Whether you’re a working mom or stay-at-home, have little babies or school-aged kids, the fact is that being a mom is a lot of work. And it doesn’t always make healthy eating easy. Busy schedules often mean moms are grabbing food on-the-go, and sometimes making unhealthy choices. But the truth is that Nutrisystem makes on-the-go eating easy and can help you stay on track while also raising your family. Here are seven weight loss tips from eight busy Nutrisystem moms who are making it work:
1. Don’t Eat the Kids’ Food.
Finishing the leftovers on the kids’ plates seems harmless enough. But Cory Goodrich says she’s learned that those “couple bites of mac and cheese or the crusts of the peanut butter sandwich” can add up to hundreds of calories in a relatively short time. She says that while she was preventing food from going to waste, she was “allowing it to go to her waist.” Now, she makes a conscious effort to remain strictly on the diet program by sticking to what’s on her weight loss food list each day and skipping the leftovers.
2. Make Meals Ahead of Time.
Rachelle Marable says that both crock pot meals and weekend weight loss meal prep help her stay on track—even on the busiest of days. When meals are ready to go, the temptation to go out to eat or grab something fast after a long school and workday is eliminated. Use weekends to plan ahead for the week’s meals or find fun crock pot dinners online that you can “set and forget” until dinnertime.
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3. Involve the Kids.
Laura Avon says that one way she stays on track is by making healthy eating a family affair. She always keeps her two boys involved in choosing healthy foods for the whole family to eat. They assist in helping prepare the foods which Avon says keeps them interested in what they’re eating. In turn, it also helps her stay on track.
4. Encourage Healthy Snacks.
Like Avon, Teresa B. says that she helps keep her family on track by watching their healthy eating habits, too. Chocolate chip cookies may be tempting for an afternoon snack but Teresa combats that temptation by having vegetables cut-up and ready to go. With nonfat dressing as a dip it makes the perfect afternoon snack to curb cravings and stay on track before dinner. Have healthy snacks ready to grab so that it’s easy to make good choices.
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5. Keep it Similar.
Ann Stack has found that selecting Nutrisystem meals that are similar to what the kids are having helps her fight the temptation to eat something outside of the diet program.
“For example, I may have the Chicken Parmesan meal and then fix them spaghetti,” Stack says. “We will then all have the same veggie. Not eating out of the plastic container helps, too. I put all of our meals in the same dishes so it’s like we are having the same meal. Then I don’t feel like I am missing out on anything.”
6. Make Breakfast Less Stressful.
Most moms say that mornings are hectic and as a result, it’s sometimes easier to make unhealthy choices like a drive-through breakfast or even skipping it all together. Because Lori B. says that mornings are “go time” for her—getting everyone ready and out the door to school and work, or more recently, get everyone ready for online schooling and work-from-home days—she plans ahead. Instead of skipping breakfast, which can lead to mid-day cravings, she grabs a Nutrisystem breakfast bar she can enjoy on-the-go. She also leaves a shaker and Nutrisystem shakes in her office. And the night before, Lori packs all three kids’ lunches and her daily dose of healthy snacks.
“The less to do in the morning, the better,” Lori says.
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7. Always Make a List.
Every Sunday Morgan Root says she takes time to plan weekly meals and make her grocery list, which includes the items she needs for the Nutrisystem diet program. Root says that having a list when going to the grocery store has helped her tremendously.
“I no longer find myself grabbing extra items just because they ‘looked yummy,’” she admits. “I have a plan and I stick to it. That helps me stay on track even when life gets busy.”
