When I was growing up, my mom always used to say that “a woman’s work is NEVER done.” I used to scorn the idea, but now that I’m all grown up, I’m realizing just how right she was! So much to do, and not nearly enough time to do it in…
It’s a sad but true fact of life that we’re more stressed and pressed for time than ever before. Problem is, when life is so busy, it’s easy to forget about healthy eating in favor of just grabbing something quick and convenient.
Convenience foods are okay once in a while, but they can become a real problem when they become the norm rather than the exception. Most convenience foods out there simply will not provide you with the quality of nutrition that you need for long term health and survival. Over time they can lead to a slow, steady decline in your health.
It’s so critically important (yes, even more important than accomplishing all those items on your “to do” list) for you to provide your body with the fuel it needs to run in peak condition every single day. How you treat your body now is an investment (either for better or for worse) in how healthy you will be later on.
Simple tips to help you eat better while saving time and money:
1. Start meal planning. It saves the frustration of figuring out what to prepare last minute. It also helps you eat more nutritionally balanced meals. You can find a really neat (and free) meal planning tool that incorporates ingredients you have on hand and provides you with recipes for different diets over at EatRealGood.com.
2. When cooking meals, try to make an extra large batch whenever you can. Set aside what you’ll be serving for your next meal and divide the rest into family sized or single sized servings. Place each portion in it’s own separate container, label, and store in your freezer. This makes for some easy lunches and dinners.
If you’re really pressed for time, you can also buy ready prepared meals from a health store or grocery store (read labels first to make sure it’s not loaded with unwanted ingredients). Simply divide up the meals into portions and freeze. Freezing works well for bean dishes, soups, stews, rice, sauces, waffles, muffins, bread, and other foods. This is where your slow cooker will really come in handy. I recently learned from my future step-mother-in-law that you can freeze squash! Who knew? Just wash it, cut it, scrape out all the seeds, slice it, and then freeze it. No one will ever know that it’s been frozen. If you want to do freezer cooking on a larger scale, frugal mom has some tips to get you started.
3. Start eating more “raw foods.” Raw foods are nutritionally dense, delicious, and fully satisfying with no guilt involved, (unless you eat the entire dish in one sitting!) Never mind the raw food recipes that are laborious and time consuming. You can easily find ample recipes that are super quick and easy to prepare. Goneraw.com features tons of great raw food recipes that have been rated by other readers. Have fun experimenting with it. With these tips, you’ll be eating healthier and saving lots of money too!
Who doesn’t love that? 
Michelle Foster is a Medical Herbalist and Lifestyle Educator who loves learning and teaching others about natural health. In addition to her regular work and home life duties, planning for her upcoming marriage (to a most wonderful gentleman), has left her with even LESS time on her hands. Her work truly is “never done,” so she’s always on the lookout for new and effective ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle despite the diminishing resource of time. Michelle is the creator and author ofnatural-health-restored.com
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This is a wonderful article and truly gives us women a strong purpose in the family’s health and prosperity.
Thanks for posting this,
Gale
Thanks for that Gale. So glad you enjoyed this article. And I agree with you! We can be purposeful in whatever we choose
Thanks for this great article Michelle. I think you give some really good tips here. I try to do some meal planning as often as I can but being a single mother it’s not always easy. I also cook large batch of food when I can but thanks for reminding me to eat more raw foods
Anita is the cool author of..Small kitchen design
I’m glad you found the article useful, Anita! Raw foods are great for when you’re in a hurry. With minimal time investment involved, they give you a pretty amazing return in boosting your energy levels!
Michelle is the cool author of..Isnt Breakfast The Most Important Meal Of The Day
Meal planning is important if you also want to have a health lifestyle and have great immune system. There are great tips in this article that everyone would find useful. thanks!