Why Cooking is the Most Powerful Health Habit

Cooking isn’t just about feeding yourself. It’s about reclaiming ownership over your health, your choices, and your relationship with food. In this long overdue post, we’ll explore why cooking is the health habit that underpins every other wellness goal—and how to make it feel more doable, joyful, and deeply satisfying.

When I reflect on the hundreds of nutrition clients I've worked with over the last two decades, a clear pattern emerges: the ones who experience lasting transformation all share one thing in common. They cook. Not perfectly. Not every meal. But consistently enough to shift the way they nourish themselves.

We spend so much time searching for the “right” health habit—trying different supplements, new workout routines, meditation apps, expensive gadgets, and sleep trackers. But what if the most impactful habit isn’t high-tech, time-consuming, or expensive? What if the most transformative thing you could do for your health… starts in your kitchen?

This isn't only a reflection on how cooking has changed the lives of my clients, it is also quite personal. My own relationship to self, body, food, travel, and family have all been completely transformed due to my commitment to time in the kitchen.

Because cooking isn’t just a chore—it’s a joyful, grounding, transformational practice that supports every aspect of your health.

The Problem: Why We’re So Overwhelmed in the Kitchen

Most of us aren’t avoiding the kitchen because we’re lazy. We’re overwhelmed. We’re battling decision fatigue, jam-packed schedules, and a mountain of conflicting messages about what we “should” eat (Hi, confusing nutrition and wellness advice – I'm looking at you!). Add in the pressure to make it Pinterest-worthy and the basic skills gap that so many of us were never taught, and it’s no wonder we’re stuck.

And if you've internalized diet culture, cooking can feel even more fraught. There are too many rules, too much pressure, and not enough joy.

If you’ve ever thought, I want to eat well, but I don’t know what to cook, how to start, or how to keep it going, you’re not alone. The overwhelm is real—and it’s not your fault.

But here’s the truth…

The Truth: Cooking Is Where the Rubber Meets the Road With Nutrition

Here’s what I know for sure: the clients who make the biggest health leaps are the ones who cook.

Because cooking is the action step that turns nutrition knowledge into something real.

You can read every wellness article on the internet, take the supplements, hire the experts—but at the end of the day, what you put on your plate, consistently, is what moves the needle. And that starts in your kitchen.

In my work as a clinical nutritionist, I’ve seen a clear dividing line: the people who truly transform their health are the ones who cook. Not necessarily elaborate meals or every night of the week. But they have a consistent, supportive, and realistic cooking habit that makes their nutrition real.

“Cooking is where nutrition becomes real.”

You can know all the science, follow the trends, take the supplements—but without cooking, none of it sticks. Cooking is the action step. It’s where knowledge turns into nourishment.

And no, you can't UberEats your way to long-term wellness. Convenience has its place, but healing, energy, gut balance, and hormone health? They start on your cutting board.

What Makes Cooking So Powerful? (The Evidence + Soul of It)

There is nothing more powerful than knowing every ingredient that goes into your food. Not in an obsessive way—in a joyful, empowering way. You become the main sourcer: from spices to oils, local produce to high-quality animal proteins. You start to see food not just as fuel, but as connection, intention, and care.

🔬 Biological Health Benefits

• Cooking increases your intake of vegetables, fiber, and healthy fats—the trifecta for gut, brain, and hormone health – the basics we need to nail – before we start looking for the next “it” supplement.
• Home-cooked meals are consistently associated with lower intake of ultra-processed foods – this is a pretty obvious outcome, the more you cook the less highly processed foods you are likely to consume.
• You gain clarity over your food in a way that supports real metabolic, digestive, and hormonal health—without restriction

🌟 Sensory & Satisfaction Benefits

• Cooking refines your palate. You begin to discover your personal food preferences—not the ones you've inherited, or the ones shaped by diet rules, but your own.
• This clarity can transform the experience of eating. Many of my clients, especially those recovering from binge behaviors, find that once they begin cooking, the seeking stops and the knowing begins.
• Satisfying meals become easier to create. Pleasure increases. Cravings shift. You eat what you love and what loves you back.

❤️ Relationship & Mindset Benefits

• Cooking deepens your relationship with food. It shifts your mindset from, “How can I outsource this?” to, “What if in the thinking about food, I’m healing something?”
• We know from research with children: the more involved someone is in the cooking process, the more likely they are to taste new foods, enjoy meals, and stay curious.
• This doesn’t go away with age. Adults need that same connection. That same curiosity. That same joy.

🌎 Cultural & Emotional Benefits

• Cooking connects you to memory, culture, and meaning. It honors where you come from and where you’re going.
• It slows time. It creates ritual. It helps you be present—whether you're cooking solo or feeding the people you love.

❤️ Mental & Emotional Benefits

• Cooking builds confidence and creativity—even simple meals give a sense of accomplishment
• With structure and support, cooking becomes a soothing ritual rather than a stressor – I know… this may sound absurd if cooking feels like the biggest stressor to you but I do see my time in the kitchen as self care, almost meditative. I look forward to making dinner. I didn't start here, but I want you to know it is possible.
• It reconnects you to pleasure and presence, two things often lost in modern health messaging
• With structure and support, cooking becomes a soothing ritual instead of a stressor. I know that might sound absurd if cooking currently feels like the most overwhelming part of your day—but for me, it’s become a form of self-care. Sometimes, it’s even meditative. I genuinely look forward to making dinner. I didn’t start here, but I want you to know: it’s absolutely possible.

So Why Is It So Hard to Stick With?

Let’s be real: cooking is hard for a lot of reasons.

We resist it. We think, Ugh, cooking is time-consuming. It’s annoying. I can’t believe I have to make dinner AGAIN. We’re always looking for an out—ordering in, grabbing cheese and crackers (again), or skipping it altogether.

It feels hard because we don’t have systems in place to make it feel manageable. We lack structure, confidence, and basic skills. But it’s also hard because we’ve lost the joy in it.

The truth is: it starts with a system—something to streamline your week and give you momentum. That system can grow with you, helping you:

• Build foundational cooking skills
• Maximize your time in the kitchen
• Work smarter, not harder
• Find pleasure and meaning in the act of cooking

I was watching Chef’s Table the other day—the Jamie Oliver episode—and he said something that stopped me in my tracks: “It’s not about if you’ll learn to cook, it’s about when.”

Cooking is a life skill. And I believe with my whole heart: it is the most powerful, transformative health habit we have. No question.

My Solution: Stir It Up Society

That’s why I created Stir it Up Society – a cooking club and meal plan membership designed to make healthy home cooking feel doable, feel joyful, and become a natural part of your life cadence. As habitual and comforting as waking up and making your morning coffee (arguably the best part of the day).

Inside, you get:

• Weekly meal plans rooted in seasonal, flavor-forward recipes
• Grocery lists and prep tips that save time and reduce stress
• Live cook-alongs to help you build confidence, learn new techniques, and have fun in the kitchen

But it’s more than that.

Stir It Up Society stretches your culinary skills and imagination. Because when we stay stuck in rigid recipes, cooking can feel like a drag. But when we learn how to combine ingredients for flavors we love, use up all the produce we bought (hello, hero status!), and serve meals our families devour (and then maybe even clean up the dishes—because that’s only fair), life is better. It really is.

This is more than just another program. Stir It Up Society is a gateway to easier living, more joy, and deeper connection to the food you eat and the life you want to lead.

And listen—I’m going to get a little tough-love on you for a second: we're all spending way too much time scrolling on our phones. Check your screen time stats, you'll see what I mean. Steal just one hour back each week and get in the kitchen. Stir It Up Society helps you do that.

Final Thoughts: It’s Not If—It’s When

Cooking isn’t a trend. It’s a life skill. A powerful form of self-care. A deeply nourishing act that supports every other wellness goal you have.

Whether you cook once a week or every night, each step you take in the kitchen is a step toward the health and vitality you want.

Ready to make cooking your most powerful health habit? Come join me and 200 other kitchen rockstars inside Stir It Up Society.