random times, you disrupt this pattern, which can lead to weight gain or other health risks. Eating at the same time every day will help you maintain weight and overall health.

5. Stay hydrated throughout the day

Drinking plenty of water not only keeps you hydrated, it also helps to flush toxins from your body, carries nutrients to your cells, and facilitates smooth digestion. Bring a reusable bottle to work and keep it filled with water. If you need an added push, you can download a free app on your phone that will remind you to drink water throughout the day.

6. Make a grocery list and stick to it

Planning your meals in advance and sticking to a grocery list can help you avoid impulsive purchases and unhealthy food choices. If you don’t have the time to go to the supermarket you can do your full shop online. If you’re really pressed for time you can even opt for pre-chopped fresh fruits, vegetables, meat and poultry.

If recipe planning is not your strong suit then companies like Gousto and Hello Fresh offer a multitude of recipe boxes, with fresh pre-portioned ingredients to help you make home cooking easy.

Maintaining a healthy diet can seem like a daunting task, but it is achievable. By making some or all of these simple changes you can maintain a healthy diet and improve your overall health and well-being. But remember the most important rule is everything in moderation, don’t chastise yourself for indulging once in a while. Finding a balance between satisfaction and nutrition is the key to sticking to a healthy diet.

For more advice on nutrition or to speak with a member of our Coaching team on how your diet can be used to complement your workout please contact us – info@coachlondon.uk  /  +44 (0) 207 315 4260