Does your home actively reflect a healthy life? Or are you trying to lead a healthier lifestyle in a house full of clutter and chaos? If you are living the latter, you are not alone. It is difficult for most of us to make good choices when it comes to food and to find time to exercise when we are all constantly running behind and life seems out of control. However, there are some simple organizational tips and home design ideas that can help make you feel calm and relaxed. A house designed for health encourages homeowners to make diet-friendly choices.
So where should you start? Remember not to change everything all at once. Go through the list below to see which ones work best for you.
Mindful Hacks to Set Your Kitchen Up for Your Well-Being
Organize the Fridge
We’ve all come home after a long day at work in a “hangry” condition and reached out for the first thing we see. If this happens to you on a regular basis, make sure you have healthy options available to snack on. Store fresh fruits and veggies in clear boxes in the fridge. Also, try to hide any treats that may be lying around, and keep unhealthy and leftover foods towards the back and in opaque containers. You can store carrots, fresh fruits, yogurt, and hummus in baggies and containers in the front to make a healthy choice easier and quicker.
Consider the Fruit Bowl Placement
You might already have a fruit bowl in the kitchen, but are the fruits growing mould? If the answer is yes, there is a good chance your fruit bowl hasn’t been placed properly. If you are focusing on following a healthier diet and trying to lose weight, the position of your fruit bowl can make a significant difference. Placing it in front of the kitchen cabinets that hold snacks can help as the fruits will be the first thing you see when you’re hungry or just tempted to snack. You can place a smaller bowl right next to where you keep your car keys. This way you can pick up a fruit as you’re heading out, making it less likely to stop at the drive-thru when you feel hungry while on the road.
Clean the Countertops
Wondering what a counter in a healthy kitchen looks like? It has ample open space, ready for diet-friendly food prep. You won’t find any bags of chips, baked goods or cereal boxes lying on top of your quartz kitchen countertop. It will also be free of toys, bags, and other clutter. You should make it a point to only have neatly organized utensils and maybe a blender to make fiber-rich and healthy smoothies. If space allows, consider keeping a small digital scale on the counter to help with portion control. But the most important thing is to keep as much of the counter empty as possible to make meal preps easier.
Keep Smaller Plates and Bowls
When we eat food out of larger bowls and plates, we tend to take larger portions because the visible bare space makes us feel deprived. So, keep smaller soup bowls and salad plates nearby and store full-sized dinner plates in higher cupboards. If after finishing one serving in the smaller bowl you still feel hungry, then, of course, grab seconds. This way you’ll listen to your satiety cues and act on them better.
Don’t Allow Screens in the Kitchen
On average, adults spend at least 10 hours of their day glued to some kind of a screen. However, you can use eating as a reason to stay away from them. Some studies suggest individuals who consume food while distracted by technology generally ignore their satiety and hunger signals, and this leads them to eat more than they need. I’m sure we’re all familiar with the feeling of watching our favourite shows only to realize too late that we’ve finished an entire bowl of pasta by the time it is over. So it can do you and your family well by moving the television set and other gadgets out of the kitchen and dining area.
Incorporate More Spices
Are you tired of the plain and boring baked chicken you’ve been eating almost daily? Can’t keep down an added helping of kale any longer? Don’t worry because we’ve got you. You can easily add low-sugar and low-calorie flavour to your meals with the help of a well-stocked spice rack. Use different spices and condiments to make meals less predictable, or liven up salads with unique vinegars and oils such as basil olive oil or pepper vinegar. You may also try out various mustards, spice blends, and hot sauces you can find at your local farmer’s market to make mealtimes interesting.
Reduce Microwave Usage
If you’re someone who uses microwaves frequently, you might want to re-think that habit. People trying to lead a healthier life tend to use the microwave less frequently as a healthy diet doesn’t include processed food, which needs one. But what do you do with your existing microwave? Here’s an idea. Either take it out completely or use it as an additional storage space. Removing it gives you space to use as open shelving and keeping it installed provides the opportunity to store single serving containers out of sight but within reach.
Now that you know this, you won’t be snacking as much as before, right? Wrong. When dealing with life’s daily chaos, we automatically tend to make the exact same mindless eating mistakes we always do. This makes our family suffer along with us. So, it’s difficult to lose weight by willpower alone. However, it is easier if you design your life that way, starting with your kitchen.