You know what a healthy balanced meal looks like, but you don’t know how to consistently create those meals on a daily basis. For those nights you get home late from a meeting, mornings when your kid decides to throw a tantrum, or lunches when the fast food drive-thru seems to be the only option I will teach you exactly how to have healthy food ready when you need it most.
By implementing these meal prepping strategies and tips, not only will you have a fridge full of fast, healthy foods to choose from even when life throws you curveballs; but you will not have to spend your entire Sunday in the kitchen prepping every single meal for the week. Let’s get to it!
Step 1
First things first, look ahead and plan your weekly menu. Look ahead into your week for the busy days you know you will need to have your meals pre-prepped. Create a menu of meals you’d like to make throughout the week, foods to pre-prep, and any other foods or ingredients you need for the week. This could look something like this:
Breakfast Monday-Friday: egg frittata with fresh fruit
Lunch Monday-Friday: leftovers
Dinner
Sunday: Grilled chicken salad
Monday: Beef roast with steamed vegetables and rice
Tuesday: Tacos
Wednesday: Leftovers
Thursday: Salmon with roasted asparagus and sweet potato
Friday: Out to dinner
Saturday: Stir fry with remaining leftovers
Step 2
Make your grocery list based on your weekly menu and go shopping. For a full breakdown and how to grocery shop, checkout my Grocery Shopping 101 ebook! You can get this by visiting my home page, scrolling to the bottom, and enter your email. It will be sent straight to your inbox.
Step 3
Prep the foods you need pre-prepped for the week. Cook your egg frittata (from above menu) for breakfast and chop your fresh fruit and store in a large container. Each morning or even the night before you can quickly put your breakfast together. While the egg frittata is cooking, prep foods in bulk that you can use to create different meals with throughout the week. Roast a pound of sweet potatoes and/or steam 1-2 cups of rice to add to any meal or to create a new meal with throughout the week. Wash, peel, chop and store fresh vegetables appropriately for quick snacks or to add to any meal. When foods are prepped in bulk, this allows you to always have a surplus of healthy options available to quickly grab a snack or create a new meal with. It is also a major time saver since you are not cooking multiple full meals and portioning and storing them individually. To see a full weekly meal prep of mine, checkout my meal prep highlight on instagram.
Step 4
This step is a continuous step throughout the week. On the nights you have planned to make dinner, cook enough for leftovers the next day or even for a few days. Instead of cooking two chicken breasts, cook six. Instead of making one pound of taco meat, make two pounds. Roast a pan or two of vegetables and use the leftovers with other foods you prepped in bulk to create a new meal. You are already cooking so why not make extra to have lunch for the next day or to ensure your fridge stays stocked with healthy options for when life happens.
Step 5
Be consistent. The more you meal plan and prep the easier it will become and before you know it, it will be a habit that comes natural to you. Keep trying new ways to plan and prep until you find a system that works for you and you know you will be able to consistently do week after week.
Other time saving tips:
- Make a large batch of overnight oats
- Use your crockpot and/or instant pot
- Create mason jar meals
- Always have frozen vegetables in your freezer
- Prep-prep smoothie ingredients
- Keep it simple, silly