Be Prepared...for Health!

The new brown bag lunch.

Everybody's noticed by now: it's a food jungle out there. Fast, grabbable, not-so-healthy and even downright dangerous fare is always just a quick stop away. If you want to take care of yourself by eating well in this world, you have to be prepared.

One of the best ways to stay on top of your nutrition game is to bring your lunch to work. Taking along your own food keeps you in charge of what goes into your mouth, and of how you end up feeling in your body at the end of the day.

Clean, fresh food just feels better!

But being prepared takes...preparation! You can't bring your lunch to work if there's nothing in the fridge. That's why I recommend planning your daily food in advance. You can do this one day at a time, in chunks based on your next trip to the market, or for the whole week ahead. At the very least, figure out the night before what you plan to eat the following day. Write it down. Then do it!

Writing down your food ahead of time gives you a game plan. It's an especially useful tool for when you happen to stray away from the path of clean eating a little too far, or too long.

Figure out what you need to do to get your health, weight or digestion back on track. (This is where a call to your nutritionist might come in handy.) Maybe it's taking a break from grains, cutting out the dark chocolate or doing a little juice fast. Whatever you decide, write down what you plan to eat for the next few days. Writing it down makes it real.

You might want to include your exercise plans as well. Build them right into your schedule. Then, follow your program. And celebrate your success. Give yourself a gold star on the calendar for every day you love yourself healthy. Why not? Intention and planning take effort. Be proud of your achievements. You deserve to feel amazing!