How to eat healthy when you dont have time to cook??

hello77kitty

I work full time and have also started part time school this year. I was doing great and losing..until September when Istarted school. I have no time to work out, no time to cook anything healthy. I've already gained like 15 lbs I cannot undo my hard work any more!
I usually end up eating frozen dinners/ramen/fast food now.

Fairysoul

May the crock pot be your best friend, cooks itself, and has plenty of leftovers.

kshiraakshara

Prepare basic healthy stuff in advance on a day off (or at least a slightly less busy day), like chicken breast, chopped veggies, etc. It might not get you through every meal of the entire week, but it will at least help you cut down on the junk.

blackbeauty43

the crockpot indeed! and if you are already eating frozen dinners pic the ones that have lower calories...also you can never go wrong with some weight watchers soups

theskinnylist

I always prep my meals on Sunday for the week (M-F)....

momtobe06

I like to get ready cooked chickens and a bag of salad-


first night is hot chicken breast with a salad on the side

then I make chicken salad or chicken soup with the leftovers.

crock pot is also good

most fast food places have healthier options as well

katekrise

I'm in the same boat. Full time work and part time grad school. I cook a lot of things and then freeze them in individual servings. I also get a lot of fruits and nuts.

cruzcrzyMarie

What about doing a lot of cooking on the weekend for the week ahead? Instead of top ramen, what about 1 whole egg with 3 egg whites scrambled(171 calories). You can add fresh fruit/vegetables to the meal. I DO think with some planning you can avoid the fast food, and save yourself some calories and money. The tuna packs are also convenient, and pack a lot of protein, 80 calories, in water, and you can have these while at school. What about using a small cooler you can keep in your car...string cheese, almonds, fast healthy. Planning is KEY. DO IT. You are worth it .

the_kirks08

I agree. Crockpot recipes are no hassle. I think it would work well for someone with a busy schedule like yourself. Or, if you have a day off make healthy homemade freezer dinners ahead. Just pop them in the microwave when you're ready to eat!

secretlobster

Crockpot is a good suggestion. Use 30 minutes on a weekend to make a large pot of soup or healthy chili or some kind of salad type dish that will last you for a few days at least.

I can make flounder fillets with steamed broccoli and rice in less than ten minutes total. There are lots of recipes that you can make in under 30 minutes

IronTitaness

You can try to plan/cook/prepare your meals in advance. When you are in a hurry you just have to grab and go. Prepare meals in advance and freeze them. Nuts and seeds are healthy snacks. When you buy them divide them in one or two servings and pack in bags or in small tupperware. Grab and go for when you need a snack on the go.

:flowerforyou:

Healthydiner65

CROCKPOT!!! chicken thighs/breasts with la victoria salsa cooked on low 9 hours.Flour tortillas, chicken thigh/breast, cheese/ salad with chicken thigh/breast on taco shells / plain chicken with sweet tato, salad, bread/ Chicken sandwiches for work etc.!!!!!

YoungDoc2B

How/why don't you have time? I think the first step is that you need to organize your time better. I work full-time and go to school (part time this semester), and still have time to prepare meals & exercise. I know everyone is different, but you have to put in some type of effort instead of relying on frozen meals. Simply not "having time" doesn't fly as an excuse. Aside from that, like others have said, invest in a crockpot and/or a george foreman grill.

sarahisme18

^ Yep, crockpot!

You can make stuff in the crockpot on a weekend day and package it up into individual servings during the week. You could even find a used smaller crockpot from the thrift store or a garage sale so you can make two or three different dishes in less time—if you get bored, I know I do!!

If you center your meals around veggies, I find it makes them a lot quicker to prepare. For example.... a pasta salad is going to take 1/3 of the time to prepare as, say, a lasagna or something. Boil the noodles, toss with the veggies you cut up during the boil, and add a yummy dressing and feta cheese. Done!

I have found things to make that are just as quick as a frozen meal to make on nights I don't have time to cook... like a microwaved baked sweet potato with black beans, or beans and leftover rice, or a salad with fried egg and avocado, etc. How about those boxed soups from Trader Joe's? Tomato basil, black bean, etc. Just heat and eat! You could make a quick sandwich to go with it.

Just find something that works for YOU. It might take some time, but it can be done! Get creative!

PennStateChick

From someone that works full time with a few night meetings a week, goes to school part time for a graduate degree, and has a family-including an almost-4 year old--- Become friends with a slowcooker OR do all your cooking on the weekend. I have switched back and forth between the two options.

Currently, I cook for 3 of us on Sat & Sun and then rely on leftovers to get us through the majority of the week. Also, I hang a calendar of my food in the kitchen so the boy knows how many more times I'm planning on eating each meal. For instance, if I make buffalo chicken lasagna and plan to eat it Tuesday & Wednesday, he will make sure I still have two servings left.

ahviendha

make time to make good food.

salads don't take much time at all, i make mine on autopilot now.

base of spinach or lettuce if i have it, always have a roma tomato, good chunk of cucumber, 1-2 carrots, handful of mushrooms, some nuts if i have them, red bell pepper if i have it, chop it all up, dump it in a washed out clean yogurt container (yay greek gods yogurt!) and you're good to go. add in some cooked chicken or something if you want more protein.

have a couple meals you can make easily, without complicated ingredients for days you don't want to think (happens to me a lot!). i have an easy chicken dish, easy burgers, easy fajitas or stirfry.

i generally have the same snacks every day so my body knows what to begin chopping up or putting together before my brain's awake. i automatically reach for the aforementioned salad ingredients, my greek gods yogurt with ground flaxseed and berries added in, or a bread slice with almond butter, or apple, or all if i'm super hungry.

VelociMama

I always prep my meals on Sunday for the week (M-F)....

I do the same thing. I cook for about an hour or two on Sunday and prep things like veggies and side items that can be just grab n' go for the week.

Make time to cook. It only takes 15-30 minutes to prepare a healthy home-cooked meal. You can spare that time. I'm a full time Ph.D. student working 50+ hours a week now, and I do it every single week.

I also second the crock-pot suggestion. Easy, delicious, and healthy!

babymama81

Actually since I've started my new healthier routine, I've been saving time AND money. I used to cook a meal every day for me and my husband. Hamburger Helper, burritos, spaghetti... but my husband and I decided to change this. Now we eat a lean cuisine or smart ones frozen meal for lunch and dinner, and for breakfast we'll have an egg beaters omelette with pre-diced up onions, bell peppers and soy chorizo, and fresh produce green smoothie for snacks and sometimes breakfast. My personal blender (NutriBullet) is SO easy to clean, I have something tasty to satisfy my cravings within minutes. The frozen meals actually taste pretty good, but they're only $2.50 a meal and only take 5 minutes to heat up. Frozen may not be the healthiest way to go, but it's healthier than Hamburger Helper!

hello77kitty

Thanks, I see many great ideas!! Are there any types of meals that freeze well in particular?

tameko2

i personally hate crockpot cooking because its too hard to make a tiny bit for just 1 or 2 people. So you end up eating the same thing for days. I also do not cook.

For fast food I do - lots of chipotle bowls. Grilled chicken sandwiches at most fast food places are decent calorie wise, ask that they hold the mayo because that's what makes them really high cal. Chili at Wendy's. Mexican food of any stripe (I stick to high protein stuff and ditch the flour tortillas and cheese). Any kind of teriyaki place that uses lean meats - just don't eat all the rice. Sushi as well - bowl of miso soup + whatever doesn't include fried stuff and cream cheese.

For at home stuff, I do a lot of deli meats and cheese, sandwiches if you like that, canned tuna and salsa. also Trader joes freezer section has some great stuff.

Allllso.... I don't eat breakfast personally. Save my calories for lunch and dinner - makes it much more flexible with what I can eat at those times and how much. This doesn't work for everyone, some people do very well with it and some people just find that they are starving and then binge eat at lunch.

SoDamnHungry

Most of my food is fast food or processed and I can maintain a decent weight. I eat a lot of turkey dogs, use a veggie as a side to make the meal feel larger without as many calories. You can make a sandwich for not many calories with veggies, lunch meat and whole grain bread. I've learned how to microwave a fried egg and make a fried egg sandwich. If you buy the right TV dinner, it won't have that many calories in it. This week I bought a bag of salad, cheese, and sunflower seeds to make quick, easy salads to bring to work.

So how healthy some of my food is is questionable... But I certainly won't gain 15 pounds eating an appropriate amount of it.

krickeyuu

Buty a rotisserie chicken and some lean ground beef. On your day off--cook two beef patties and cook the rest as crumbles. Cook up about 2 cups of brown rice and pre-cook a bunch of veggies in the microwave--spinach, peppers and onions, broccoli and a sweet potato. Have in the pantry some whole wheat pasta, some canned tomatoes and canned black beans. Add a bag of salad greens and make yourself a viniagrette dressing with olive oil, vinegar and mustard. Now you have all of the fixings for healthy lunch or dinner for a week. Add the peppers and onions to two eggs for an omlette. Add the crumbled beef to some canned tomatoes and cook up some whole wheat pasta. Eat some chicken with a sweet potato. Eat the beans with some of the rice. Hamburger patty and salad or broccoli.

VelociMama

Thanks, I see many great ideas!! Are there any types of meals that freeze well in particular?

Stews and soups usually freeze very well. You can portion them out into single or double servings in a quart size freezer bag and freeze almost indefinitely.

want2belean

Everything I cook is less than 30 min, if that is still too time consuming you can make healthy choices with less time. How about a veggie pasta salad with grilled chicken.

1 box of veggie pasta,
Tyson already cooked chicken, diced, strips...breast
Add whatever extras you want like tomatoes, black olive, and feta cheese
And your salad dressing.
Takes less than 15 minutes

Pita pockets

Tyson chicken (again whatever kind you prefer) diced, strips....
Multi grain pita pocket...100 calories
Put the chicken in the pita pocket and again
add your own extras cucumber, tomatoes whatever...

These are just a few ideas, hope it helped..

Hey, if you are on the run, Wendy’s has a great salad and subway and it’s under 350 calories

tameko2

Oh hey I just saw you live near me - if you have a convenient fresh and easy, they have some awesome prepared foods that range in calories and deliciousness. Also have little vegetable side dishes and stuff that you just cook. We eat a LOT of Fresh and Easy stuff. (I didn't mention it before because its not that widespread in the country but there are TONS of them in OC)

_Wits_

No way except to make time.

I work full time and pt, and I get one day a week off and I have to block out 2-3 hours just for food prep... Granted, I use my lunch hours and a little bit of time when I'm unwinding before bed to write down meal plans and such..

But I make lots of things...soups, entrees (lasagna, casseroles and then freeze them in portioned sizes), chicken for salads, snacks, chicken salad...boil eggs...

I also cut veggies and snacks and portion them all out so I can just grab them int he morning. I bought a big lunch bag and some ice packs and fill her up and I'm off!

Also....I agree...crockpots are excellent to make just about anything.

SHHitsKaty

I have this problem as well, I work full time and go to school, by the time I get out of the gym some nights it's already 8:30. I try to just cook stuff that is fast, like someone said above, Kroger has pre-cooked chicken breasts, sometimes with a little seasoning on them that are good, just toss it in the over for a few and steam some veggies or get a head of lettuce/bag of salad and eat that with the chicken.

On the nights I don't get home till a lot later (8:30 or so) I'll just open a can of tuna and eat a tuna sandwich or just the tuna alone.

It'd be a lot easier to leave the gym at 8:30 and stop by Taco Bell, but then I'd be disappointed with myself so it's a give and take.

StormyGal8

. For instance, if I make buffalo chicken lasagna and plan to eat it Tuesday & Wednesday, he will make sure I still have two servings left.

BUFFALO CHICKEN LASAGNA??? OMG!!!!!! The 2 best foods in the world combined? I must find a recipe! Best part is, no one else in my house would eat it!

hello77kitty

Oh hey I just saw you live near me - if you have a convenient fresh and easy, they have some awesome prepared foods that range in calories and deliciousness. Also have little vegetable side dishes and stuff that you just cook. We eat a LOT of Fresh and Easy stuff. (I didn't mention it before because its not that widespread in the country but there are TONS of them in OC)

Yes, I live around the corner from a fresh n easy! I love them lol.

tameko2

Oh hey I just saw you live near me - if you have a convenient fresh and easy, they have some awesome prepared foods that range in calories and deliciousness. Also have little vegetable side dishes and stuff that you just cook. We eat a LOT of Fresh and Easy stuff. (I didn't mention it before because its not that widespread in the country but there are TONS of them in OC)

Yes, I live around the corner from a fresh n easy! I love them lol.

Yes! So check out their prepared stuff in the fridge - you do have to watch calories, not everything is good, but like last night I got the Pollo Asado bowl (340 calories, 56 carbs, 26 protein) and snacked on some salami from there. (um and then ate some brie and mini toasts and grapes - I eat big meals)

lizziebeth1028

I live alone and I'm not much of a cook. Dinner is always simple. I keep stuff like eggs, turkey breast, chicken breast, greek yogurt, fresh fruit and veggies, brown rice, cottage cheese and yes I admit it lean cuisines on hand so I can throw something quick together. The trick is to be prepared ahead of time and have decent options at home so you're not going through the McD's drive through at the last minute:flowerforyou: