While it may seem daunting at first, once you get the hang of it, preparing your meals in advance will not only save you a whole lot of time but it will also help you stay on track...because if the food is there, your going to eat it right?
Here is my step by step guide to help you meal prep like a pro 😋🍴
Here is my step by step guide to help you meal prep like a pro 😋🍴
Step one: Plan your week
Sit down with a pen and paper and jot down how your week is looking. Spend two minutes to quickly write down the hours you expect to start and finish work along with any appointments, meetings or anything else which will mean you will be out of the house. This is important to know as it will inform how many meals you will need prepared each day and which meals you can leave for cooking fresh when needed.
Next - training. To this weekly plan, add in the days and times you plan on training. This is also important to know as it will help you decide when best to time your macronutrients - proteins, fats and carbs throughout the day.
Sit down with a pen and paper and jot down how your week is looking. Spend two minutes to quickly write down the hours you expect to start and finish work along with any appointments, meetings or anything else which will mean you will be out of the house. This is important to know as it will inform how many meals you will need prepared each day and which meals you can leave for cooking fresh when needed.
Next - training. To this weekly plan, add in the days and times you plan on training. This is also important to know as it will help you decide when best to time your macronutrients - proteins, fats and carbs throughout the day.
Step two: Plan your meals
Keep that pen and paper out, we are not finished yet. Now you know how your week is looking you can decide how many meals to prepare. You may decide that on Monday you have a busy day and will cook your breakfast fresh, but need to prepare your lunch, dinner, pre and post workout snacks in advance. Tuesday is not looking so bad so you will prepare your lunch and two snacks and cook breakfast and dinner fresh that day and so on.
Ok so you know how much food you need...
but what are you going to cook?
My advice....keep it simple.
It can be boring eating the same foods day in, day out but when it comes to meal preparation, cooking in bulk is key. I like to cook 3-4 portions of lunch, mid-afternoon meal and dinner at a time. Lunch might be a chicken stir-fry while dinner may be salmon and roasted vegetables. So although I may be eating the same meals each day, this method means I get variety throughout the day. When all my food is used up and meal prep time comes again, I simply switch up my meals to keep it interesting.
Keep that pen and paper out, we are not finished yet. Now you know how your week is looking you can decide how many meals to prepare. You may decide that on Monday you have a busy day and will cook your breakfast fresh, but need to prepare your lunch, dinner, pre and post workout snacks in advance. Tuesday is not looking so bad so you will prepare your lunch and two snacks and cook breakfast and dinner fresh that day and so on.
Ok so you know how much food you need...
but what are you going to cook?
My advice....keep it simple.
It can be boring eating the same foods day in, day out but when it comes to meal preparation, cooking in bulk is key. I like to cook 3-4 portions of lunch, mid-afternoon meal and dinner at a time. Lunch might be a chicken stir-fry while dinner may be salmon and roasted vegetables. So although I may be eating the same meals each day, this method means I get variety throughout the day. When all my food is used up and meal prep time comes again, I simply switch up my meals to keep it interesting.
Step three: Get to the shops
You know what you are going to cook so you know what you need to buy. Don't get distracted down that sweet isle - biscuits are not on your plan for the week so avoid and keep temptation at bay.
You know what you are going to cook so you know what you need to buy. Don't get distracted down that sweet isle - biscuits are not on your plan for the week so avoid and keep temptation at bay.
Step four: Prepare your meals
In my house meal preparation is a military operation and everything is complete from start to finish in under an hour and a half.
First things first - cook your meat. This will take the longest to cook out of everything so always start with this.
Carbohydrates!! Any rice, quinoa or sweet potato needed, throw this on next.
Veggies!! Chop up all vegetables required. Even if it is just peppers for a salad, having them all chopped in advance will save you a whole lot of time. If any veggies need to be cooked, do this now.
Snacks!! Make sure all planned snacks are prepared and ready to grab when hunger strikes. If you plan on having nuts as snacks during the week I highly recommend separating them in to individual portions during meal prep to avoid over consumption during the week.
In my house meal preparation is a military operation and everything is complete from start to finish in under an hour and a half.
First things first - cook your meat. This will take the longest to cook out of everything so always start with this.
Carbohydrates!! Any rice, quinoa or sweet potato needed, throw this on next.
Veggies!! Chop up all vegetables required. Even if it is just peppers for a salad, having them all chopped in advance will save you a whole lot of time. If any veggies need to be cooked, do this now.
Snacks!! Make sure all planned snacks are prepared and ready to grab when hunger strikes. If you plan on having nuts as snacks during the week I highly recommend separating them in to individual portions during meal prep to avoid over consumption during the week.
Step five: Put it all together
Once all your food is cooked it is time to separate in to portions. Remember that plan you originally wrote? Now is the perfect time to check over it and ensure you have enough meals and snacks prepared for each day.
Once all your food is cooked it is time to separate in to portions. Remember that plan you originally wrote? Now is the perfect time to check over it and ensure you have enough meals and snacks prepared for each day.
Step six: Time to chill 😎
All the hard work is complete.
I like to leave my meals to cool before storing in the fridge for 3-4 days. You may also choose to freeze your meals and leave out to defrost the night before. The choice is yours
I hope you found this blog informative and picked up a trick or two to help with your meal preparations.
I would love to hear your thoughts so feel free to comment below or share this post with someone you think needs to read it.
Jen - Nutty Nutrition
All the hard work is complete.
I like to leave my meals to cool before storing in the fridge for 3-4 days. You may also choose to freeze your meals and leave out to defrost the night before. The choice is yours
I hope you found this blog informative and picked up a trick or two to help with your meal preparations.
I would love to hear your thoughts so feel free to comment below or share this post with someone you think needs to read it.
Jen - Nutty Nutrition
