The Lola Vibe Challenge ~ Dinner For ONE

Do you ever eat alone? I mean when you go out do you feel comfortable heading to a nice café or restaurant, being seated at a table and checking out the menu before you order. Maybe order a nice drink while you wait.

Or how about if you’re at home? Say your partner has gone out for the evening and your left to fend for yourself for a few hours. Do you make a nice dinner or do you just throw some beans on toast and have a quick bite?

What if you live alone? Maybe you prepare quick ingredients throw them together and finish your meal quickly, just to get it over and done with.

I know plenty of people who are too shy to eat alone in a restaurant, or are too anxious to eat properly when their partner is out for the night or if they live alone. They feel its not worth it or its too much trouble to take for one person.

And I always say “But that person is you! With or without someone to enjoy a meal with, you are still important enough to treat well!”.

For many of us meal times are about refueling the body and… that’s it. We’re probably really good at making sure the car is maintained and serviced and its tuned or checked out every few months but we sure don’t take care of ourselves the same way.

So here’s a challenge for you.

The Lola Vibe Challenge ~ Dinner For One

• Choose a day you know you have to eat alone. If you do this on a regular basis then you just need to pick a day that suits you. Try and plan it so you get no interruptions even if its from that hot guy you work with! Plan an after dinner activity for yourself, maybe rent a couple of movies you’ve been wanting to see or plan a walk somewhere.

• Prepare a menu. It doesn’t have to be flash or expensive but include your favorites. Include at lease 3 courses in your menu and if you’re not used to 3 then consider making a smaller portion of your main.

• On the day of your dinner, plan out the time you will need to prepare and cook it, and pick out a nice outfit you want to wear (yes I’m serious, if you can dress for dinner for other people then you can do this for yourself!!). Make sure you allocate time to dress and set the table, maybe before or during cooking.

• Before you start preparing dinner,  get dressed and make yourself a nice drink. Use a fancy glass and make it a pretty drink worthy of serving your best guests. This is also a great time to put some of your favorite music on and set the table – use the good crockery and cutlery!! Set a place that is warm and inviting, use a nice tablecloth and placemat and place a table decoration or vase of flowers on the table as a centerpiece.

• While your cooking dinner, be the host of your own cooking show. Feel the rhythm of enthusiasm and think about what a wonderful time you’re giving your viewers (if you decide to present your cooking show in the style of Gordon Ramsay then realize you’ll probably have a huge audience!). Tell your audience about your ingredients and how good they are and why they go so well together. Tell them why you’ve chosen the food you’re cooking and how you remember how much you enjoyed this dish in childhood.

• When your ready to plate up your courses, make them all fancy like you would get in a restaurant. Come on, you’ve seen how the cooks on TV do it, they make the food look all nice and delicious so do the same for your own dishes!

• Set your first course down and savor the experience, take each mouthful slowly and surely and finish it with a deep appreciation for being able to spend this time alone. Don’t think of the laundry you have to do or the bills you have to pay, use this time to enjoy your own company and to appreciate the person you are.

• As you finish dinner, take the dishes and… dump them!! You heard me! This is your night and dishes can wait. Now, put the coffee on and while you do that prepare a cheeseboard with crackers for yourself then set up your movie to watch. If you planned on taking a walk around the neighborhood then stroll, don’t rush! Take deep breaths of appreciation and take note of what you see that you admire – the colour of a flower, a child playing, the color of the sky. Theres plenty to see and admire if you look!
  

  A cheeseboard with coffee is a great complement for each other

• When you get back pour the coffee, place it on a tray with your cheeseboard and settle yourself on the couch to watch your movie. Enjoy every moment to yourself that you can, enjoying your own company is as important as socializing with others and always remember – you deserve to treat yourself just as well as you treat anyone else.

The point of this experience is to get used to being good to yourself, and eating alone is one of the easiest ways to get started. We need to make time to enjoy ourselves on our own because the difference in our wellbeing will have big rewards. If we are feeling content and at ease not only do we benefit from it ourselves, our loved ones will appreciate it. Lower stress levels, calmness and confidence are only some of the benefits you will see if you remember to give yourself some quality time.

This experience can be done at any time so give it a try and see how you feel after!

If you take up the challenge then let me know how you get on, drop me a comment so I can read about your cooking show experiences!

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