Foods to nourish a busy therapist

We have all been there, our lunch break is either rushed, non-existent or at a very un-lunchy time, where your staff canteen may have even stopped serving. Or maybe it is so early into your ten hour day it feels like you’ve just had breakfast. Or maybe you don’t have the luxury of a staff canteen and yours is a packed lunch in the stock room.

The easy option is to snack on quick fixes (read energy drinks, chocolate or sugar laced breakfast bars.) This is also not the best option.

Working physically for any length of time requires fuel, it requires energy and nutrients. How often do you tell your guests to drink plenty of water or to eat the rainbow to clear up their skin or body concerns yet eat a sausage roll at lunch?

I know time is precious, those extra ten minutes hitting the snooze button are golden or maybe you have a long commute, children to get to school or a limited cooking ability. I decided to ask one of the best in the business, highly respected nutritional expert and dietician Faith Toogood (who also is a very busy mum of two small girls so she gets it) to give me some of her top tips for prepping and preparing nutrient dense, tasty meals to take to work.

Faith Toogood’s top tips

Planning really is the cornerstone of nutritional wellbeing. Just 20 minutes spent once a week just going through your diary for the next seven days will be well worth it. It isn’t simply a case of planning seven different main meals. If you can, consider breakfasts, lunches and even snacks. Having all of this pre-planned will not only help to boost nutritional wellbeing but also save you time and money. What’s not to love?!

Make life easy for yourself! This means being realistic with the amount of time that you have to cook and prepare meals and snacks. Anticipate that you will be tired after a long day on your feet and plan some speedy evening meals that will double up for lunch the following day. If you can snatch two minutes in the evening, why not make your breakfast ready for the morning so that you can just grab and go. No excuses to miss breakfast!

Keep hydrated. We all know that being even slightly dehydrated means that your energy levels will suffer. Bad news for busy therapists! Making an effort to have a reusable water bottle on hand throughout the day to keep sipping and keep hydrated will make a huge difference to not only energy levels but your skin. Let’s practice what we preach!

Faith’s go-to breakfast, lunch and dinner

Breakfast - overnight oats (serves 1)

So simple and a ‘grab and go' option for those who find carving out time to sit and eat breakfast very tricky.

Ingredients

50g oats

120 mls fluid (water / cows milk / alternative milk – opting for milk over water will boost protein, calcium and other nutrients so if you can, go for milk)

1 handful frozen OR fresh fruit 

Sometimes nice to add in 1 tbsp linseeds (great for healthy fats and they soften overnight)

Tip into a container, mix and chill in the fridge overnight.

Method

In the morning stir, loosen with more milk if you prefer it runnier and add 1 tbsp natural yoghurt (optional but great for gut health and makes it creamier)

PLUS for extra tastiness add:

1 portion of fresh fruit (berries/apple/banana/kiwi – anything you fancy)

1 tbsp nuts / seeds / nut butter (this boosts healthy fats and minerals plus helps to stabilise the energy release from the meal).

1 tsp honey / maple syrup (optional, to sweeten and in the context of the entire meal this won’t affect blood sugar levels hugely)

Lunch - supercharged smoothie

A quick smoothie also hit the spot when energy levels are low, this chocolate and avocado version is amazingly tasty, nutrient dense and filling.

Ingredients

1 avocado

1 heaped tsp raw cacao powder

1 large handful spinach

1 banana

400mls water / coconut water / coconut milk / almond milk

A few ice cubes

Method

So simple, just chuck in the blender and whizz it up!

Dinner - roasted veg and lentil salad

Tip a small tub of cherry tomatoes into a roasting tray, peel and slice an onion and add to the roasting tray along with a little salt and pepper (chilli if you like some heat!) a drizzle of olive oil / sunflower oil. Pop into the oven and roast for 20-30 mins.

When you are ready to assemble, drain a tin or open a pack of pre-cooked puy lentils and pop half of the tin / pack into a lunch box. Tip the roasted veg in along with a handful of rocket or spinach leaves and finally crumble a thumb sized chunk of feta over the top. Mix it all well, pop a lid on and store in the fridge ready to take to work tomorrow.

I hope this inspires you and most importantly fuels you for your next few shifts at work!