Eating healthy food takes some forethought. Sure you can grab an apple when you get hungry, but how about when you get home from work and you want a meal? One woman in this class said it was just too hard to come home from work and think about cutting up vegetables and everything else it takes to put together a meal.
How about taking an hour or two when you’re not hungry and combining food prep with some type of meditation practice like’Chop Wood, Carry Water.’ Only this meditation could be deep breathing and focussing entirely on the carrot in front of you. It’s actually very relaxing. I cut veggies for these groups every Saturday morning and I’ve come to find it a peaceful ritual. Most of the time I listen to beautiful music. My mind becomes still. Sitting meditation has never worked that well for me, but if my hands are busy doing something like cutting vegetables, there’s no reason for my mind has to be busy too. For some people, just getting their yoga mat out brings a sense of calm. For me, it’s similar when I look down at a clean cutting board, a bunch of veggies and an empty glass container.
The key is making time for it. Most knife accidents happen when people are in a rush. If you don’t like the idea of meditating while you chop, you can always bring your laptop to the kitchen and watch a great movie or TED talk. (Eyes on hands when chopping, not the computer screen.)
If you set aside an hour or two twice a week, you’ll find you have plenty of freshly cut veggies ready to go for your stir-fries, soups or salads. There’s something very satisfying now when I look in my fridge and see my neatly placed glass bowls full of ready-to-go veggies. You can get the green bags like Debbie Meyer to keep the produce fresh longer. Keep in mind, some veggies stay fresh longer like hardy kale, collards, beets, etc. Cucumbers and the more watery veggies don’t stay fresh as long.
Get a variety of colors when you go to the store. Most of us have a tendency to stick with the vegetables we know and love. Try getting at least one new item from the produce aisle once a week. Try kohlrabi, brussel sprouts or whatever is in season. They’ll cost less and be nutrient dense.
Happy chopping and remember to infuse your food with love and thoughts of abundance!