Cook and Do Food Prep When You Are Not Hungry!

It's no secret that I'm a big time "meal planner".  I love to cook, and I love food prep, it's my form of meditation.  But I can't meditate when I'm hungry!

In my last blog post I talk about eating when you are not hungry...mostly out of boredom as food has become a form of entertainment in this culture.  Maybe I have deep overeating food "triggers", or habits that still present a bit of "charge" behind them.  I only say that because I know there are plenty of people in this world that have no "charge", or "triggers" to eat more than they need to...I want to be one of those people!  I know they exist!  I live with one, and have a best friend that is one....

Anyway....  One of the ways I skip over walking into these "triggers" is to cook and do meal prep when I'm the least hungry.  For me that works out to be first thing in the morning, usually right after I get up at 4:00am.  My first obligation, when I'm not teaching, is at the earliest, 7:00am, and most times not until 8:00am, so I can get a ton done before I leave the house in the morning, making things perfect for when I get home around 12-1:00. Lunch is ready, dinner too!  I also have the most amount of energy first thing in the morning....talk about multi tasking!  I can have all three pressure cookers going at once!

The next best time for me to cook is after I eat!  After lunch it's common for me to start dinner, at least the prep for it.  But then dinner comes around and lots of times I'll find myself heating up something already made, skip cooking but organize prep ingredients for first thing the next morning.

That's what I did today.  I had planned on roasting a chicken and making some liver pate this morning, but no time....  I knew I could do it when I got home, but I was hungry!  I ate lunch and I knew if I roasted that chicken I'd end up eating half of it right out of the oven!  Crispy chicken skin is hard, hard, hard to resist....but not at 6:00 in the morning!

It will be fine for the morning.  In addition to roasting the chicken, making the pate I'll also throw some 6 grain rice in the PC to eat with my peanut butter and all will be well again.

Know what may trigger you and "don't go there"!  Lots of times I say, "If you buy it you'll eat it!"  I know that about myself!  "Triggers" may just be old habits that still have some unconscious "charge" behind them.  I'm not worried that I can't change, I know I can change because I want to, and I am changing, in fact I've already made so many positive permanent changes!  Choosing how I want to live my life, and creating new habits is exciting!

In the mean time I'll cook and do my food prep when I'm not hungry, and I won't buy any foods I don't want to eat.  That works for me, and that's fine.

PS  If you do not make most of your meals I still believe it's best to plan and arrange to purchase your breakfast/lunch/dinner when you are not yet hungry.  You order less, you buy less, and therefore you just might eat less!