Meal Prep Myths
Meal prepping doesn’t need to be complicated!
We all know that there is an overwhelming amount of nutrition info out there and #mealprep posts in the world. What if I told you that it doesn’t have to be that complicated!?
Common Misconceptions About Meal Prepping:
1. “I don’t want to just eat chicken and rice everyday…”
The meals you prep are entirely up to you! Get as creative as you want, in fact, creativity is HIGHLY encouraged. Spice things up a little, get wild. The more you enjoy the food you make the more likely you are to actually eat it!
2. “I don’t have the time”
Just think of how much time you will save when you don’t have to cook Every. Single. Night! Yes it may be a bit more time initially but once you get into a good habit of doing your meal prep it will speed up as you become a pro.
3. “I don’t know how to weigh and measure my food”
To live a healthy life you do NOT have to weigh and measure every single thing you eat. If your goal is to live a healthier life, be more active and feel better about yourself then there is no need for you to weigh and measure everything all the time. Keep reading for tips on how I recommend approaching your meal prep!
And last but not least…
4. “I don’t know what to eat!”
This has got to be the MOST common of them all, so please don’t feel like you are alone in this.. The thing with this is there is no right or wrong answer. Everybody is different. As a general rule of thumb, eat a variety of whole foods, balancing carbs, protein and fats as best as possible and avoid foods that cause you digestive problems. Aka if you are lactose intolerant it’s probably best to just say no to the cheese.
So how do we do this meal prep thing anyways?
Step # 1: PLAN AHEAD!
BEFORE you go to the grocery store, decide on what you will be cooking and roughly how much (most recipes will have a serving size so that you can figure out roughly how much of each ingredient you need to get). Make a list, check it twice. Make sure you have what you need for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks in between. We all know how easy it is to go for convenience and eat out when we forget to bring a snack or lunch with us..
Step #2: GROCERY SHOP!
Now that you have that awesome list of yours (yay!), head to the grocery store and stick to your list! The grocery stores are verrrrry good at enticing us into impulse items, having your list and doing your best to stick to it is the best way to avoid these (and of course NOT going to the grocery store hungry).
Step #3: COOKING PREP
Take a look at your recipes and consider how long each one will take to make. I like to start with the one that takes the longest first so that while the first is cooking I can start working on other meals too! If you’re feeling really strapped for time you can also chop and prep all of your veggies the day before you cook them so that when the time comes to cook you just have to throw them in the meals and voila!
Step #4: COOK ALL THE THINGS!
Schedule in the time you need to cook all of your meals. I like to tidy my kitchen up the morning of my meal prep day to ensure when it comes time to cook I have no other additional tasks to do beforehand!
Step #5: PORTIONING
Make sure you have enough containers to portion out your meals as needed. Take a look at the meals and ensure that you are getting a balance of carbs, protein and fats and as much colour as you can :) Having a nutrition coach who can help you come up with healthy portion sizes for you personally can make a big difference for this!
Step #6: SIT BACK, RELAX & ENJOY!
Guess what, your meals are prepped and ready for the week at this point so all that’s left to do is sit back, relax and enjoy all that extra time you will have this week! :)
Some of my favourite types of meals to make that save time and are delicious:
1. Anything that can be made in a crockpot. Seriously, the crock pot might be one of my favourite things ever. Chopped up the things, throw them in, set it and forget it!
2. BBQ foods! I love summer time here in Victoria and the more time I can spend out in the beautiful weather, the better! Kill two birds with one stone as they say, sunshine and meal prep!
Here are some of my all time favourite recipes (adjust them as needed to suit your nutritional needs and likes):
Crockpot pulled chicken: https://healthystepsnutrition.com/recipe/pulled-chicken/
Crockpot Mediterranean chicken: https://healthystepsnutrition.com/recipe/mediterranean-chicken-2/
Pecan crusted chicken: https://healthystepsnutrition.com/recipe/pecan-crusted-chicken/
Oats with nuts and fruit: https://amycaseycooks.com/overnight-oatmeal-with-fruit-and-nuts/
Lettuce Wraps: https://40aprons.com/whole30-lettuce-wraps-pf-changs-recipe
Quinoa black bean salad: http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/11654/quinoa-salad.aspx
Black Bean Casseroles:https://www.easycheesyvegetarian.com/mexican-black-bean-casserole/
