A client of mine was having health issues. She was losing a ton of weight and nobody knew why, they feared the worst as most of us would. The kids wouldn’t eat, her husband was annoyed because she was not cooking what he wanted for his diet dinnertime was a warzone. Sound familiar? I sat down with client her and asked A TON of questions so I could get a picture of exactly what was going on in her world. I quickly discovered that her weight loss was likely due to poor nutrition more than anything, she was so stressed and busy that she wasn’t eating and when she did the food choices were less than optimal for what she needed. Over the course of an hour I made an assessment and I was pretty confident in my recommendations.
We made a plan
1. Hire a mother’s helper
2. Take 1 yoga class weekly
3. We created lists/ banks or different types of proteins, carbs and veggies that she would rotation a weekly basis, about 10 on each list so nobody would get bored.
4. Outline weekly dinners
5. Cook in batches, she would basically mix and match dinners from the lists that we created. It kept it super easy and manageable. Everything would be served on separate plates so those that wanted more carbs or less carbs could all eat the same meal.
6. For her personally we selected a list of about 10 rotating meals/snacks that she could make for herself ahead of time so that she wouldn’t get bored or have to scramble and end up grabbing a pretzel as she ran out the door. The key is that all had to be high protein and easy to prepare.
She checked in with me a few weeks later – here’s what she had to say:
Hello! I just wanted to check in and let you know how I’m doing. The one meeting I had with you changed my life so much. I’m doing great! Mike and I have been doing meal prep every weekend and it has been life changing. I did not realize how much stress was coming from cooking every night and not knowing what to make. I am using your lists and making sure that I switch up my proteins, carbs and veggies. The fact that I know what each night’s meal is gong to be each night and that the stuff is cooked is awesome. With cooking in batches and not one pot meal everyone in my family had been able to get what they need. Hubby is happier and so am I. I have been feeling so much better. When I don’t feel like eating, I repeat what you said, children are able to eat what they want to eat went they want to eat it and I am not a child. The kids are finally eating wonderfully. Isabella and Madelyn are eating their dinner every night!!!
I can’t thank you enough, I knew changes had to made but didn’t know how to make them. I hope you and your family are well.
I may have given her the tools, but she had to put in the work and she sure as shit did.