I was thrilled to receive an email from a client with the subject: “Lunch day 1! I’m excited”. This client had told me only days before how challenged and insecure she feels in the kitchen. Her husband does most of the cooking and after years of relying on him she had gotten out of the practice of preparing meals. She told me that she believed she would be more successful toward her goals if she prepped her lunches for workdays to avoid eating on the fly at fast food restaurants and delis.
She relayed the following to me and it very much exemplifies health coaching and habit change.
Hi MaryAnn, So I just finished cooking lunch for myself for tomorrow. I went and purchased the ingredients partly over the weekend and partly this evening (despite the snow!) I didn’t want anything to get in my way unless it was a true emergency.
It was fun to be thinking of it in anticipation and I’ll admit I felt a little anxious about the outcome and the whole (cooking) 🙂 process. I nonetheless rolled up my sleeves and started peeling the sweet potatoes as soon as I got home. I then moved onto looking for spices to spice up the chicken breasts. My kitchen started looking a bit disastrous at one point and even my younger daughter walked in and said “Mom this kitchen is looking crazy. What happened?” I felt both like laughing at the situation and having a mini panic attack all at once. Then the olive oil in the oven started smoking and the smoke alarm went off. I forgot EVOO has a low smoking point!! 🤪 Luckily it was a quick ordeal and the potatoes were ready to be removed from the oven right at that time. So everything was back under control again. Phew!!
So that’s my story for my round 1 getting lunch going. It wasn’t easy but I feel a sense of accomplishment! My daughter also came in and told me she drank water after she ate dinner and she was curious about what I was cooking. This was exactly what I’d been hoping for! Them observing me taking risks and learning how to be a healthy cook
Way to go Amanda you faced your fears, laughed at your mistakes and inspired your family. You are beyond brave to take on a new challenge and I feel so grateful to be on this journey by your side. xoxo/m
