“Dang, I still don’t love cooking.” Hands up in the air. In response to feedback from clients over the years, I know everyone doesn’t love cooking or have time for it. I get you, boo.

And even if we do have some passion around cooking and have time, it’s 100% normal to go through seasons (weeks to months) of just not feeling it. There’s a lot of adulting required in life and add to that meal planning, shopping, cooking, etc. (ahem, a pandemic).  Sometimes we need a break or to learn to lean on resources that make this daily responsibility a little lighter.

Not only should there be no shame in not cooking homemade meals, but there’s wisdom in knowing when we can’t do it all and need to help ourselves out.

Below are 6 tips I often share with my 1-1 Nutrition Clients to help fill in the gaps, carry them through a weeknight, or a “meh” cooking season.

  1. Boards: have a cutting board? Leftovers? Meat, shrimp, smoked salmon, hummus, falafel, dips, crackers, pita, fruit, cheese, more cheese? Add olives and pickled veggies. Somehow pulling the kitchen sink together turns out to be a spread you can be quite proud of.  You may even just add board meals to your weekly rotation on purpose!
  2. Prepared soups and frozen meals. These shouldn’t be staples, but do make life a little easier but having a couple on hand. Choose brands with clean, whole foods based ingredients you can recognize. That means frozen meals by Amy’s, Saffron Road, or Daily Harvest, not Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice. Try soups from Amy’s or Pacific foods. The fewer ingredients the better. Don’t be afraid to jooj them up by adding fresh herbs, rice, a spritz of lemon juice, or a side of fresh fruit.
  3. List 3 carry out spots and choose a couple healthy meals you would order; have them set up for easy ordering.
  4. Protein shake powder. Again not a staple or at least not more than once a day, choose a quality protein powder to have on hand. Avoid refined or artificial sweeteners (monkfruit and stevia are ok), no GMO ingredients, or ingredients you don’t recognize. The fewer ingredients the better. A couple brands I like are: Sprout Living’s Epic Protein and Natural Force Plant or Whey Protein.
  5. Meal kits: Sunbasket and Green Chef are a couple of clean and delicious ones I like. More are always being added, so just look for options made with whole foods that meet your dietary needs; if eco-friendly is important to you, these two use compostable packaging as well. Keeping this in rotation every few weeks to bring excitement, creativity, and ease into the kitchen is often worth the investment for your time savings and for the cooking inspiration. There’s usually always a discount or referral code available for trying one.
  6. Fasting: This is only recommended if done intentionally, with consistency, and if you understand what you’re doing. Many benefit from a time-restrcited feeding window of 10AM-7PM for example. That means you can eat between those times and you fast 7PM-10AM (water and tea are ok), which equates to skipping an early breakfast. For some people, it’s one less meal to think about and less expensive; it also comes with the health benefits of fasting. Fasting is not recommend for everyone, so if you get light headed or dizzy if you don’t eat more often, or have any reason to believe it’s not a good idea for you, don’t do it before consulting your health care provider. You still need to eat balanced wholesome meals during the fasting window, otherwise it’s not recommended.

Do this right now

Take 10 minutes to help out your future self. Pick any of these ideas that resonate with you and write them either in the notes section of your phone or write them down on a sheet of paper and stick it inside your pantry. Set up a meal kit service or order a protein shake. Whatever you decide, what action can you take right now? For the days when you’re hungry, tired, your brain is mush, and you just need to get food in but you still want to be healthy and mindful about it — open this list, pick one. Eat.

*Any brand recommendations are examples of brands I like. I am not sponsored.