I just want to bring up a common question I receive from clients and friends alike. The question is “How do I eat healthy when I have to make food for a picky family?” This usually ends up with most clients saying their family eats a meal together for dinner. There are MANY solutions for making your meal time efficient and healthy, while meeting the criteria of others.
What I want to address with this article is the meal eating process society places on us. Many of us grew up eating large meals together. Movies, shows, books, etc. show families eating as a group and eating the same meal. Therefore, we infer that we all have to eat the same thing. Obviously this doesn’t apply to everyone, but who says you can not eat your own specialized meal while others eat something different? Does everyone have to eat the same thing? The answer is NO. No, you do not. You can still have a social family gathering with your own nutritional goals.
Another similar question I get is “What breakfast foods can I eat besides eggs?” Who says you can’t have steak for breakfast? And where does it say eggs are only breakfast food? Think outside the box. If you want fish for breakfast, do it! Other countries use salmon in their breakfast meals, why can’t you? The time of day does NOT determine what foods you can eat. We only label a meal breakfast, lunch and dinner to determine the time of day we eat, not the food we eat. A meal is a meal. Hopefully if you are working with me or another nutrition specialist, it’s a calculated meal!
But seriously, why keep yourself in a box? The reason you are reading this or any fitness post is because you want to better yourself. The first step is to release your mental restraints and accept the change. If you want to eat better and be healthier, you have to change what you are currently doing. Change your focus, stop saying you can’t give up this food or you can’t eat at this time. Don’t let what your family eats control what you eat. It is your life and you ARE in control. So take the wheel and reach your goals!
I can only be a guide; you have to want it. You have to change your mental state. Trust me, I know. I was significantly overweight. I could eat and eat. Now I hardly eat any of the foods I used to. But I still eat a lot and I don’t let the time of day determine my meal! My mind has changed more than my body.
I hope this helps. If you want to learn more about meal prep strategies or cooking in bulk, feel free to contact me!
Bryan@DynamicNutritionLLC.com