Ways to Improve Your Health Through Cooking

Many people enjoy a fitness regime and try to take care of their bodies. At this time of the year, New Year’s resolutions will have been broken by lots of well-intentioned people. Gym memberships may not be completely discarded but perhaps the initial excitement of working out has waned slightly.

For some people instead of going to the gym, there are other ways of improving personal health. Although exercise should never be overlooked, a healthy diet is also important. However, it isn’t just the food you put in your body but also the way you make it. Many people are put off from cooking because they think it could be too complicated or expensive to buy equipment. Here are some ways you can eat healthier without breaking the bank or needing the skills of Gordon Ramsay. 

Try steaming your food

One of the simplest ways to eat healthily is to cook with steam. Steaming your food means that you retain a lot more vitamins than cooking with other methods and you avoid oil meaning no added fat. It also means your cooking utensils are easy to clean as you are only using water.

If you want to start steaming your food then the easiest way is to buy a silicone or bamboo steamer basket and use this on your existing saucepan or wok. There are electric steamers you can buy if you are serious about eating this way a lot but with a silicone steamer basket, there is no need to spend a lot of money. Steaming is ideal for vegetables and there are a lot of factual health benefits to eating fish which works great with a steamer. 

Buy a multi-cooker

If you are keen on changing your diet and cooking more healthy food then a multi-cooker such as an Instant Pot can help. Much like steaming, an Instant Pot also cooks through heat and moisture. The difference is the pot can retain even more of the nutrients and it cooks under pressure meaning your meals are ready far sooner.

There are a few reasons that the Instant Pot can help with healthy food. Of course, you will have to use healthy ingredients but there are hundreds of recipes at Corrie Cooks and when you are feeling naughty you can even make lava cake. However, as far as the health benefits go, look at the following:

• It can cook by the sous-vide method meaning minerals and vitamins are retained
• You can program it to cook while you workout or go for a jog
• It doesn’t need oil to cook so avoids extra unwanted fat
• Tenderises meat meaning it is easier to digest and more gentle on the stomach
• Cooks quickly so less incentive to choose takeaway food over home-cooking
• Lends itself to recipes full of vegetables and lean meat

Cooking without oil has benefits for the environment as well as your health as you don’t need to dispose of old cooking oil properly or so often. 

Probiotics are good for you

When looking at the health benefits of different diets there are so many conflicting opinions. Some people swear by keto diets to lose weight and others believe they are bad as they promote high levels of fat. One area that can be agreed on is probiotics. A multi-cooker can help you in this area too as it is possible to make yogurt and sauerkraut in an Instant Pot. Just these two things alone will let you enjoy the health benefits of probiotics at home. 

Exercising and eating a balanced diet

A well-balanced diet is essential but so is exercise. An idle lifestyle can lead to several health problems in later life. The Instant Pot has settings that can aid you to exercise. If you feel that you do not have time to cook at home and exercise then a multi-cooker might aid you. It is simple to either slow cook a healthy meal so it is ready after you return from a day at work followed by a gym class. Or, set it to cook your meal while you go for a ride or do yoga at home. Instant Pots help with multitasking. 

Summary

Grilling food has benefits in that fat will drip from the food as it cooks and you will be left with tasty food. Microwaves can also help to retain minerals and vitamins and avoid extra fats but the most healthy way maybe with a pressure cooker. It is also the most energy-efficient way to make your meals.

If you find your workouts are not getting the results you wish for then you need to look why. One of the causes may be your diet. It is not always easy to change habits but with the simple use of a steamer or an investment in a multi cooker then you can start to cook your way to a healthier diet.