Most of us could stand to live a healthier lifestyle, eating healthier food and engaging in more physical activity. The trouble is, many of us don’t have the time, resources, or knowledge necessary to support this lifestyle.
You can start making positive changes by cooking healthier meals for yourself, but how exactly should you go about it?
The Key Obstacles to Overcome
For most people, these are the biggest barriers to cooking healthier meals for yourself:
- Personal motivation. Yes, you could cook a healthy meal for yourself, but why would you want to? Do you really want to take out all the equipment you need, spend time chopping and preparing ingredients, and clean everything up afterward? The motivation dynamic is a critical one, even if it seems superficial. Prepackaged food and junk food are simply much easier and more accessible.
- Knowledge. For some people, the biggest barrier is knowledge. You may not understand what makes some foods healthier than others, or you may not know any cooking techniques or recipes that you can utilize in your home kitchen environment. Without that knowledge, you won’t be able to do much.
- Time. For others, the biggest barrier is time. You might know how to cook healthy meals for yourself, and you might be motivated to do so, but if you feel so overwhelmed with other life responsibilities that you can’t take the time to do it, you won’t be able to reap the full benefits of healthy home cooking.
How to Cook Healthier Meals for Yourself
To address these obstacles and more, consider using these strategies:
- Create a more compelling kitchen environment. You’ll likely become more motivated to cook healthy meals for yourself if you have a more inviting, interesting kitchen environment. Depending on your budget and what you’re currently working with, that could mean investing in a full kitchen renovation or simply redecorating. You could also choose to build an outdoor kitchen, giving yourself the opportunity to cook in the great outdoors – and turn your entire backyard into a more attractive gathering space.
- Learn everything you can about nutrition. You don’t have to become an expert, but you should learn about the fundamentals of nutrition. If you have a basic grasp on macro nutrients, micronutrients, and how calories work in the body, you’ll be able to plan and execute much healthier meals for yourself. Go beyond merely identifying foods as “healthy” and “unhealthy,” and try to see the bigger picture.
- Set a budget for yourself. Consider setting a budget for yourself so you have parameters for your ingredient acquisition and meal planning. What’s the healthiest meal that you can make for $15?
- Cook in bulk. Big batch cooking can save you a lot of time, which is helpful for resolving both timing concerns and motivation concerns. Consider cooking a dish that you can portion into many different meals, so you can continue eating it for days. This will save you a lot of time overall and allow you to eat healthier on a more regular basis.
- Start with simple recipes. If you don’t have much knowledge on cooking healthy meals, or if you’re intimidated by complex recipes, start with simple recipes, as there are plenty to find. Sometimes, all you need is a handful of simple ingredients and a slow cooker to make something healthy and delicious.
- Make healthy ingredient swaps. To make a dish a little bit healthier, you can make an intelligent ingredient swap. For example, you can swap saturated fats for unsaturated fats, or you can use a naturally sweet ingredient like applesauce as a substitute for raw sugar (in some recipes, at least).
- Learn new techniques and experiment. Most people get bored of cooking and eating the same meals over and over. Accordingly, you should make it a point to learn new techniques on a regular basis and experiment with new recipes and ingredients. It’s going to keep things fresh while simultaneously introducing you to new culinary possibilities.
- Set goals to improve. Most of us feel more motivated and engaged with our work when we have measurable goals for improving our performance. Consider setting goals for yourself, such as trying a certain number of new recipes within a given time frame or cooking a certain percentage of your meals at home.
Cooking healthy meals is not an all-or-nothing strategy. If you’re interested in cooking healthier meals for yourself, it doesn’t have to come to dominate your life, nor do you need to cook healthy foods for every meal. However, if you’re willing to make some strategic changes to your outlook and lifestyle, you can make more time and effort to create healthy and satisfying dishes – and your body will thank you for it.
