Essential Kit to Help You Kick-Start the New Year
Even if you’re not into resolutions or vowing ‘new year, new me’, there’s no denying that January is the perfect time for a fresh start. Building a few healthy habits for the year ahead can really boost your slimming journey, and you’ll be surprised how a couple of little changes can grow into big results.
From getting more organised in the kitchen and creating a healthy meal plan, through to simple changes you can make to your daily routine, this is your essential guide to help kick-start the New Year.
New Year, New Planner
If you’re serious about getting organised, we’ve got good news! Our Family Meal Planner is designed to help you knuckle down and get ahead. As well as pages to plan out daily meals, you can track your food, keep an eye on what’s in the freezer to use up, and write out your shopping lists. Pick up a fresh planner here.
There are 26 exclusive recipes in the planner, but if you need some quick, tasty recipes to build your New Year healthy meal plan around, make sure you have a copy of Pinch of Nom: Express on your shelf! Find links to order a copy here.
Meal planning and prepping
There are lots of goals or habits you can choose for the year ahead – and they don’t have to be weight loss related if that’s not what you want. Planning meals and getting ahead in the kitchen can lead to lots of other benefits, from saving money to reducing food waste.
Setting aside time to batch cook is going to make life easier on busy days. We have lots of recipes that freeze and reheat well, so you can stock up your freezer drawers with extra portions.
A bowl of Hummus Soup is perfect for a healthy lunch, and if you double-up the ingredients, you can have plenty of portions for a rainy day. It’s packed with chickpea protein power, to fill you up and fuel you through to dinnertime.
A soup flask is an essential bit of kit when you’re trying to stay healthy on the go. Look out for a double-walled, leak-proof flask that’ll keep your broth piping hot until you’re ready for it. This Food Flask for Hot Food will do the job nicely, and it comes with a folding spoon, so you’ll never be caught short.
Hearty dinner recipes like our Slow Cooker Pineapple Beef Stew will give you exactly the boost you need to get back on track in January and February, while it’s still chilly outside. A fruity twist on classic comfort food, this warming dish balances sweet and savoury flavours. When each bowlful is just 293 calories you can’t go wrong!
Although you can make this recipe in the oven or in an Instant Pot, there’s nothing as easy as letting your slow cooker work its magic. A slow cooker is ideal for a fresh start – it’ll make sure you always have a hot meal waiting for you when you get home. You can find our favourite slow cookers on our Amazon page here, including this Crockpot DuraCeramic Digital Saute Slow Cooker with Hob-Safe Pot.
Once your slow cooker has turned the ingredients into a hearty, home-cooked meal, you’ll want to store away the leftovers to reheat and eat another day. These Sistema KLIP IT PLUS Food Storage Containers are designed to stack neatly in your fridge, and they’re freezer-safe too!
Need to remember to pop to the shop for that one ingredient, or maybe you feel like writing yourself a motivational note for the day? A kitchen whiteboard can come in super useful when you’re trying to stick to a healthy meal plan!
Alongside your Pinch of Nom cookbooks and planners, these KITASTIK Set of 2 Small A4 Magnetic Whiteboard with Dry Wipe Erase Colour Pens and Magnets will have you feeling ready to tackle anything!
Time-saving kitchen gadgets
Sometimes the biggest barrier to getting back on track with your slimming journey is simply not having hours and hours to dedicate to cooking healthy meals every day. Luckily there are plenty of quick meals on our website for free (as well as speedy dishes in our Quick & Easy, and Express cookbooks!).
To make food prep faster and more fuss-free, there are a few gadgets that it can be handy to have around the kitchen. When you’re making healthy recipes full of fresh vegetables, the chopping and dicing can often feel like a chore. That’s exactly why we love this Vegetable Chopper Kitchen Mandoline Vegetable Slicer that you can pick up fairly cheaply. Say hello to finely diced veggies in seconds!
Imagine how much this speeds up the prep-work for our Cajun-Style Dirty Rice recipe! It’s packed full of vibrant vegetables, and it’s super-quick to cook once everything is chopped and ready.
Homemade sauces and smoothies are so much better for you than shop-bought versions, which can often be higher in calories and more expensive too. A good goal for the year ahead could be to make more of these recipes at home, and you’ll need a good blender like the NUTRiBULLET 600 Series to get the most from your ingredients.
It makes light work of blitzing through fruits and vegetables, so you can whip up concoctions like herby homemade pesto. Our Roasted Vegetable and Pesto Tart is one of those recipes that you’ll always look forward to adding into your healthy meal plan. At just 201 calories per serving, it’s a rainbow-bright lunch with bags of flavour!
Anyone who wants to cook at home more in the New Year will benefit from a set of electric kitchen scales. Whether you’re planning to keep a closer eye on your calories, or simply want to make sure you measure out ingredients accurately for recipes, they’re an unmissable bit of kit.
These Etekcity Digital Kitchen Scales can be picked up from Amazon, or you should be able to spot similar versions in most homeware shops.
Scales come in most handy when you’re baking! Sweet treats don’t need to be off the menu, even if you’re focusing on your slimming goals. Carefully weigh out your ingredients for our Chocolate Sponge Pudding, and you’ll soon be tucking into light, fluffy cake that’s just 170 calories per portion (even if you make it in the microwave!).
Healthy habits
It’s not all about food when it comes to New Year goals! Lots of us in the PON office are trying to drink more water, and it’s so much easier to track with a big reusable water bottle to fill up and drink from.
This EYQ Leak Proof Water Bottle 1L is great for taking on-the-go, and it has helpful markings along the side so you can keep an eye on how much you’re sipping throughout the day.
Staying well-hydrated is really important on a slimming journey, especially as it can be easy to confuse being hungry with being thirsty. Before you reach for a snack, have a drink and then see if you’re still feeling a bit peckish. If you are, one of our low-calorie Chocolate Brownies should sort you right out!
These little squidgy squares of chocolate heaven are easy to batch-cook and save for snacking on during the week.
It’s no secret that lots of people use January to kick-start their health and fitness journeys, but that can look different for everyone. You don’t have to hit the gym to increase your activity levels – you might prefer to add a short walk into your day instead.
Tracking your daily steps is a good way to set a movement goal, and it can go hand in hand with a healthy meal plan to boost your slimming progress.
While there are lots of fancy fitness trackers on the market, a simple step-counter like this GRV Pedometer Watch Fitness Tracker Watch might be all you need. It doesn’t have to be connected to a smartphone, and there’s no need to download an app to see your steps.
When it comes to weight loss and healthy habits, it’s well-documented that good sleep is really important too!
Your body needs to rest and recover, so setting and sticking to a bedtime routine is a great habit to build. The Fitbit by Google Charge 6 Activity Tracker records your sleep (as well as your fitness activities and steps) so it’s ideal if you’re making a real effort to get some quality shut-eye!
Have you set any goals for the year ahead?
No matter how big or small, we’d love to know what healthy habits you’re hoping to build this year. Pop on over to our Facebook group to tell us all about it, especially if you have any ideas of how we can support you on your journey!
We just know our community of almost 1 million members will be there to give you moral support every step of the way.
Don’t forget to browse the Pinch of Nom gallery for healthy meal plan ideas, and, if you share any recipes you make on instagram or Facebook, tag us!