5 Ways I KonMari-ed the Crap Out of My Diet, and "Sparking Joy" Is Just the Beginning

After tidying up my bedroom drawers and closet, I tackled the kitchen, since it was the most used area in the house. It took me a long weekend, but I pulled everything out of the cabinets, pantry, and fridge. I organised everything: the appliances, the spices, the dishware, the cookie cutters.

For the nonperishable items, I neatly stacked all the cans and lined up the boxes, packages, and bottles. I realised I had tons of opened bags of grains, beans, seeds, and nuts, so I bought big mason jars to store them. I also neatly stacked smaller containers of the premeasured snacks I like such as almonds and peanuts so I can grab those instead of handful after handful from the mason jars.

Opening up my pantry and seeing all the gorgeous colours and textures definitely sparks joy. Now I can easily see what food I have, and it inspires me to use all those healthy ingredients like lentils and chia seeds more often. I can also easily see what healthy ingredients I'm running low on so the next time I hit the store, I'll remember to grab what I need.

There's also a designated shelf for baking items because I'm a huge baker. I keep this area stocked with organised mason jars as well. At least once a week, I'll bake some scones, muffins, cookies, or bars, and having healthy ingredients like almond meal, coconut sugar, and whole-wheat flour allows me to satisfy my baking obsession in a nutritious, delicious way.

I also keep my fridge neat and tidy. On Sunday night, it's the most full and organised, with stacks of meal-prepped dinners like one-pan meals and soups, lunchtime Buddha bowls, and mason jars of cut-up veggies for dinner salads, stir-fries, tacos, and the kids' lunches.

Prepping all the veggies I buy on Sunday and having them all organised and planned for each day of the week may seem excessive, but it ensures I never go hungry. I always have a healthy meal on hand, and it saves time cooking during the week (so I can spend more time with my family). It also saves money — there are no veggies hidden in drawers that get forgotten about.

Part of my journey with healthy eating is realising that I need to eat the foods that make me feel good and make me happy. I actually really adore kale salads with roasted veggies, so I make a point to eat that a few times a week. But eating home-baked chocolate banana bread also makes me do the happy food dance in my seat, so I balance them both.

All the food I eat sparks joy for me, whether it's because it tastes tremendous or because it makes me feel energized (and not bloated). I mean, why eat food that doesn't bring me pleasure? That means you won't find me spooning into chia seed pudding (eww, the texture!), but you also won't find me polishing off an entire apple pie because I'll just feel terrible after. Food = joy in my life.

To help inspire joyful, delicious healthy eating, I've recently gotten into collecting cookbooks. My all-time favourite right now is Oh She Glows Every Day by Angela Liddon. And yes, all my cookbooks are neatly stacked in a glass cabinet in my kitchen — just seeing them all lined up brings me joy.