Preparing more home cooked meals is one of those things that we know we should be dong, but don't. In our fast paced world, it may seem easier to rely on convenience foods --like frozen meals, carry out, and fast food options-- but eating in this way over time takes a toll on your mood and health.
Convenience meals are more likely to have additives such as chemicals, hormones, sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats which cause you to feel tired, bloated, as well as exacerbate symptoms of stress, depression, and anxiety. The best way to improve your mental and physical health is to prepare more meals at home.
Now love can be define in different ways. For the purpose of this article, I want to focus on love is to help. When you love someone, you commit to helping them with their life to the point where you have a deep desire for their growth and development . Having a deep love for another person means you do what you can to help them grow to their full potential. Cooking meals from home is a way to show this type of love to yourself and to others and here is how.
Home cooked meals can improve physical well being
Cooking at home makes it possible for you to control the ingredients. By limiting the amount of sugar, salt, and unhealthy fat in your meal you are helping you and your family look better, feel better, and boost energy levels. When you replace more of the processed carbohydrates with fibrous carbohydrates that you find in vegetables, you are able to stabilize your weight as well as improve your mood, sleep, and resilience to stress.
Studies also suggest that when you cook on a regular basis, you are more likely to make healthier food choices when you do decide to eat out on occasion. So when you make cooking a habit, it is even easier to make eating healthy food a habit as well.
Home cook meals can improve mental health
Time seems to be the biggest obstacle when it comes to cooking more at home. When you are stressed and seemed to be stretched so thin- cooking is the last thing that you want to do. If this sounds like you, you may find relief by using cooking as your stress reliever.
Hear me out. Cooking can be a way to practice self love. Preparing your meals can be used as your escape from your busy schedule if you use it as a mindfulness meditation practice. Cooking provides a wonderful opportunity to be aware of the present moment. When we spend too much time thinking about past events- that leads to feelings of depression. Spending too much time in the future leads to feelings of anxiety and stress. Cooking is a beautiful opportunity to train the mind, to understand what it means to be in the here and now and find happiness in the present experience.
As you begin to cook your food, rather than being lost in thought, notice how the addition of each new ingredient affects the overall fragrance of the dish. Pay attention to the senses. If you feel your mind wandering off, come back to the smell of the food, the increase of temperature in the room, or the feeling of your stomach as it prepares for digestion. Each time the mind wanders, just gently bring the attention back to these sounds and smells.
I challenge you to this mindset shift-- Instead of viewing cooking as a dreaded task or chore, look at cooking as a pleasant, relaxing experience. Say to yourself, "I deserve to eat well" and watch the shift take place.
If you are looking for ideas on healthy meals to prepare at home, try my Nutrition EBooks. Each book includes over 52 recipes for your to try and enjoy! If you are interested in incorporating more plant-based meals into your nutrition- pick up my free Vegan EBook .
Blessings Queens and Kings!