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7 Food Related Resolutions That Have Nothing To Do With That Extra 10 Lbs

Eating is meant to make you happy, not miserable

By Alice VuongPublished 3 years ago 10 min read
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7 Food Related Resolutions That Have Nothing To Do With That Extra 10 Lbs
Photo by Alexandra Gorn on Unsplash

A new year typically means new resolutions to lose weight or to only drink lemon and turmeric for breakfast. January is the time of year to hit the gym (if they’re open still) and try to lose that extra 10 lbs we gained over the holidays or the extra weight you’ve been carrying since…well…forever. I still have baby weight from being pregnant and I’m not sure if I’ll ever get rid of it. Even then, I’m not too worried about getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight.

I’ve never had an obsession with food. I guess I’m lucky that I’ve never truly worried about my weight nor have I ever made resolutions to lose any. But with that being said, I always have a goal to be healthier and happier than I was the year before and food plays a huge part in making that happen. If your goal this year is to be happier and healthier than last year, here are some food resolutions that might help you get started.

Support a local restaurant

Restaurants have been hurting since the start of the pandemic. A lot of them are forced to close either temporarily or permanently. Some lost their only form of income while others had to shut down their dream. Those that were able to remain open were restricted to only take-out or delivery options. While some restaurants already had a delivery system in place, the ones that didn’t had to rely on food delivery services incurring delivery fees as high as 30% of the bill.

While some of your favorite restaurants may have closed down, there are still tons out there that are surviving. Before we had a second wave of restrictions, we went for Peruvian the night before the restrictions were to take place and the food was amazing. While we’ve frequented this restaurant before, it’s been at least a year since we’ve gone back. They’re the only Peruvian restaurant left in my city.

While it’s important to support your favorite local restaurants now more than ever, it’s a good way to expand your palette, experience different cultures, and it’s one way to soothe your travel bug without leaving home. I would never know what Uzbekistan cuisine is if I didn’t suggest we go there when I found out about the restaurant.

If we can support the families, wait staff, and cooks of these restaurants while enjoying some good food, it’s money well spent. And if possible, grab take-out instead of delivery.

Stop feeling guilty when you treat yourself to a treat

Dessert, chips, and really anything that aren’t vegetables and fruit are made to make you feel guilty. They’re considered guilty pleasures for a reason.

But aren’t you sick of feeling guilty every time you eat a piece of chocolate cake?

Don’t you want to savor that last bite of cheesecake without worrying about the calories and fat content?

It’s exhausting to feel guilty all the time. Our minds and bodies aren’t meant for us to feel bad about eating a handful of chips or a bowl of Ferrero ice cream. Food should be relished and enjoyed. Obviously this comes with a caveat that to enjoy that cake, you also need to eat your vegetables. But if you’ve eaten your broccoli, then enjoy every bite of that chocolate cake, guilt free.

Eat more fruits and veggies

We all know that fruits and veggies can reduce the risk of various diseases. It’s full of vitamins and nutrients plus they’re (sometimes) delicious.

I used to be better at eating my fruits and veggies when I worked in the office. My meals were set and my 3pm snack would be either fruit or yogurt and avocado. I probably didn’t get enough fruits and veggies then but now that I’m working from home, I’m definitely not getting enough.

I haven’t done a good job of taking care of myself in 2020. I’m going to try harder this year and the first thing I’m going to start doing is to eat more fruits and veggies. My mind and body feel good after eating it so I’m not sure why I’ve cut back on it since having to work from home.

Fruits are obviously easier to eat than vegetables but incorporating mushrooms and carrots in our meals shouldn’t be that difficult. Soups and stews make it easier to eat celery, butternut squash, and onions. Another way to incorporate more fruits and veggies in your life is to blend it all up in a smoothie. You’d be surprised at how many handfuls of spinach you can fit in a NutriBullet cup or how tasty kale can be when you mix in some blueberries and an orange.

Fruits and vegetables are only one part of a balanced diet so if you only have one carrot in 2 days, don’t beat yourself up — you can always add an apple tomorrow.

Check out the produce section for a new vegetable or fruit

I usually like to be in and out of grocery stores so I tend to buy the same herbs, fruit and vegetables. I’ve eaten my fair share of odd looking fruits (dragon fruit or durian anyone?) but I’m more hesitant to try new vegetables because I have no idea how to cook them. Recently I added jicama and daikon to the shopping list. My mom always had daikon in her soups and I’ve seen it in some Chinese dishes but I never thought to buy it until I saw my 20 month old son gobbling it up. And when my kid decides he will eat a vegetable, I’m going to stock up.

A daikon looks rather daunting as it’s sometimes the size of my arm but it was surprisingly easy to peel and cook. There are some things that are scary to look at but once you commit to trying it, you could be pleasantly surprised at how much you like it, or if you don’t like it, then at least you tried.

Daikon is now a staple in my household.

Photo of daikon. Source: The Spruce Eats

Subscribe to a meal delivery service for a week

My husband and I are decent cooks (or so I like to think) and we have a few go-to recipes for dinners if we’re in a pinch. We usually have ingredients for a vermicelli bowl with shrimp. But eating gets boring if we have to go to our go-tos 90% of the time. Sometimes we’ll order a pizza or pick up a burger but you can only do that so often. And while we do have an array of great restaurants in the city, it takes a toll on our wallets and our bellies to eat out 4–5 times a week.

Circulating the same meals and ingredients are a sure fire way to be bored of eating.

When I first heard of a meal delivery service, I thought it was a waste of money. Every week you pick out 2–4 recipes from a company’s website, and they send you the recipe cards and all the ingredients so you can make it yourself at home. For a homemade meal, I still consider it a little pricey as the average meal is about $12–13 per person. We started it because my sister-in-law gave us a free week to try (this is why I recommend only a week because there’s usually a large discount that first week). I thought we would be cancelling after the first week but it is one of the best investments we’ve made.

The ingredients are fresh, the right proportions which means no more rotting vegetables in my fridge and less trips to the grocery store. The meals are always balanced and helps with the ‘eat more veggies’ resolution. It also means that we get to try new cuisines that we never would’ve thought to make like Mediterranean spiced beef, and I don’t know how I’ve lived so long without having pearl couscous in my life but please try it if you haven’t already. The service also expanded my abilities in the kitchen as I’ve learned some tricks from their recipes. The only caveat I have is to never trust their estimated cooking time.

But the best part about having a meal delivery service is I no longer need to have the annoying “what do you want for dinner” discussion with my husband.

Cook a recipe you’ve been afraid of making

While my family is Chinese, my parents actually grew up in Vietnam so pho has always been a part of my life. It’s a very intricate broth of beef bones, beef flank/shank, star anise, other herbs, and time. It needs to boil for hours and usually best eaten the day after so the flavors can percolate and soak into the broth.

By Markus Winkler on Unsplash

I’ve always wanted to try making it but always a little scared to. Marrying a Vietnamese guy who’s family used to own a Vietnamese restaurant didn’t help to ease my hesitation.

But I finally found the courage to make it and it turned out better than I thought. It helps that my mom was guiding me the entire time but I did it and I did it again a few weeks later. Sometimes, I don’t even know what I’m afraid of but it helps to get over it nonetheless.

Making homemade pho wasn’t so I could have pho anytime I want, it was also about boosting my confidence in the kitchen. Who knew that boosting your self-esteem can be as simple as making a recipe you’ve been afraid of screwing up?

Drink more water

This is usually on New Year’s resolutions but I never keep track of how much water I drink so I never know if I’ve had more or less water than the year before. The only thing I know is that I’m drinking enough water to keep me alive.

This resolution usually goes out the window because as easy as it sounds, it’s actually quite difficult to do. Reaching for that cup of water rather than the coffee or soft drink requires a certain amount of willpower.

But I know I’m dehydrated. By the time you feel thirsty enough to reach for that bottle of water, you’re already dehydrated. And I’m thirsty all the time. I definitely don’t drink enough water and nursing my coffee for half a day doesn’t exactly help.

We all know the benefits of drinking more water -it flushes out toxins, keeps your skin looking vibrant, and helps your kidneys function properly, to name a few.

Some of us don’t like the bland taste of water but I don’t mind it. If you want some flavor, one of my coworkers used to infuse her water with different fruits. I usually have a bottle of water with me even in the house but I sometimes forget to drink it especially when I have coffee in front of me instead. If only I could drink my coffee faster.

Water is in almost everything so if you don’t like plain water there are alternatives like juices, eating more fruits and veggies, smoothies. Whatever you need to stay hydrated and not have this resolution be a chore, I say go for it.

A lot of people may think drinking more water as a boring resolution but sometimes the boring ones are the most beneficial ones. Sometimes the boring and simple resolutions are exactly what you need to improve your quality of life.

Resolutions are supposed to make you feel good about yourself and that’s the same with food. We’re so conditioned to feel guilty about eating but food is one of the great joys in life. The purpose of food isn’t to make you feel guilty, it’s to nourish you and replenish your body and mind. If we can find balance in what we put in our bodies, and give ourselves permission to enjoy the food we eat rather than feel bad about it, we might be able to like what we see when we look at ourselves in the mirror.

This story originally appeared on Medium

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About the Creator

Alice Vuong

I write because I can't not write.

Parenting, relationships, marketing, personal development, and anything that interests me is my writing jam.

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