Managing a Healthy Diet and a Busy Life

Everyone knows how hard it can be to maintain a healthy diet, especially if you keep an active lifestyle filled with a demanding work schedule, spending time out with friends, and engaging in classes or activities to help with your recovery. As difficult as it may be now to maintain, it is not impossible. Here are some tips that can help make managing a balanced diet while on the go much easier.

Bring Your Own Lunch To Work Or School

If the idea of packing lunches bores you or reminds you of when you were eight, try to think of yourself as making a more responsible choice by managing a balanced diet chock full of nutrients that will be more beneficial to your body in the long run. It tends to be harder to find healthier options for lunch especially at most eateries found around job sites or colleges, so choosing to bring your lunch is definitely the less stressful decision.

Since you probably won’t feel like making something right before you need to head to work or school, get in the habit of packing your favorite healthy lunch the night before. A simple but incredibly time and energy saving trick is to pack a portion of your dinner for lunch the next day. But, if you prefer to plan ahead check sites like FoodNetwork, Pinterest, or even blogs for quick, easy, and healthy lunch ideas you will enjoy preparing and eating!

Bring A Variety Of Snacks

Don’t underestimate how much you will likely snack throughout the day. You’re bound to make poor eating choices if you don’t have any healthy snacks to fill the void.

Fruits make great snacks to keep with you during the day. Look for fruits that don’t need refrigeration such as apples, pears, bananas, and cherries. You can even have them in a bowl on your desk instead of one filled with candy. Or you can bring a variety of fruits from home every day to snack on. Just remember to mix it up and keep it fresh so it won’t get boring!

Snack bars are another great go-to for when you begin to feel hunger pangs kicking in. Try carrying nutrient filled bars such as Kind, Fiber One, or Odwalla around with you so that even on hectic days or during your commute you have something to not only tide you over but give you a little boost of energy as well.

Be Sensible When Dining Out

Managing a healthy diet doesn’t have to put a damper on eating out with friends. You can still enjoy going out to dinner while continuing to eat right. Remember to first check what you are eating, how much you are eating, and how the meal is prepared. Then, look at the calorie amounts to make sure that your dinner or combination of dinner and a beverage won’t exceed the amount you want to consume for the day.

Next, try and pick a dish that has a good amount of vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, lean proteins or fruit. Be sure to stick to ordering foods that are steamed, grilled, sautéed or broiled instead of fried.

Watch out for these words in meal descriptions: creamy, breaded, battered, or buttered. Also, get in the habit of asking for water to accompany your meal or an unsweetened drink such as tea, so that you can control your sugar intake.

If you find yourself facing an oversized meal, ask for a to-go box and put half of the meal in there immediately, so you won’t unintentionally overeat.

Managing a healthy diet amidst your daily routine doesn’t have to be complicated or difficult. You just need to be committed to maintaining a balanced diet and making smart choices that will continue to keep you healthy in recovery.