Currently, Candice is 34 weeks pregnant. We’re nearing the end of the pregnancy, and because this was a completely new experience for us, we learned a lot along the way.
In the next few weeks, one of the things we will have to do is prepare a hospital bag. This is the overnight bag that we will take with us whenever Candice goes into labor.
The main reason the doctor suggests doing this is because you never know exactly when that day will be. So the smart thing to do is be prepared for whenever it happens.
I started thinking about this concept recently, and I realized how much correlation it has with nutrition.
You see, the #1 factor people struggle with when trying to achieve a fitness related goal is nutrition. And the biggest reason is because you can’t predict life. It happens, and you’re just along for the ride.
For example, let’s say you have this perfect, healthy dinner planned for your family. But then, at the end of the day, your boss comes in and gives you an assignment that has to be turned in tomorrow morning. Your dinner plans go right out the window, and you’re forced to create a new plan from scratch.
The unfortunate truth is this is real life. It’s not always going to be a perfectly planned out day. And when this happens you need to be able to roll with the punches.
Having said that, I wanted to share 1 nutritional trick to prepare you for whatever life throws your way. That 1 trick is planning ahead of time.
Going back to our pregnancy, we have an exact due date. But the due date may change depending on our daughter’s development. If it’s earlier than expected, we have to be prepared to immediately go to the hospital.
And it’s exactly the same when it comes to your nutrition.
Sure you could have great intentions, but if your plans change all of a sudden, you need to be prepared so you can stay on track. Here’s an example of what I mean.
I have a client who works late often. His wife does as well. And recently, they had been getting home around 9pm without a meal to eat. Both of them were tired and had no desire to cook. So what did they do? They went out and grabbed some fast food.
They were stuck repeating this pattern each week. After learning this, we sat down and talked about one simple change he could make that would prevent this from happening again.
I found out they had nothing to eat at their house. So they literally couldn’t cook anything. Because of this, there were only two options: go to the grocery store and cook a meal (there was little chance of this happening since it was so late) or get fast food.
After we talked about this, I gave him a goal of preparing one meal for dinner over the next month. And I tried to make it as simple as possible. Here’s what I asked him to have at each meal: protein, 1 fruit or 1 starch, and 1 vegetable. That’s it.
This is what it would look like in action.
Let’s say my client went to the grocery store over the weekend and bought some food for the upcoming week. Monday rolls around and he’s home late again. He’s faced with the same two options as before only this time he prepared ahead of time.
When he was at the grocery store he purchased some canned tuna, apples, and baby carrots. All three of these foods require no preparation yet it still solves the problem he was facing. He was able to get a healthy meal of protein, fruit, and veggies with no cooking involved.
Now, he wouldn’t need to eat like this all the time. The point I want to make is that he knew he didn’t want to cook when he got home late but still wanted to accomplish his goal. So, he was smart and selected foods that didn’t require prep work.
Being prepared ahead of time is the trick to maintain a successful diet. It’s a simple as that.
If you feel like it’s been impossible to improve your nutrition, take as look and try to figure out why this is the case. Do you always go out to lunch with co-workers? Do you enjoy several sodas everyday? Or do you find yourself constantly running through the drive through because you have nothing at home?
Whatever your problem is, it can be solved by preparing ahead of time. Remember this and you will have no problem maintaining a diet that’s as healthy as it is simple.
