There’s a long list of benefits for meal preparation from saving money to healthier eating habits. Most people are aware of the advantages, but don’t believe they have enough time. In reality, meal prep saves you time! Think of how much effort you put into making breakfast, lunch, dinner, plus snacks. I cook almost all my lunches and dinners on Sunday. Guess how much time it takes me? Maximum of 2 hours. This can be even less if you choose simpler recipes.
Make a plan that works for you; tailor it to your lifestyle, nutritional needs, and goals. Don’t be overwhelmed! This is supposed to make your life easier, not cause you additional stress. I’ve provided an example of what my typical meal schedule looks like at the end of this blog post.
Plan ahead
The key to meal prep is to plan. I spend 20 minutes every Saturday planning the following:
Recipes for the week: Try to choose recipes where you can mix and match ingredients. In my sample meal schedule, you will see that I use similar fruits and vegetables in the dishes to make shopping cheaper and easier. Make sure to have some variety, though (a person can only eat so many Brussels sprouts).
Grocery shopping: I know this sounds obvious but planning ahead makes life simpler.
Meal prep: Look at your schedule for the week. Find one or two days to prepare your recipes. My weekly schedule is very busy, so I set aside one weekend day.
Get Excited
There are people who eat to live and those who live to eat; I am one hundred percent the latter. I am always looking for new delicious dishes to prepare. There are certain recipes that I always keep in rotation, but I try to incorporate one new recipe into meal prep every week. This keeps me from getting bored. Find dishes that you look forward to eating! It makes it a lot easier to stay on track.
Sample Meal Schedule
Here is what my typical meal plan looks like.
Monday
Breakfast: Greek yogurt with fresh berries
Lunch: Shaved Brussels sprout salad with apples and walnuts
Dinner: Mediterranean stuffed peppers
Tuesday
Breakfast: Oatmeal with fresh berries
Lunch: Mediterranean chopped salad
Dinner: Chicken enchiladas with fajita vegetables
Wednesday
Breakfast: Greek yogurt with fresh berries
Lunch: Shaved Brussels sprout salad with apples and walnuts
Dinner: Mediterranean stuffed peppers
Thursday
Breakfast: Oatmeal with peanut butter and bananas
Lunch: Mediterranean chopped salad
Dinner: Chicken enchiladas with fajita vegetables
Friday
Breakfast: Greek yogurt with cinnamon and apples
Lunch: Chicken enchiladas with fajita vegetables
Dinner: Eat out
