Finding balance in our diet, post-lockdown

We all felt the effects of the lockdowns in different ways. It brought great disruptions to the regular patterns of everyday Aussies. 

Every age group and demographic got affected differently yet we were all asked to make sacrifices in our lives to adopt this new way of being. 

One effect of the lockdowns included the increased use of food delivery services. 

Whether due to convenience or lack of choice, it allowed us to get fast food, restaurant dishes or homemade meals delivered to our home.

 This changed the eating habits of many Australians to prefer ready made foods rather than freshly made foods cooked at home (https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/deliveroo-reveals-australias-eating-habits-have-changed-because-of-lockdown/news-story/1e94a4da7f232118cbe849be2eb391a5). 

Businesses like deliveroo noticed this change and reported that not only did their orders increased more than five fold but they also starting receiving orders earlier in the day.

Clearly, our long term habits regarding food have changed during lockdowns. 

Despite this trend during lockdowns, people are now valuing freshness, tastiness and price when it comes to shopping for groceries in the post-lockdown era (https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1004186/purchase-criteria-for-food-in-australia). 

The habits formed during the lockdowns may persist till present and some may never break out of it but now is the time to become aware of these changes in our life so that we can ultimately make decisions for ourselves and not have decisions made for us.  

This is why we must all look at our diet again with new eyes.  

When looking at our grocery carts we must also make different choices post lockdown. 

Due to inflation we are seeing rising food costs, with fresh food prices rising faster than dry goods. 

This will make it more expensive to eat fresh fruits and vegetables and consumers may have to turn to dry goods to save costs on their grocery bills. 

(https://web.archive.org/web/20220418092217/https://www.afr.com/companies/retail/coles-woolworths-to-gain-as-food-inflation-accelerates-ubs-20220418-p5ae8p).  

Whether it's due to old habits or emerging trends, when it comes to food we must all look at our plates differently so that we can make sure we are making the best decision for our body.

 So, how can we find balance in our diet?

 We must first become aware of any habits formed during the lockdowns. 

Awareness is the first step to changing something and if we aren't aware of what needs to be changed we cannot move forward. 

We can do this by self-observation, asking others who can give us feedback or noticing changes in our body. 

These changing dietary habits may be positive or negative but first we must evaluate how they are affecting us.

 We may find that our water consumption increased during lockdowns, or maybe we increased our alcohol consumption. 

Each of us would need to find balance in different ways but first we must become aware of our tendencies and behaviours. 

Due to the changing food costs, finding balance may mean that we seek out local farmers markets and find the best price there. 

We may turn to gardening and learn to grow our own food from seed to harvest. 

Or perhaps we may choose to buy more in bulk or use our ingredients to their fullest potential and minimize waste. 

Balance can also mean learning more about nutrition and seeking out a nutritionist who can help us to implement these changes in our lives. 

At the end of the day, our bodies need fuel to survive and we must adapt to this changing world so that we can enjoy the best health for ourselves. 

How have you noticed your diet change due to the lockdowns?

Have you consciously made any changes in your diet post-lockdown?

How are you adapting to this changing world? 

Please let me know in the comments below.

Be well, Zahra.