How to “cook, chew, eat, repeat” like a boss

One of the most common questions I have been asked over the years, be it from a small business owner or a C-Suite Executive is: “How do I generate the time to cook and eat healthily, train at the gym and run my business?” 

It’s a really important question so I’m always horrified to be told another coach has responded to the client with: “You have to make the time if it’s important to you.” Ever heard that? While I agree that priorities and sacrifices sometimes need to made, it’s not a black and white situation where 1+1 always = 2. When I’ve had clients approach me and tell me this story it genuinely saddens me that some coaches don’t take the time to get to know the person in front of them. My approach is a little different. 

Step 1.

What is healthy eating to you? Always my first question to a client. Once we’ve agreed on a healthy way of eating, I can use over 15 years’ experience to help clients plan their week realistically. There is no point saying you are going to cook fresh 7 nights a week if you know realistically that isn’t going to happen.  There is so much information available out there now about what is healthy, it can be hard to know where you stand and what information is actually credible. For me as a health-focused coach, personal trainer and corporate wellness advisor the approach is simple. Eat a variety of different coloured fruits and veggies, add some rice, oats or potatoes and garnish with some meat if preferred.  

As simple as I think my system is, it still needs personal attention to detail. So unfortunately, I can’t give you individual specifics in this article. What I can do is bring your attention to the following food pyramids. 

Now I don’t fully agree with either of these. But I do agree with the image on the right a lot more. For me veggies and fruits are always a priority for any client. Some of the vegetarians and vegans that I’ve trained before don’t eat enough fruit and veg. I find that too often people running their own business or self-employed are either eating on the go or while they’re sat at a screen and far from chewing their food properly, which leads onto a whole host of health based issues. Think about it now. Are you actively taking a lunch break? Are you getting away from your desk? Are you actually slowing down and taking your business head off for an hour? If you answered no more than once, might be time to have a look at your working schedule.

Step 2.

The next step I take with clients is to determine what a typical daily schedule looks like. The reason I want to determine this with clients is to see where their time is spent. Are you working a regular shift pattern for somebody else? Are you working irregular hours in a job for yourself? Are your hours your own because your business can operate without you? Or are you a slave to time zones and have to track east and west trading times? I’ve worked with them all and let me tell you this. Once we analyse your time and where you’re spending it. Priorities tend to align themselves towards being as healthy as possible.

I know from experience there is nothing better than confronting the brutal facts and breaking down each hour of a person’s 168 hours in a week and finding time. 

Do this little exercise for yourself take 168 hours subtract the amounts of hours you’re sleeping (which should be a minimum 49hours). You now have 119 hours in the week. Break down how much time you spend at work including commuting, how much time you spend with family, watching TV, exercising, walking, gaming, social media scrolling. Once you’ve been honest and analysed the time you spend doing the things you do. There is usually free time. 100% of the clients I work with don’t mind sacrificing TV, social media and gaming time to meal prep, or exercise or stretch and calm their nervous system down to improve their health.

Step 3.

Make a plan and put it into action. Nothing happens by itself, it requires action! You know this otherwise you wouldn’t have clients yourself. It took action for you to acquire your clients, it took action for you to develop the skillset you have. Guess what? It’ll take action and a plan for you to generate the time and energy you need to change habits and routines. By answering the questions in step one and then following up with your time allocation in step 2. You can then decide how best to use your free hours. Or what you’re willing to swap in terms of activities if you genuinely have no free hours from your 119 hours. 

If you know that you need accountability, then hire a coach. I know for me it was one of the best investments I ever made. The accountability, the coaching and wisdom of having a mentor really spring boarded me onto new heights with my own coaching. It boosted the service I could provide to my clients and the end result was that I provided a better service than my competition and charged a higher premium. My business now is all about helping the people that run businesses be healthy themselves and help with boosting their teams’ mental and physical health. I love to see people progress and now I get to help more people feel, move and sleep better.

When all is said and done managing time and eating are necessities, what we choose to eat and do is the difference between being healthy or not.

Dean Rahaman | Director of corporate wellness at RA Republic.
www.rarepublic.co.uk
www.linkedin.com/deanrahaman
07815704720