Good morning. Happy super-moon Friday the 13th! Holy. S***. We’ve got buckets of rain here in NYC—hope it’s sunnier wherever you’re reading from!

On Tuesday night, I shared some tips and tricks for making healthy eating possible, even during hectic weeks! As someone who routinely clocks 60-hour work weeks (we all have to start somewhere) and tries to find time for friends and family, I know firsthand how challenging it can be. Here are some of my favorite tricks to staying sane and eating tasty, healthy things no matter what’s on the schedule:

• Prep: Take an hour or two once a week to prep food for the days ahead.  Wash and cut up veggies. Make some protein (meat, beans, tofu, etc) and /or grains (rice, quinoa, pasta, etc).
• Pre-portion things like nuts, crackers, etc. Snack-sized Ziploc bags or small airtight storage containers are perfect for this.
• Make multiple salads in advance and dress later—or layer ingredients in canning jars. Just remember to put the dressing on the bottom!
• Save some for later: Freeze leftovers in single serving sizes for easy (re)heat-and-eat later.
• Pack your lunch the night before. One way to make it easy—Make tomorrow’s lunch while you’re making tonight’s dinner.
• Have a plan: It doesn’t have to be super-detailed, but having a general idea of what you plan to eat that week helps you stay organized. Write it down somewhere you’ll see it, like on a piece of paper stuck to the fridge or even as a note in your phone.

Another one I’d add would be don’t  feel ashamed of taking shortcuts now and then. Sometimes I do feel a tad guilty about buying pre-chopped bags of broccoli and cauliflower, but needing to save a little time by purchasing florets instead of a whole damn head does not automatically make me a bad person. Neither do frozen veggies or the occasional frozen dinner! Life is messy and busy—striving for perfection will make you crazy. Not worth it.

 Have any favorite healthy-eating tips and tricks to share? 

PS—Did you enter the FBG giveaway yet?