The new year usually brings many resolutions for healthier living, which often starts with eating cleaner and meal prepping. However, for many it is hard to consistently prepare meals ahead of time because of busy schedules and lack of planning. This makes it easy to fall back on old habits of rushing to make or buy meals that are not as healthy, and losing progress towards the goal of being healthier. Here are some helpful tips to make it easier to consistently meal prep delicious meals.
Research Recipes
Before meal prepping, you have to have some recipes. I find it easiest to go on Pinterest and type “healthy recipes” in the search bar. Immediately, numerous nutritious and mouthwatering dishes appear. Look around for a few minutes at the recipes and see what looks appetizing. It’s best to find a recipe for an entrée and a side, especially ones that you think would pair well together. Additionally, choose meals that you would be happy to eat multiple days in a row, and that will make you excited when it’s time to eat.
Plan Ahead
The main factor that makes meal prepping easier is organization. I recommend creating a google document just for meal prepping, that way you can have everything in one place. Take note of all the recipes you could potentially make for the next month and link the recipes in the doc. Also in the same doc, insert a chart and use it to create a calendar. Then, choose an entrée recipe and a side recipe to make for each week and type those recipes into the chart for that week. I recommend choosing your recipes a month at a time instead of updating it every week. You could always change what recipes you make later on, but planning a month out allows you to fall back on something if you are extra busy one week, and you are also more likely to stick to meal prepping if it’s already planned out for you.
Utilize Sundays
Sundays have always been my reset day, but especially now that I meal prep they are extra helpful. It is best to make your meals on Sunday so that you can eat them Sunday evening and then for the upcoming week. Sundays are also the day I use if it’s the end of the month to plan my meals for the next month.
Store Efficiently
One of the things that is helpful once you make your food is to separate them into containers for the days you will be eating that food. I usually make the food on Sunday and eat it until Thursday, so I separate it into containers for each of those days and put it in the fridge. Separating them into containers helps with portioning and serving size, to make sure you don’t eat too much of it one day, not saving enough for a different day. Also it lets your family know not to eat out of those containers because they are specifically for your meals.
Meal prepping has allowed me to eat healthier meals while also saving time during the week. Planning has been essential in my meal prepping journey, and it is my biggest tip to anyone trying to consistently meal prep: stay organized! Meal prepping is not for everyone but for me and others I know it has been instrumental in becoming healthier versions of ourselves, especially for the new year!
