Meal Prepping 101

As a very busy working mom, my nutritional consumption choices rely heavily on the foods that I have on hand. If I have the junk in my house, I will eat it. Even if I have healthy foods in my house, if they are not ready for me to easily eat, I go into the mindset that there is nothing to eat. This is why meal prepping is so important, even for snacks. Most research that I have read states that you can exercise all you want, but without the proper nutrition, you will not be able to meet your full potential. So how can you fit in meal prepping into your already crazy busy day?

Prep According To Your Needs

You know your schedule the best. You also know what your body needs for nutrition. If you follow a specialized diet, such as I have to be gluten free, meal prep for yourself. During quarantine, I have continued with the mindset that my boys are eating “at school” with their normal lunches that they pack for themselves, and I am eating “at the office”. This has helped me continue meal prepping so that I can continue my journey to being healthier. There are a few things that I recommend when you are trying to get started.

Plan It Out

The first part of meal prepping is to have a plan. For me, I do this on Thursday or Friday before I go grocery shopping on Saturday. I write down what our meals will be, including my lunches, so that I know what I need to purchase. I try to “shop” from my pantry first to ensure that I’m not buying something that I already have. You can also plan your meals to use any extras that you may have. In the past, I have used chicken for our dinner and used the left over to shred as a topping to my salad. By knowing what you are doing for the next week, this can save you time and money.

Don’t forget to include your snacks! I can’t tell you how many times I have walked into my kitchen looking for a snack but leave “because there is nothing to eat”. Having easy to grab and prepped snacks will help eliminate temptations to grab something else that you weren’t planning on eating.

Set Yourself Up for Success

Eat before you go grocery shopping so that you don’t end up with a lot of extras in your cart. Research has shown that if you go grocery shopping when you are hungry, you will spend about 20% more, and have a cart full of foods that you may not normally buy. Anyone else hate it when their “healthy” self does the grocery shopping? Remember, it’s okay to have special treats as part of your nutritional diet. For me, it’s strawberry popsicles bars that are all natural and don’t have the extra sugars.

Another way to set yourself up for success is to have containers to store your food in. There are so many choices of there to choose from. Find something that works best for you. You can go to Target, Walmart, Amazon, and any other local store by you to find storage containers. The containers don’t have to be pretty (always a plus) and need to meet your needs. By having your container of choice out while cooking, you can dish it up once it is done cooling. This also helps me to remember to put it away and prevents me from completely forgetting about it.

Make sure you have everything that you need as you get started. Once you get the hang of your menu, you can time your meal prepping. I usually spend 1 – 2 hours on Sunday making breakfast and lunch for the week. You’ll find me making banana bread for my boys, omelet muffin cups for me, and my lunches for the week. My boys prepare their lunches like they would during a normal school year. I try to keep them in the habit just in case we ever get to go back! If you have enough dishes, you can wash them all the end or wash them as you go. During our meal prep time, we wash our dishes and clean the kitchen so many times.

Portions and Servings

You know your body’s needs the best. Prep the meals according to the number of times that you eat during the day. Do intermediate fasting and skip breakfast? Plan accordingly. Eat two meals while away from the house? You can meal prep both meals, which don’t need to be the same, and eat them while you are away. Meal prepping will be individualized to your body, so what works for me may not work for you.

As you meal prep, also think about your portion sizes and what foods you are including. You want to include enough food to prevent you from feeling hungry, but you also don’t to include too much food to prevent waste. You can reference the USDA’s MyPlate diagram on portion sizes and the different servings of food to include. You want to make sure you have enough protein during your day, as well as the needed fruits and vegetables.

Tips for Getting Started

Here are a few tips for getting started with your meal prepping.

• Plan it out and write it down.
• Try not to shop and cook on the same day.
• Have a list of your favorite go-to meals.
• Prep your snacks.
• Eliminate the temptations.

You may be meal prepping for various reasons, to save time, to eat healthier, perhaps you are traveling. Make this work for you and gather the tools that you may need. Having a menu board to record your meals for the week may help you keep track of your plans. You could also use a planner or calendar. As you make your grocery list, check to see what items you may already have on hand and don’t forget to check for sales!

I’d love to hear how you are doing. What tips are working for you? Do you have any tips of your own to share? I’d love to hear what works best for you.