I can't eat well
I just don't have the time
I can't cook my own lunches for work
I work too late
blah blah blah blah blah!
I have a simple solution to this......cook more food.
I, too, start work early and finish late. A typical day for me is a 6.30am client followed by 7-9 more throughout the day until about 7.30pm. I then get home around 8.30-9pm. This means I'm out of the house from 5.45am until 8.30-9pm at night. I could easily sloth on the sofa and claim I am too tired and don't have the time, reach for the phone and order an Indian take away. Don't get me wrong, I sometimes do, but it’s rare.
I like to eat well and be prepared.Thats why when I cook, I cook big. Here is a great example:
A very simple, quick and tasty meal to prepare that will last for days. Great to have for lunches or the next days dinner.
To be honest roasting veg is a winner. It’s nutritious, tastes good and can be cooked in bulk quantities:
- Chop a load of sweet potato, red onion, parsnips, carrots, butternut squash and wack it in a baking tray.
- Mix with some macadamia nut oil, mixed herbs, salt and pepper then in the oven it goes. It takes 5mins to prepare and then whilst it's cooking get some steaks in the pan and you’re away.
- Cook enough steaks to last for dinner and tomorrow’s lunch, it doesn’t take any longer so if you’re cooking dinner anyway you might as well cook a bit extra for your lunch.
Another great tip is to bulk cook your meat and poultry. Invest in a decent sized baking tray and cook a couple of days worth of meat or poultry.
Here I chopped two whole chickens, marinated them in macadamia nut oil, cayenne chilli powder, cumin, garlic, salt and pepper and cooked them in the oven. This was enough for both mine and Keris’ dinner and our lunches the following day. It was so easy to prepare, tasted amazing and lunch the next day was sorted.
I always recomend folk eat a good breakfast but I understand and extra 20 minutes in bed can be the most appealing thing in the world at times. Which is why I recommend my egg loaf.
This is great for breakfast on the go or something to get down you upon waking as it requires no prep, just eat it. Simply mix 6-8 whole free range organic eggs with chopped red pinion, chopped red pepper, some smoked salmon and a bit of seasoning and cook in the oven for 15-20 mins.
A good protein hit, healthy fats and antioxidants and it tastes great. You can use spinach, mushrooms, chopped tomatoes whatever you like. Be creative and enjoy. Again, something like this will last a couple of days.
So, invest in some baking trays and some tupperware boxes and get cooking. Stop making excuses and feed your body with the good food it deserves rather than spending money on that shop brought processed crap. Saying that, we have a great blog series coming soon with some great tips on where to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner and advice on what choices to make. I'm sure you'll find this of interest.
The point of this post is to assure you that cooking your own breakfast, lunches and dinners is not as time consuming or expensive as you think. It is very time friendly and easy on the wallet and can also be incredibly enjoyable if you put your mind to it. I used to hate cooking and would often put together the easiest dish possible. Uncle Ben’s 2 minute Rice, a tin of tuna and a tin of sweetcorn was a favourite of mine :-) Now i love trying out new ideas and I feel very satisfied when I'm tucking in to my tasty, healthy and hearty lunches whilst other people opt for their processed, fat laden lunches.
People often ask how I manage to maintain high energy levels throughout the day and I always say it’s my diet. This may sound obvious but it is often over looked and people are always looking for other reasons as to why their energy levels have dropped. When more often that not they have had a carb rich and processed breakfast which has now seen them have a blood sugar crash. Start your day right, snack well, eat a good lunch and your body will thank you for it not to mention your training sessions will benefit too.
Hope you enjoyed this quick post and please if you have any questions or would like some recipe ideas please don’t hesitate to get in touch at matt@fitterlondon.co.uk
Have great day,
Matt
