I always try to eat healthily, but struggle to keep it up after a long day at work. How can I keep on track during a busy week?

With a little forward thinking, you can get ahead with your night’s dining and serve up a quick, tasty dish that will keep you on track. Having key items ready helps. Try preparing veg the night before and storing it in air-tight containers, similarly you can do the same with certain meat dishes.

An early lunch and a late dinner can lead to evening blow-outs, so snack in between. Try a spoonful of hummus with carrot, cucumber or celery sticks, or oatcakes with hummus or peanut butter. A healthy snack stops you craving unhealthy sugar fixes.

Once you’re at home in the evening, pasta dishes are perfect, especially if you work out and need carbs. A simple chicken and veg pasta cooked in olive oil, for example, only takes half an hour to prepare and cook – or less if you’ve prepped the veg the night before! Fish also works well, perhaps baked with potatoes, lemon, bay, thyme and garlic. Serve with salad for a quick and easy healthy accompaniment. Boiled quinoa or other grains like buckwheat or barley are healthy, easy options, and can be served quickly with veg, finished with olive oil, lemon juice, chopped herbs and seasoning.

If you’re trying to save time, you could always roast some veg the night before and then stir it in with your grain to heat it through just before you serve. Meals like this are easy to make and should leave you nicely full, meaning you don’t restore to unhealthy snacks later in the evening. If you’re eating out after work, don’t choose deep fried or creamy foods and avoid nibbles before the food arrives. Then opt for something grilled or poached, perhaps with a salad or veg stir-fry.