Set Yourself up for Success with a Kitchen Facelift

Looking to eat healthier or lose weight? While goal setting, tracking your macros and calories, and increasing physical activity are all important, many of us forget another key for success: our environment. 

Research shows that making certain changes to your kitchen can significantly improve your weight loss efforts. Today, we’re talking about ways to adjust your kitchen in order to encourage healthier habits.

Countertops and Drawers 

• Keep bowls of fruit and containers of pre-portioned snacks out on the counter. Not only does this make them easy to grab, but it can also stop you from rummaging around in the pantry or cabinet where potentially less-healthy options may be lurking. Mixed nuts, pumpkin seeds, low-sodium jerky, and air-popped popcorn are all nutritious choices to portion into snack-sized bags.
• And keep candy, baked goods, and other tempting foods out of eyesight. Studies have shown that when candy is easily visible, that we eat significantly more of it. Instead, keep sweet treats and munchie foods like chips in the pantry.
• Set out appliances that you’re trying to use more frequently. Now, I’m not saying to crowd you counter space – after all, you still need room for prepping food – but if there’s an appliance or two that you’re trying to use more often, it can help having it out and not tucked away in a cabinet or closet. For example, if you’re trying to make smoothies more often, it’s worth keeping you blender out on the counter as a reminder. Looking to prep more of your meals ahead of time? Maybe keep a rice cooker or slow cooker out to remind you to get dinner started before heading out the door.
• Be strategic with where you place utensils. If you’re looking to do more cooking, it can be helpful to keep spatulas, wooden spoons, and tongs either in a container next to the stove or in a nearby drawer. For knives, I like to keep my knife block next to my cutting boards. Personally, I also find that using smaller utensils helps me to eat slower and more mindfully, so in my silverware drawer, I keep the smaller spoons and forks towards the front and the larger one’s at the back.
• Set out a few favorite spices. While I keep salt and pepper next to my stove for cooking, I also keep a handful of sodium-free seasonings out as well. This is especially helpful when you taste your recipe and feel like “something” is missing. Rather than immediately reaching for the salt shaker, I’ll try one of my go-to spices first. One’s that I always have on hand include an Italian seasoning blend, a sodium-free cajun spice, paprika, cumin, and cayenne pepper. 

Pantry and Cabinets 

• Put healthier items towards the front. Similar to the idea of keeping fruits out on the counter, it can be helpful to organize your pantry and cabinets so that healthier food items are in front and less health options are towards the back. This way, when you open the pantry, either out of actual hunger or just boredom, you’ll see the healthier options first. 
• Stock up on a few healthy basics. As much as I love meal prep, there are days when you just don’t have time to get to the store or what you cooked doesn’t sound appealing. Rather than placing a delivery for take-out, keep a few staples in your pantry for easy, no-fuss meals.
  
  Some of the foods that I try to always have on hand include:
  • Oils and vinegars (including a few infused olive oils for an easy flavor addition)
  • Quick-cooking whole grains, like quinoa, Trader Joe’s bags of 10 min farro, oats, or whole wheat penne pasta  
  • Canned beans and chickpeas 
  • Canned diced tomatoes 
  • Tomato paste 
  • Vegetable or chicken broths 
  • Spice blends 
  • Nuts, such as sliced almonds or roasted hazelnuts
  • Chia or flax seeds 
  • Dark chocolate 
  • Box of healthy pre-packaged granola bars

• Portion out snack foods. This applies to healthy and less-healthy items. Portioning out healthier snacks makes healthier snacking more convenient. And for less-healthy choices like cookies and chips, this trick can help you enjoy what you’re craving while making it easy to keep track of how much you’ve eaten.
• Stock up on reusable food storage containers. Meal prep not only saves time during the week, but it can also help you save money and stay on track with healthier eating. But in order to prep and portion out your meals, you’re going to need food storage containers. 

Here are the ones I recommend having on hand:

• Mason jars for homemade salad dressings, sauces, overnight oats, and even salads 
• Glass containers with lids (at least one large 9×13 and a few personal sized ones)
• Reusable freezer bags 
• Freezer-safe deli containers for soups and chilis 
• Mini snack containers with lids 

Fridge and Freezer 

• Stock up on staple refrigerated items. Similar to your pantry, try to keep a few essential items in your fridge. Some of my musts include:

• Big tub of plain 2% fat Greek yogurt
• A few snack-sized Icelandic yogurts 
• Eggs 
• Milk or milk alternative 
• Natural peanut butter 
• Cheese, including string cheese for snacks and block or crumbled cheeses for cooking
• Low-sodium soy sauce
• Salsa 
• Dijon mustard (for making salad dressings)
• Apple cider vinegar 
• At least one kind of vegetable

   

The Bottom Line

While not all of these tips may be useful or realistic for you, I encourage trying at least one or two. 

After all, weight loss and healthier eating is all about making a bunch of small, sustainable changes to help you achieve and maintain your larger goals. 

Have any of these tips worked for you? Or do you have other tricks for setting your kitchen up for success? Share in the comments below!