For yet another year I reached the first of January feeling exhausted, bloated, sluggish, (hungover!), and disheartened by the weight I had gained over the Christmas period. I find that when my body is unhealthy it impacts my overall wellbeing and I really began to feel down about myself and what the year ahead held for me and my family. 

I have four children, so as you can imagine, things can be very chaotic in my house. Admittedly, this had become reflected in our mealtimes – with such a busy life, I got into a habit of throwing together the same boring meals (spaghetti, chilli con carne, fishfingers and chips etc.) together purely because they were quick and easy, without thinking much about the nutritional benefits these meals actually had for my kids. Instead of trying another fad diet, I wanted to make sustainable changes that the whole family could get on board with to create a healthier lifestyle for ourselves. However, this is much easier said than done – especially when you have children who are fussy eaters – and I just didn’t know where to begin. 

By chance, I was told about Mindful Chef by another mum at nursery (thanks Kathryn!).  I had commented on how well she looked after the Christmas break and she explained how she had recently started using Mindful Chef and consequently had lost weight without even trying. She raved about the options available and how delicious the food was. Now, I must admit I was sceptical. Could a pre-portioned food delivery service really provide healthy meals that also tasted good? I’m a huge foodie so I would not want to compromise on taste. Are the meals actually quick and simple to make or do they contain hundreds of unnecessary ingredients? Will I be offered the same boring choices each week? Will the options be child friendly? Will the ingredients be fresh? I had a quick browse through online reviews of Mindful chef to see what it was all about, and whether others agreed with my friend that it was worth a try. The reviews seemed really positive, and to be honest, I was desperate, so opted to give Mindful Chef a go.

Mindful Chef have given Lifestyle Reviewer readers a discount code for £10 off their first TWO meal boxes. If you want to give them a try – this is a great way to do so very cheaply! Use code LIFESTYLE10X2 or CLICK HERE to automatically apply the offer.

My main issue with food throughout my life has always been portion control and overindulgence. I was brought up in a household that was strict on the ‘you can’t leave the table until you finish your plate’ rule. This translated into my adult life and I find it near impossible to stop eating if there is food left, even when I am full. I was concerned that this was a bad example to set for my kids and did not want them to end up like me. For this reason I was extremely impressed with how generous yet balanced the portions were from Mindful Chef. Every one of their meals is between 450 and 650 calories, credited by their resident nutritionists, dieticians and chefs. I am always left feeling full and satisfied but guilt free after a meal. The eldest of my children is ten, and he eats like a bodybuilder! However, the younger three don’t need as large a portion size, so my husband and I have taken to splitting two adult portions between the three of them, which saves us money and prevents food waste – I’d definitely recommend doing this if you have little ones. My husband also loves that the meals are high in protein, which helps him make the most of the gym (somewhere I prefer to avoid!). 

I was also guilty of falling into the habit of filling dinner times with complex carbs like pasta and rice because they were quick and required minimal effort to make. All of the recipes from Mindful Chef contain zero complex carbs and after a couple of weeks of being CC free, I feel so much less sluggish and bloated than I did before and I also learned the answer to the question of “why do i get bloated after working out?” . This has also meant I have tried lots of new foods that I wouldn’t normally have bought, with red lentils becoming a new favorite of mine.

Mindful Chef have given Lifestyle Reviewer readers a discount code for £10 off their first TWO meal boxes. If you want to give them a try – this is a great way to do so very cheaply! Use code LIFESTYLE10X2 or CLICK HERE to automatically apply the offer.

The first time I ordered from Mindful Chef, I was immediately impressed by how simple the process was, and planning a full week of meals took me less than five minutes. This is absolutely no comparison to the hour I’d usually spend doing the weekly shop (not to mention it was far less stressful than dragging my little ones round the supermarket).

The first meal we tried as a family was the Mexican style steak and ohhhhhh my goodness it was SO delicious! The steak was such good quality, it was so tender and I love that it is grass fed and British meat – it gives me the peace of mind to know I am feeding my family good quality food. We actually ended up giving 2 of the kids the steak plain, without the Mexican spice rub, as they are very fussy about spicy food! But they loved it just as much as us. The brown rice and fresh salad that was served with it was so delicious and complimented the steak perfectly- the veg was all very fresh and full of flavour – definitely a cut above what you’d get in the supermarket.

Mindful Chef have given Lifestyle Reviewer readers a discount code for £10 off their first TWO meal boxes. If you want to give them a try – this is a great way to do so very cheaply! Use code LIFESTYLE10X2 or CLICK HERE to automatically apply the offer.

The second meal we tried was the charred cauliflower steak with Brazil nut pesto. I try when I can to incorporate vegetarian meals into the weekly shop, but often struggle to come up with new/ exciting ideas. All the vegetarian meals we have tried so far from Mindful Chef have been so delicious and just as filling as the meat-containing meals. My mother came over for dinner the night I made the cauliflower steaks. She is usually very critical of my cooking but was very impressed with them and even asked me for the recipe for the pesto! (I was speechless). The rich tomato cannellini beans made the dish so comforting and the brazil nut pesto cut through the richness to give it that zing! 

A massive bonus of using Mindful Chef is that for every meal you have, they provide a school meal for someone in need. I am more than aware that as a family we are very privileged and my family are extremely lucky to grow up in a household where food is plentiful. That’s why it feels amazing to be able to help out, even in a small way, families in financial difficulty – especially after the festive period, as we all know how expensive this time can be. 

In summary, Try Mindful Chef! It is so refreshing to find a solution to tackle Christmas weight gain that doesn’t involve (usually broken) new years resolutions to give up the foods you love. I cannot recommend it enough. There are so many choices that my whole family loves and mealtimes in my household are now stress-free, satisfying and healthy. I really cannot recommend it enough. If you do one thing this January, give Mindful Chef a go.

Mindful Chef have given Lifestyle Reviewer readers a discount code for £10 off their first TWO meal boxes. If you want to give them a try – this is a great way to do so very cheaply! Use code LIFESTYLE10X2 or CLICK HERE to automatically apply the offer.

This article contains a sponsored offer from Mindful Chef.