Your real life toolkit

• Look at the menu online first and choose before you arrive, so you're not deciding when you're hungry.
• Best bets: Thai or Vietnamese (steamed rice paper rolls, vegetable and tofu stir-fry with steamed rice), Indian (dahl, chana masala), Japanese (vegetable sushi, edamame, miso soup), Mexican (bean burrito bowl, no cheese or sour cream).
• Ask politely for 'no oil or butter, please' or 'steamed instead of fried'. Most kitchens are happy to help.
• Fill half your plate with vegetables or salad, with dressing on the side.
• Enjoy it. One meal out won't undo your progress.

Browse recipes to recreate at home

• Offer to bring a dish. Bring something filling you love, so you know there'll be something for you.
• Have a small, healthy snack before you go, so you're not arriving starving.
• At a BBQ, bring your own veggie skewers, corn cobs or bean burgers to pop on the grill.
• Hold a glass of sparkling water with lime. It stops people offering you drinks.
• Have a kind script ready: 'I'm eating this way because it makes me feel so much better.'

Dips and share plates

• Pack a snack bag: fruit, rice cakes, roasted chickpeas, homemade bliss balls, a jar of hummus and veggie sticks.
• Take a refillable water bottle and fill it whenever you can.
• At a hotel breakfast, go for oats, fruit, wholegrain toast and baked beans.
• Stay somewhere with a kitchenette and shop at the local supermarket for easy meals.
• On long drives, stop every two hours for a short walk to stretch your legs.

• Spend one hour on the weekend cooking a pot of grains, a tray of roast veggies and a batch of soup.
• Keep a freezer stash: frozen veg, berries, cooked beans and portions of soup and curry.
• Have three '15-minute meals' you can make without a recipe (for example, a burrito bowl, a stir-fry or loaded sweet potatoes).
• Use a ready-made meal plan so you don't have to think about what's for dinner.
• Done is better than perfect. A simple meal is still a win.

Ready-made meal plansMy recipe collection

• Dried beans, lentils, oats, rice and potatoes are some of the cheapest foods in the supermarket.
• Frozen fruit and vegetables are just as nutritious as fresh, and there's no waste.
• Buy what's in season, and check the 'odd bunch' or imperfect produce sections.
• Home brand canned tomatoes, legumes and spices are just as good.
• Plan your meals and write a list before you shop, then stick to it.

Ready-made meal plans with shopping lists

• Add, don't replace: stir lentils into the bolognese and grate veggies into sauces.
• Serve meals 'build your own' style (tacos, bowls, wraps) so everyone chooses their toppings.
• Keep offering new foods without pressure. Kids can need 10 or more tries before they like something.
• Get kids involved in cooking. They're more likely to eat what they've helped make.
• Lead by example. Your family is watching how you eat, not what you tell them.

• Cook extra at dinner and pack leftovers straight into tomorrow's lunch container.
• Keep a 'desk drawer' stash: oats, rice cakes, nut butter, tea bags and a piece of fruit.
• On shift work, eat your main meal before your shift and keep lighter snacks for overnight.
• Keep a water bottle on your desk and refill it every time you get up.
• Take a short walk at lunch, even 10 minutes, to reset your energy for the afternoon.

• Bring a festive plant-based dish to share, like a stuffed pumpkin, a big colourful salad or a fruit platter.
• Fill up on vegetables and salads first, then enjoy small amounts of your favourite treats.
• Keep moving: a family walk after lunch is a lovely tradition.
• Get back to your normal routine the very next meal, not 'in January'.
• Be kind to yourself. Holidays are for rest and connection.

• Pause and ask: am I hungry, tired, stressed, bored or thirsty?
• Drink a big glass of water and wait 10 minutes.
• Have a go-to healthier option ready: fruit, dates with nut butter, frozen banana 'ice cream' or a cup of herbal tea.
• Move your body for five minutes or step outside for fresh air.
• Cravings for sugar usually ease after a few weeks of eating more fibre and whole foods.

• Use the 'never miss twice' rule: one off day is life; just make the next meal a good one.
• Don't 'start again on Monday'. Start again at your next meal.
• Get curious, not critical: what led to the slip, and what could you do differently next time?
• Remember how far you've come. One meal doesn't erase weeks of progress.
• Share it in the community. You'll find you're not the only one.

Share in the community

• Try box breathing: in for 4, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. Repeat four times.
• Step outside, even for five minutes. Daylight and fresh air lift mood.
• Move gently: a walk, a stretch or a short yoga video.
• Talk to someone you trust, or post in the community.
• If low mood lasts more than two weeks, please talk to your GP or call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

• Go to bed and get up at the same time each day, even on weekends.
• Get morning sunlight within an hour of waking to set your body clock.
• Finish eating two to three hours before bed, and keep caffeine to the morning.
• Screens off 30 to 60 minutes before bed; read, stretch or have a warm shower instead.
• Keep your bedroom cool, dark and quiet.