I like to cook but frequently don't have the time for it, so I find that if I cook something I love and make two or four times the amount, I have instant yet healthy meals to microwave. For instance, I cook steel cut oatmeal twice a week but have breakfast made for eight days because I make four servings each time. If I cook a meal with chicken, I prep and cook extra chicken and then wrap it up well, then the next day cooking is a snap. If I grill salmon, I grill lots of it so that I don't have to cook the next day.

I like five-minute preps on lunch, so I'll use foods that have all the prep work done: packages of cooked, seasoned, sliced chicken, bags of washed salad, bags of washed and sliced veggies, cleaned and cooked shrimp, cans of low-fat beans. All I have to do is microwave the chicken, broil a couple of corn tortillas, and toss on some salsa for a quick taco lunch. Or I dump the veggies, shrimp, and salad together. I love frozen veggies for the nutrition, the freshness (I live far from ag fields), and the speed. Two minutes of hot water and I'm done.

I've tried the frozen microwave meals but they leave me hungry and unsatisfied, even though my meals are then same number of calories. The frozen meals never really taste good. I need my meals to be pleasurable and satisfying or I won't stop eating. Some external gratification thing, I'm sure.