We get it. You’re busy, juggling work, maybe a family, and trying to find some time for yourself and social engagements. Amidst the chaos, looking after yourself seems harder than it should be, which is where “Meal Prepping 101” can be a lifesaver. A beginners guide.

Meal Prepping 101 isn’t about becoming a gourmet chef overnight. It’s a simple system of prepping some of your food via healthy recipes, so you can eat healthier without even trying. It’s about making your life easier and your meals healthier.

Healthy eating has never been easier with this prep method. All you need is a prep day!

Table of Contents:

• Why Bother with Meal Prep?
• The Benefits of Meal Planning
• Meal Prepping 101: Making it Work For You
• Meal Prep Made Easy
• Choosing Your Ingredients
  • Proteins to Consider
  • Grains that Hold Up Well
  • Veggies to Keep you Strong
  • Good to Have Extras
• Meal Prep Ideas to Try
  • Chicken & Veggie Bowls
  • Lentil Soup: Batch Cooking Hero
  • Breakfast Meal Prep
• Staying Safe with Meal Prep
• Troubleshooting Common Problems
  • Getting Bored of the Same Thing
  • Food Starts Tasting…Off
  • It Takes Too Much Time
• FAQs about Meal Prepping 101
  • How to start meal prepping for beginners?
  • What are the 5 basic steps of meal planning?
  • Is it okay to meal prep for 5 days?
  • What is the rule of thumb for meal prepping?
• Conclusion

Why Bother with Meal Prep?

It might seem like extra work upfront. But, think about those evenings when you’re drained and the takeaway menu looks far too appealing.

Having a healthy meal ready can save you from that impulse decision. Prepping helps you stay on track with your fitness goals, which makes the difference between the easy way out versus getting more of the results that we strive for at Functional & HIIT Gym.

Meal Prepping 101: The Benefits of Meal Planning

There are multiple levels to this that need to be mentioned for a deeper understanding. With home-cooked meals, people ate roughly 200 fewer calories on average.

Here’s why this works:

• You’re in Control: You choose the ingredients, meaning less hidden sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats. You want healthier, tasty, delicious meals on a consistent basis that don’t taste bland.
• Save Cash: Buying in bulk and cooking at home is almost always cheaper than eating out or getting takeaway. Even just thinking about those savings and where that could take you might be enticing.
• Save Time: Spend a couple of hours prepping, and you’ve got meals ready for days. No more daily cooking marathons to fret over with the day winding down.
• Reduce Food Waste: You use what you buy, which is good for your wallet and the planet. It gives us more purpose to the week in ways that have benefits you feel directly.

Foodborne illnesses are a genuine concern. Properly cooking, storing, and reheating food is critical to avoid this.

Meal Prepping 101: Making it Work For You

There are a lot of different systems when you want to prep, and people get them confused. To keep it very straightforward, it should help knowing there are ways to still incorporate variety.

Here’s how you can fit meal prep into your life:

• Make-Ahead Meals: Cook full meals in advance, perfect for reheating when you’re short on time. It takes more time at one point of your day or week and turns the rest of the days into fewer tasks that could throw you off your progress.
• Batch Cooking: Make big portions of staples like grains, proteins, or roasted vegetables. It’s amazing how a few dishes prepared a certain way could cover a variety of meals.
• Individually Portioned Meals: Pack single servings for ready-to-go lunches and dinners. Use meal prepping container ideas for what can last, to use multiple times, and easily get stored away.
• Prep Ingredients: Chop veggies, make sauces, or marinate proteins to cut down cooking time later. Thinking about the various recipes, it might seem that there is not a lot of commonalities, but when you review your preferred foods and recipes closely, you’ll realize they do tend to have some crossover between common spices or vegetables.

Think about what suits your lifestyle. There is a reason it helps to think it over.

Meal Prepping 101: Meal Prep Made Easy

Let’s consider a simple meal prep system that you could make into a schedule. Follow some of the simple things below.

1. Plan It Out: First start off by picking 2-3 recipes for the week. Look at options from Budget Bytes or even explore ideas with EatingWell’s Meal Prepping tips.
2. Shop Smart: Make a list and stick to it to be able to buy everything you want from your preferred place. Make sure the produce looks like quality ingredients and that nothing expired.
3. Get Prepping: Designate a couple of hours, maybe Sunday afternoon to getting ahead of the week, to start putting together all the foods you plan on making for yourself and possibly your loved ones. Put some music on and it goes by faster while keeping the process less serious and just more routine like a daily walk with the added fun of tunes you like.
4. Store it Right: Use quality storage containers, whether glass, stainless steel, or BPA-free plastic. According to government-approved food safety guidelines, you’ll want to have refrigerated foods last 3-4 days when properly sealed.
5. Start Small: Begin with prepping one meal for one or two people at a time and scaling it based on your habits. Think about portion size and the times you will not have it throughout the week.

Meal Prepping 101: Choosing Your Ingredients

Variety matters in the kitchen because you can get tired of having the same types of dishes on a constant rotation. Think beyond basic items, too.

Some people don’t do too well after they have their meals set to go after 3 or 4 days. It could have a different effect on them, so experiment first by paying attention to how you feel after various recipes you create.

Proteins to Consider

• Chicken Breast
• Lean Beef
• Tofu
• Lentils
• Salmon

Grains that Hold Up Well

• Quinoa
• Brown Rice
• Whole Wheat Pasta
• Farro

Veggies to Keep you Strong

• Broccoli
• Sweet Potatoes
• Bell Peppers
• Spinach

Good to Have Extras

Here are additional options to help your prep process.

• Healthy Fats: Things like avocados, nuts, and seeds for that satisfaction to help maintain consistency in using the meal preps instead of looking for takeaway last second when your options are exhausted.
• Spice it Up: Your food doesn’t get to be bland, and you get to use a combination of things. With even just common items like salt, pepper, garlic, and a few of your go-to spices to put some “pep in the step” when looking ahead.

Meal Prepping 101: Meal Prep Ideas to Try

Keep in mind to mix things up or else your prep work will turn boring with time. Focus on mixing it up to where you can make even simpler swaps like switching the type of green like spinach with kale or some other vegetable you want more of for its nutrients.

Chicken & Veggie Bowls

Start roasting chicken and vegetables like broccoli and sweet potatoes. Add a variety of grains that include brown rice or quinoa.

It will cover the bases you need in any complete healthy dish with great options. Use it in another recipe for leftovers to stretch the dish out even more to make it seem a bit new and less redundant.

Lentil Soup: Batch Cooking Hero

Lentils are full of what helps to provide long, sustained energy and are even good for improving things like your gut flora for a stronger and improved metabolism. It’s full of ingredients that keep you regular, without having an appetite where you overdo your intake and overindulge.

You might have some ingredients leftover, but they can also make it into another set of dishes later or be reused when batch cooking. Add your choice of spices to have multiple meals that don’t feel like copies from earlier in the week.

Breakfast Meal Prep

Prep some things with more ease. No longer is time wasted each and every morning on things you will get rid of the hassle of thinking on, if it saves time in the evenings too.

• Overnight Oats: Easy to assemble and keeps well to make a routine more manageable while using a system that will do what you need. Think of easy swaps for new, flavorful, additions so your routine can stay and improve with tweaks instead of starting things over repeatedly when the schedule changes.
• Smoothie Packs: When you get a new workout split going on, you can mix and match different recovery powders into various days without any issue. Freeze the ingredients in separate portions for getting ready on the go and add various fruits that work around what flavour or powder.

Staying Safe with Meal Prep

Keep your meals lasting longer. It gets things set up to work longer for the right benefits.

Here are some extra points that are always helpful to consider when you start your meal prepping:

• Cool it Down: Make sure that you give food enough time to get to room temp before getting things chilled for safe, long-lasting storage. Hot food will raise the fridge’s internal temperature, which is not good for your other dishes and food items.
• The Right Containers: Go for something with quality and something you know you will use for an easy grab from the fridge. Try ones with labels so you also remember your rotation, since keeping items beyond the ideal range leads to wasted product that loses nutrients.
• Reheat Properly: Avoid food poisoning by ensuring your food is hot enough and you have used them on time. For extra precaution, use items such as a thermometer to properly assess the progress so it does not lead to any issues from mistakes when in a rush, where the middle parts are not properly cooked when doing it to the correct, safe levels for yourself.
• Eat Timely: As food and safety guidelines show, when items are refrigerated it can be used around 3 or 4 days. Frozen food does last longer, usually a few months is reasonable, but also remember it’s more optimal when food is freshly made or prepared beforehand instead of having everything done so far ahead.

Troubleshooting Common Problems

Let’s handle some very possible, frequent issues. See how to change things on a consistent basis with no worry.

Getting Bored of the Same Thing

Switch up recipes every week or a few weeks. Try changing recipes that get you more of what you like from restaurants or styles, such as from an Indian, Chinese, or Mediterranean-themed kitchen meal.

A simple tip that takes this even further could be doing simple spices. Have various levels of flavours going with meals or vegetables by trying even some new seasoning.

Food Starts Tasting…Off

This could indicate its age. Take a quick look to find where the issues start, as well as double-checking storage tips shared earlier to make the proper, small adjustments that keep it avoided long-term.

It Takes Too Much Time

Prep components, rather than full meals, and look for your go-to options or what seems most used with recipes online. Review to find items with overlapping ingredients with your other planned ideas or with others that are easy to find in a place you already make your shopping trip to get groceries or things at a restaurant, for a complete meal after training.

FAQs about Meal Prepping 101

How to start meal prepping for beginners?

Begin with one or two meals you like and slowly start incorporating them throughout the week. As you get more comfortable, try some different meals or change up your ingredients so your weekly meal preps can increase.

What are the 5 basic steps of meal planning?

To make meal planning a breeze, you need to do these five simple things. Set up some days for cooking each of the things you will have throughout your upcoming meals for various parts of the week. Have your kitchen essentials and cutting board area organised and prepared.

Next, you’ll create a proper, detailed grocery list organized of each item needed to stay ahead and get your things to save some money. This includes buying things for lower prices and better deals at places such as a farmer’s market or from wholesale deals on a local farms.

Cook your meals, and then portion them into your storage containers that go right into storage, labeled and ready to go.

Is it okay to meal prep for 5 days?

Absolutely; although, make sure you also take inventory and consider the type of meals used, keep it to 3-4 day meals when it involves some animal products. Make sure your items are properly cooled when prepped, have a quality container to put away properly to store your work when properly labeled.

What is the rule of thumb for meal prepping?

Focus on 4 things initially that consist of proper protein amounts with options from chicken or beans. Then have the right carb ratio or level and use grains, vegetables, with some tasty seasonings to improve all the prep to the levels where it’s a great quality meal without being so much you feel forced to go beyond the necessary efforts with minimal time in the first place.

Conclusion

Meal Prepping 101 comes down to planning and action, but doesn’t demand a full kitchen overhaul, even with multiple styles out there, such as using a keto system. The trick with using meal prep on any type of program comes with just having an extra edge with saving a few more meals weekly.

It is not complicated to get results using simple tips to put in a bit of time one or two days of your choice for weekly meals on autopilot, even by itself or with your training plans.

Try using Meal Prepping 101 so things seem more consistent when following your goals and saving a bit of money each time. This allows meal prepping and meal planning a breeze when doing things correctly.