Between school and working full time I have less than 0 energy to cook food when I get home. I also don’t have the energy/time/attention span to pack a lunch most days. I’ve been eating like a raccoon for a month just waiting to feel up to meal prepping because this current pattern is bleeding me dry. What works for you?
Cook a huge amount when you can, eat leftovers forever.
You’re a student? I guarantee someone on campus has already done the hard work of making a calendar with all the events with free food for students on it. Subscribe and dine.
Me, I have a job that feeds me at least one meal a day. I eat what I can there.
this is how I made it thru college
What worked for me is marrying someone that is a phenomenal cook. Have you tried proposing to any chefs?
My partner taught me how to cook and now relies on me to be the family chef haha. She’s chronically ill and already working full time to help keep a roof over our heads while I axe my overtime for school. Safe to say she’s more spent than I am at the end of her shift
My more serious answer would be something along the lines of a crock pot. You can get fancy and do stuff like brown your meat before putting it in or timing some ingredients, but most recipes will work just fine if you just dump everything in and turn it on. Along with that you can make freezer meals for the crock pot. Cut up everything and toss it in a freezer bag. You can include seasoning. If there’s anything extra that needs to be added on the day you make it you can just note it on the bag. Then when you want it just dump it all in same as before.
Sandwiches
I was relying on sandwiches for a while there and made myself sick of them haha. It’s been a few months though, I may have to give it another shot
Might try getting bread from an actual bakery. Makes it more fun. Embrace tomatoes, cucumber, mayo, olives, arugula, etc. Easy to make it healthy!
and “fresh” sliced cheese from a deli counter too, if cheese is your thing!
Poorly.
First off is taking some of my meals as a liquid, Protein powder plus iced coffee has been doing wonders for me in the morning and it takes seconds to assemble. The other one is made a deal with my roommate that I’d cook dinner most nights if I never had to mow the lawn so the subtle pressure of not just needing to feed myself helps as well.
Another thing is you can’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Some days if its calories that isn’t pure sugar then I count that as a win and promise to try to do better tomorrow. I still skip meals on the regular to the point that my name has become a verb to describe the phenomenon but we do our best right?
I do have a bag of protein powder collecting dust on top of my fridge. I think I’ll give it a shot, thanks!
rice cooker to me is easier than ordering food. Plus it only needs to be a few times a week as leftovers are microwaved and my containers are glass and sized about right for a meal so just eat it in it with no additional dishes.
StirFrys, get a pan screaming hot, chop veggies, chop meat, wack them in, stir em up, add a sauce packet (black-bean/hosoin&garlic whatever you like) chuck noodles on top, 12 minutes top, serves 2.
Any veg and any meat will work, the sauce packets and noodles (not the dried type!) will keep for ever
You don’t even need to chop. I keep a zipper bag of pre frozen stir fry mix from Costco in the freezer. They take slightly longer to cook because frozen but they brown just fine.
I also cook meat and veggies separately. Meat first, then rest and chop on cutting board while veggies cook. The veggies also deglaze the delicious meat crust from the pan as they cook. Once they’re done, add the chopped meat and whatever else (sauce, noodles, toppings) and eat.
Sporadically.
Hey !
On the last 4 years I’ve been working full time / having a lot of occupations the rest of the time, and yeah … it sucks.
Depending on my social situation I have two main solutions :
- Organizing with people : when I live w/ people we often organize for food preparation. Someday somebody will pack lunch for everybody in the house in the morning / the evening, or the week-end for the week.
- Doing biiiig meal on the week-end, for the whole week / half the week: Things like broths can be really well conserved, as well as sandwich ingredients etc… You are not obligated to do full meal, you can also prep some parts to lightweight meal prep during the week etc… This ofc depends on when and how you have free-time.
This also comes with alarm clock, reminder etc… so I don’t fck up my rhythm.
Also, I am vegetarian and had a lot of financial issues lately, this was also a strategy I / we used to buy food from wholesale merchants.
~melimosa
That’s awesome
Air fryer. Seriously. I can have a ton of frozen foods in stock and eat exactly how much I need or will eat rather quickly. It’s not exactly healthy, but it’s calorie intake. If I didn’t have frozen food I’d be gaunt, or super fat/broke from fast food. The fact that I’m still alive is owed to my kid, my dog and that air fryer.
Easy meals like chili are a fan favorite but I also grab a bunch of vegetables, lather them in olive oil and whatever seasonings I’m feeling and then put them in the oven at like 350-400 until crispy enough to munch on. Great success
Sometimes I eat peanutbutter out of the jar. Rice is also great if you have a rice cooker
“Dad’s Lava Chicken” (my kids call it that); it takes about 30 minutes from start to finish (depending on how much I have to trim the chicken), and makes tons of left overs. Pro tip: don’t cut the asparagus, break the ends of with your fingers.
A super easy Tuna Casserole (if you’re into that sort of thing).
A White Bean Chicken Chili. Tons of left overs.
My personal fave: Balsamic Vinaigrette Chickenin the crockpot.
Ps. I also buy ready-made salad and use just balsamic vinegar and pepper as the dressing for my veggies.
Do they sing the song?
Yes. We all do. It’s kinda catchy. 🤣
Those all sound lovely and low effort, I’ll have to try them out, thanks!
Anytime! I’m a single dad who has to feed two youngish children, so I feel the pressure just like you do with school and work. It’s exhausting, but worth it. Bonus points: it’s also helped me lose 20 lbs over the summer because I’m not eating like crap. So there’s that too.
I have kids with ADHD who all think I am, what I tell them to do when they get too skinny (maybe it is racoon food, but)
Buy Triscuit crackers and hummus and olives and nuts. High calorie in a small package but not unhealthy, some good fats are calming.
Take a banana with you, and a water bottle. Sandwiches are also such good travel food.
In a pinch, a spoonful of peanut butter. But the one that doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup.
Try to stay away from refined sugar until you are eating better and more regularly. Don’t be afraid of caffeine though.
It is hard. I have done full time work and school, it’s hard for anyone. It’s not you. Can’t say life ever slowed down but school was the worst for me.
Sorry, just read down and saw you need to cook for someone else too.
Chili in the crockpot.
Canned beans on rice.
Those cooked chickens from the grocery make good quesadillas.
Ramen, you can throw shrimp in there while it’s cooking, or some of that leftover chicken.
Salads are just chopped vegetables.
Soups, chili, or anything watery can be made in bulk and then frozen in quart baggies (or other size-of-use) container.
Keep stuff like humus and peanut butter around so you can have a semi-healthy snack in a hurry.
Tofu is fully cooked already - just drain and (optional) season and (optional) heat. Chop, brush with oil and toss it in the air fryer, then heat up some frozen broccoli while you’re waiting. Bit of soy sauce and garlic and that’s a meal.
Keep easy precursors around. Refried beans, tortilla shells, and frozen fajita mix. Buncha beans, onions, and tomato paste for no-shop chili. Curry mix, dried mushrooms, and frozen tofu. You get the idea. Then whenever you get to the store you can make something that needs fresh ingredients - say a white bean and mirepoix soup that you can make an entire crockpot of and freeze.
Grabbing a slow cooker and recipes for hearty stews is a solid starting point - only prep work is chopping veg and adding spices, chopped tomatoes are a good base for almost everything that involves a “chuck it in the pot” recipes. After it’s cooked the only thing you need to do is cook some rice or pasta to finish off the meal.
Alternatively training your brain to think ‘If I don’t cook a meal for myself I’m only going to feel worse tomorrow’ helps (Only slightly hypocritical coning from a guy that reached the point where my health was in serious decline during the worst times of not eating, and despite wanting to die I know I have to eat every day.)
