"If your meal prep looks like this, you will be prepared to fail."
While hilarious, this isn't meal prep. And not knocking pizza or Dominos, because I think there is a time and place for it all (you will get more familiar with this in my Macros posts), but let's explore and 80/20 rule which works for most people. That says 80% of the time you are a clean mean machine and 20% you chillax. 20% of a week equates to about a day and a half. That's not a perfect metric for everyone, but for most, this will allow you to relax with the kids, have lunch out after church or a game, or just enjoy some cake and not tank your diet. Meal prepping plays a huge role in this because you can plan ahead for the rest of the 5.5 days so you are ready and armed for battle against the bulge. Now if you have a lot of weight to lose, or aren't seeing results, you may want to go a little more towards 90/10. Or if your goals are to compete in fitness or attain a bodybuilder physique, then you will be much more limited. But regardless of which goal you set, meal prep can help.
"Fail to plan, plan to fail."
Planning out your meals helps you stay on track. How many times have you found yourself out and about, no snacks in your bag and you are starving, the kids are screaming, and you on the brink of insanity pull through the local drive-thru for a Mc-Whatever and then are angry at yourself for the choice you made? We all do it. It's life. It is going to have happen. But if you take some time to prep yourself, you won't be nearly as tempted. Keep snack packs of almonds, Quest Bars, Protein powders, packets of peanut butter & brown rice cakes, a small apple, a banana, or lean beef sticks from Epic or Ostrim with you in your bag at all times. If you are like me and have your 6 Pack Fitness bag attached to your hip, you can even keep cold treats like ready to drink (RTD) protein shakes, cheeses (yep healthy), yogurt, boiled eggs, or lean cuts of meat for your errand running, work, or daily life in general. For me, I have spent the money and time purchasing and packing these items, so I eat them. I am not generally a wasteful person, so I don't want to throw out the food I packed, so I stay on track and save calories and coins by not splurging on a Double Whip Frappuccino and a cookie.
"Meal prep takes TOO much time."
So meal prep takes time. Can't get around that. But here's the real deal. You are going to spend the time prepping food at some point, whether you prep healthy foods for an hour or two on Sunday (best time to prep for me), or you cram into opening a quick fix meal every night of the week. If you take time on Sunday to bulk cook meats, veggies, and a choice carb, be it rice, quinoa, or sweet potatoes, you are ready for the week. I like to lay out a menu on Friday and gather up my groceries (Holler if you know the people at the Walmart Grocery pickup on a first name basis like I do?!?!?), and then Sunday after we get in from church, I throw on my favorite show (Currently WWE Breaking Ground or WWE NXT only on the WWE Network!) and away I go grilling chicken and throwing rice on the stove or in the rice cooker. It's my time to relax and get my head in the game for the week. If you really have a lot of time, see the next statement.
"The freezer is a meal prepper's bestie!"
So I use my freezer regardless of the prep. I typically will grill or crockpot chicken, depending on how much time I have. Then I will portion it into Ziploc baggies in 4 oz portions and I will leave out enough for say Monday and Tuesday in the fridge and freeze the rest. Then I can just thaw it the night before I need it. I do the same often with veggies and rice or sweet potatoes (my fav carb ever). Here is a guide to storing your meats. Cooking in bulk will save you so much time later on. Throw that chicken in a crockpot with some water and spices and let it go for 8 hours on low. Shred it and store and you can use it in salads, served with veggies, or for a family casserole. If you have loads of time on the weekend, make up some freezer meals to store and pull out during the week. These can be healthy casseroles, stews or soups, or even wraps and burritos.
"Make it fun for the family."
Get the kids involved when you prep so you aren't missing family time. There is no reason why their little hands can't help make homemade protein bars or energy bits. Not only will they have fun helping, but they will be so much more likely to eat the healthy treats too if they got to help in the process. And there's no better lesson than teaching them to eat healthy. This is balancing good parenting/teaching time with fun time, and for my kids they seem to absorb things taught via fun much better than any other way!
Get the kids involved when you prep so you aren't missing family time. There is no reason why their little hands can't help make homemade protein bars or energy bits. Not only will they have fun helping, but they will be so much more likely to eat the healthy treats too if they got to help in the process. And there's no better lesson than teaching them to eat healthy. This is balancing good parenting/teaching time with fun time, and for my kids they seem to absorb things taught via fun much better than any other way!
"Tailor the menu to your lifestyle."
If you are on a budget, tailor your menu to what is on sale for the week and tie items together. So if chicken breast is on sale for $1.99/lb, stock up and bulk cook it. Then think of ways to serve it multiple ways that work for you, such as a casserole on Monday/Wednesday and healthy chicken burritos on Tuesday/Thursday. Make it work for you and your wallet. If it is something that is sustainable, you will stick to it. Hate chicken? Go with seafood like tilapia, mahi mahi, or cod or even shrimp or scallops. Vegetarian? You can go wild with tofu or beans. Consider a vegetarian meal once a week even if you do eat meat to help cut time and costs.
Meal prep doesn't need to be scary or dominate your life. It may seem a little cumbersome at first, but after a couple of weeks it will come naturally. Take a look at the sample below of how I map everything out and see how easy it can be. Mind you that this mirrors what I do and I eat about 5 meals per day. So you may be more inclined to go 3 meals with 2 snacks or however you structure your day. Just stay on point with where you should be calorie wise. We cover macros and meals in another post so these can tick and tie together. My meals won't necessarily be your meals, but we will cover that later.
For the guacamole, be sure to choose Wholly Guacamole's 100 calories containers or make your own.
Here are the links to Jamie Eason's Recipes:
Jamie Eason Meatloaf Muffins (I eat these with reduced sugar ketchup).
Jamie Eason's Sweet and Sour Chicken I use stevia/truvia instead of the splenda and arrow root powder isn't necessary, but will thicken it. You could probably substitute cornstarch, but I haven't experimented with that as of now.
Happy Eating!!!
Misty
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