I remember planning my last meal like it was, well, my last meal. I was probably being a little dramatic when I ordered my final wood-fired pizza, but I knew things were about to become infinitely harder.
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I eat at restaurants more often than I probably should. Don't get me wrong, I love to cook, but my friends are scattered throughout the city so we need to meet somewhere in the middle—usually out for a quick meal. And most other nights I take a late fitness class after work and pick up dinner on the way home.
As a veggie-loving pescatarian, my diet is actually pretty healthy, but I was anxious about what would happen when I had to prepare every single meal for 2 weeks. The upside: I saved some money. The downside: The challenge was even more onerous than I expected. Here's what happened when I nixed restaurant food for 2 whole weeks.
I ate a kilo of carrots.
Yes, I literally ate a kilo of carrots. After a while, I didn't know what else to bring for lunch. At first I packed my dinner leftovers, but once those ran out I resorted to making wild-caught and dairy-free tuna salad sandwiches for lunch with a heaping side of baby carrots. After a while this lunch staple became remarkably underwhelming. Once I exhausted the tuna sandwich, I just started throwing random odds and ends from my refrigerator into my Tupperware container.
I was VERY regular.
Maybe it was the carrots? Let's just say, I spent a lot more time than I expected in the loo. Because I was cooking at home, I probably ate even more fibre than I normally do. I'm heavy-handed with the spinach when I cook and I try to toss it into almost every dish I make to amp up the nutritional value. It was comforting to actually know what ingredients were going into my meals, and it was convenient that things were moving like clockwork.
Eggs became my BFF.
By week two, I was so over it. I was tired, bored, and freaking sick of carrots. Instead of carefully planning my dinners, I made "brinner"—or breakfast for dinner—and called it a night. I'm a sucker for whole wheat avocado toast with two eggs and sautéed spinach (again with the spinach). On my lazy nights, I made (soggy) scrambled eggs and ate more carrots.
Then I became a recluse.
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Cooking every meal at home dominated my schedule. I only went to work and straight home—or to the supermarket—every single day. Because I skipped my usual weekly commitments I caught a nasty case of cabin fever. Instead of taking my weekly fitness classes, I practiced yoga at home to ensure I had enough time to cook. (Fortunately, I'm a yoga teacher, so doing a home practice instead isn't a huge deal, but I felt like I was confined to barracks.) I even had to pass on a weekend trip because I didn't think I could carry a sandwich with me at all times. Plus, I thought it would be too tempting to go to restaurants without ordering—I knew my undying love for guacamole would lead me astray.
A recipe delivery service saved the day.
My boyfriend figured the challenge would be a doozy so he ordered a recipe delivery service for us to try. It was a game changer and made preparing dinner so much easier. Also, because I didn't have to think about what to make every night, it lessened my cognitive load. It was amazing to come home and have pre-portioned ingredients for a tasty brussels sprouts dish in my fridge.
On the second weekend, I finally gave in.
I broke—twice. The first time I had a mini-meltdown and shared a mac & cheese with my girlfriends. I justified it as a snack, because I split it with 3 friends. That's just a snack, right? On the second weekend, I went away for a class reunion. Fortunately, I packed my own car snacks. Unfortunately, I didn't plan my Saturday lunch, so I ended up eating a cup of soup at a restaurant before we fixed dinner at a friend's house.
The habit stuck.
Since the challenge, I've been cooking more at home during the week. Because I already enjoy cooking, this was the jump-start I needed to recommit to making healthy, home-cooked meals. Would I try this challenge again someday? No way. But I'm happy to say that it helped me find a middle ground. With much fewer carrots.
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