You know that feeling you have when you get home after a long day and the last thing you want to do is anything besides sit down?
What do you usually eat in that time? I bet it's not a fresh, nutritious meal made from scratch (unless you are one of the people several steps ahead of me, kudos). For the rest of you, follow these steps:
1. Get home and take off your shoes. Put music on the speakers that makes you feel good.
2. Pour yourself ONE generous glass of wine (sip over the next two hours). Rosé is great for summer, or a crisp white.
3. Cut up some vegetables and put them on a pan. Drizzle some olive oil on them. Add a little salt. It is the EASIEST thing to do, and it also happens to taste amazing -- fresh, whole, juicy, satisfying.
Example veggies: CORN (place as many as you want, husk and all, on the middle rack of your oven and bake for 30 minutes), green and red peppers, onions, kale, asparagus, tomatoes (all so good!). This is not a complete list. If there's something in the list you don't like, pick another vegetable -- there are so many out there. Also, this is great for a variety of uses. Roast a big batch of kale for a few days worth of chips. Roast up a good amount of peppers and onions and save to throw in a skillet with some pasta and marinara for an excellent dish tomorrow, or throw them in a sandwich for lunch the next day.
4. In the 30 minutes while your veggies are roasting in the oven on or around 350 degrees, turn your music up and just STAND either in the kitchen or in your living room. Stand there, listening to the music. Try to make yourself do this for the duration of the 30 minutes. See if you stay still (PRO TIP: You won't).
5. In the event you do end up just standing and get bored, go into your kitchen and clean some dishes, do a batch of laundry, or sweep/mop the floor. The point is, it's 30 minutes you are MOVING, and not sitting. If you begin to incorporate movement into space where you usually sit at the same time you begin eating meals made from fresh veggies, you will begin to notice a difference in how you feel and probably how you look. It's just the way the body works. It's awesome.
Eating well, moving, and cooking don't have to be chores. They can compliment each other so you'll have more time to go back to watching TV or whatever you would rather be doing (although once you start moving to the music you may find you prefer that to watching TV).
This piece was originally published at http://courtneymckinney.com.