Keeping Lunch Simple and Choosing Ease After a Full Day
August 24 - Part II. Some days ask for a homemade meal. Other days ask for a box of potatoes, frozen carrots, and whatever chicken is already waiting in the freezer.
After spending time at the beach, I eventually made my way back home and started thinking about food. I had gone grocery shopping the day before with one goal in mind: buy things that would be easy to prepare.
That may sound small, but it felt very necessary.
I’ve been dealing with gastrointestinal issues for a while, so I cook most of my meals myself. There is comfort in knowing exactly what I’m eating. I like being able to choose foods that feel safer for my stomach and avoid the ingredients that tend to bother me.
But honestly, I’m tired of cooking.
So this time, I made a different choice. I chose ease on purpose.
Lunch did not need to be complicated to work
For lunch, I made potatoes from a box, frozen carrots, and chicken I already had in the freezer.
Nothing fancy.
Nothing that required a million ingredients.
Nothing that had me standing in the kitchen for an hour when I was already tired from being out.
It was just food I knew I could tolerate, made in a way that did not take too much energy from me. And honestly? It worked.
I ate everything. My stomach handled it well. Afterward, I put on some Disney vlogs on YouTube and relaxed for a little while.
That felt like a win.
Sometimes I get caught in the idea that taking care of myself has to look a certain way. It has to be fully homemade. It has to be fresh. It has to be planned perfectly. It has to look like something someone would post as a “balanced meal.”
But keeping lunch simple was exactly what I needed.
My meal was plain, filling, and gentle enough for my body. That was the point.
Choosing easy food still counts as taking care of myself
Because of my stomach issues, I’ve had to pay closer attention to what I eat. That can be helpful, but it can also become exhausting. There is a lot of mental energy involved in constantly thinking through meals.
What can I tolerate?
What do I already have?
Will this bother me later?
Do I have the energy to cook it?
When every meal comes with that much thought, easy food becomes more than convenience. It becomes support.
This grocery trip was different because I wasn’t shopping for the version of myself who has unlimited energy. I was shopping for the version of myself who might come home tired, hungry, and not in the mood to cook.
That meant buying things like:
Frozen vegetables
Boxed potatoes
Foods with short prep time
Ingredients I already know sit well with me
Meals that can come together without too many steps
There is nothing wrong with that. Convenient does not automatically mean careless.
Rest came before the rest of the day
After I ate, I took a quick nap.
When I woke up, I was hungry again. And I’m actively trying not to feel embarrassed about things like that.
I’m almost on my period, and I’ve noticed that during the week before it, I can get really hungry and really tired. My body asks for more rest. Sometimes it asks for more food. I’m learning to listen instead of immediately judging myself for it.
So when I woke up hungry, I ate.
That sounds simple, but it didn’t feel automatic. There was a part of me that wanted to question it, as if hunger needed to be justified. But I’m trying to be kinder to myself in those moments.
Bodies change throughout the month. Energy changes. Appetite changes. Needs change.
I don’t need to turn every hunger cue into a personal debate.
Getting ready helped me feel more present
Later, I got completely dressed and ready because I had an appointment with my psychologist at 3:00 p.m.
Was it a video appointment?
Yes.
Did I still get fully dressed as if I were leaving the house?
Also yes.
Sometimes getting dressed helps me switch into a different mindset. Even if I’m staying home, it can make the appointment feel more intentional. It gives the day a little structure.
Therapy days can bring up a lot, even when the appointment is virtual. Getting ready helped me feel like I was showing up for myself, not just logging into something while half-asleep.
That small routine made the afternoon feel less blurry.
The green juice adventure was still worth it
After my appointment, I decided I wanted to try a green juice place nearby. I had been curious about it, and it was only about a 12 to 15 minute drive away.
So I figured, why not?
Another little solo mission for the day.
I drove over and got my green juice. Unfortunately, it was way too sweet for me. I drank about half before deciding I wasn’t going to force myself to finish something I wasn’t enjoying.
That also felt like progress.
I used to feel like I had to finish things just because I bought them. But I’m trying to let myself make decisions based on how I actually feel in the moment. If I don’t like something, I don’t have to keep drinking it to prove a point.
So I drove to my partner’s house and gave him the rest.
I got to spend a little bit of time with him before he had to leave for work, which was nice. Then I headed back home.
Ease was the theme of the day
Looking back, the whole day had a theme: choosing the easier option without turning it into a failure.
An easy lunch counted.
A nap counted.
Eating again when I was hungry counted.
Getting dressed for a video appointment counted.
Trying something new, then not forcing myself to finish it, counted too.
Some days, self-care looks like cooking a full meal from scratch. Other days, it looks like boxed potatoes, frozen carrots, freezer chicken, a nap, therapy, half a green juice, and a quiet drive home.
Both can be valid.
For me, the reminder was simple: taking care of myself does not have to be complicated to matter. Sometimes the best thing I can do is make the day a little easier and let that be enough.
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