Eating healthy when you're busy

TimarieS

Lately I have been eating an insane amount of fast food, and I really don't want to be eating it, nor do I want my children to be eating it... But we are always so busy, between my daughters tae kwon do 2 nights a week, soccer 2-3 times a week, relay for life meetings (i'm capt. of a team), getting my daughter to and from school, making sure her homework is done and dealing with my two year old, and then all the time i spend driving everyday, since we live in the city of Detroit we tend to drive far for activities and school... and i'm supposed to start school myself at the University of Michigan (Dearborn) in the fall! i am always to busy or tired to cook... and when i'm busy and tired i am also skipping out on going to the gym...

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to eat healthy even when you are always on the go?

sarahazelnut99

eating on the go is so much easier then you think-just pack ahead of time
pull out the sandwich baggies and check out all the fast food places nutritional menu OR start going to subway and paneras

aecryan

Planning and more planning and then plan some more. I am a full time working mom of 3 and I have to plan my meals. Everything I make takes 20 minutes or less and sometimes I prep things ahead of time on the weekends.

We are not involved in a lot of extra activities for a number of reasons and healthy dinners together is one of them. I am a better mom when I do not have too many demands in my schedule. I would encourage you to take a good look and decide what is truly important and what takes priority. It's difficult. but worth it!

Twinsmama75

I've had some good luck with crock pot meals. Some of my favorite are chili, chicken tortilla soup, white bean chicken chili. Otherwise I try to make sure I have easy meals to prepare. We are running alot too, but we've had to cut some stuff out because it just gets to be too much ! (I have 8 year old twins, a 3 year old and a 1 year old) Good luck!

BTW- there is a good crock pot cook book "Fix it and Forget it" and they make a "light" version of the book too, we got it off amazon.

road2peachtree

We are busy too--sports and junk--and I use a lot of fresh pastas (I generally find them at Publix in the refrig section--takes 2 min to cook....amazing), frozen veggies, and pre-planned meals. When I know we are going to have a hectic week I try to cook my meats on Sundays. That way when I need ground turkey for spaghetti or tacos, or shredded chicken for whatever it's already cooked. On super busy days, I cook the pasta (2 min), steam veggies, grab a sauce or some low cal cheese and bam dinner is done. Then sometimes it's a sammie night. There's nothing wrong with a good sandwich and a salad for dinner. Now that the weather is getting warmer, it's the perfect dish and fits into my diet quite well. Hope that helps.

TeenaMarina

It's definitely tough, I agree, but you have to find a way to avoid fast food altogether. My daughter and I hit Subway at least once a week (usually way healthier than burger places). Another better choice might be the "fresh mex" places - here I go to Barbacoa and they have burritos, burrito salads, soup. Also, if you have time to stop by a fast food place, stop by a grocery store instead. They have all kinds of ready-to-eat meals that are much better options. Whole roasted chickens, salad bars, soups, sandwiches, wraps. I just don't make fast food an option at all anymore. And it's not just about me counting calories. I refuse to let my daughter eat that stuff... I care about her insides too much! Good luck... I know it's hard but try and explore other options, other "fast" places.

arewethereyet

Sorry in advance, because you will not like what I am about to say.

You must take the time to prepare ahead of time. Period. McD's is not an option.

THat was THE hardest thing for me to learn. Honestly...........I got sick eating fast food once with McDs and once with Taco bell......so I stopped out of sheer blech power.

Here is what I did. I was on the road 8 plus hours a day, had a neck injury so had to go to PT 3x wk, had a family to take care of.

On Sunday I planned out the week. I grilled up pounds of chicken breast, shrimp, even hamburgers for the week. Then packed them up in a cooler along with my water, fruits, cut up veggies and dips.....I found that it was super yummy to snack on chunks of chic breast instead of fries...........and lost 36 lbs total.

I gained back 10 when I was bedridden and had a bunch of medical and emotional issues and could not exercise...........but I have lost a few again already and the difference was I was HERE and had support to tug me back!!

Good luck I KNOW you can do this!!!:flowerforyou:

TeenaMarina

Planning and more planning and then plan some more. I am a full time working mom of 3 and I have to plan my meals. Everything I make takes 20 minutes or less and sometimes I prep things ahead of time on the weekends.

We are not involved in a lot of extra activities for a number of reasons and healthy dinners together is one of them. I am a better mom when I do not have too many demands in my schedule. I would encourage you to take a good look and decide what is truly important and what takes priority. It's difficult. but worth it!

Awesome advice!

ngolston

My husband grills the meat (chicken, steak, pork chops, ribs, etc) on Sunday and tupperwares it up. When it's time to eat, I steam some veggies, make salad, and boil rice (the brown success rice cooks in less than 15 minutes. We started doing that last year because we has so much going on (3 boys playing basketball, all different teams, different nights, etc) and sit down meals are a must for us. Good luck, you can make it happen with a little planning!

TimarieS

Thank you everybody for the great advice...

bradynsmom

I have found that we eat healthier when I plan a weekly menu ahead of time and stick to it. I am a full time working mother of a three year old and time is limited so as long as we have a plan it seems easier. I have also bought things like grapes, bleberries, pineapple and other fresh fruits and cut them up and put them in snack size bags. THis way when running out the door to go to swim class or something I can grab each of us one and it holds us over til dinner. I have also done that with pretzels.

M_lifts

i agree with planning in advance, have a meal plan for the week and stick to it. i work full time too ( and have a 2yr old) and have to plan in advance. Have you got a slow cooker? maybe worth investing in? u can leave food cooking away for the whole day and come home to a cooked meal. or what about batch cooking at the weekend and freezing?