First of all, lets debunk that myth that you have to spend hours upon hours in the kitchen every weekend to prep all of your meals for the week and if you can’t do it on Sunday then you can’t do it any day and you might as well try again next weekend. That’s bull-crap!!!
If you are looking for an article on how to spend one day a week cooking all of your food for the upcoming week, then you haven’t found it and you should keep looking.
Because, as someone who has spent many Sunday’s in the kitchen trying to get all the meals done, I’ll be the first to say that it sucks and it’s totally unnecessary.
Meal Prep. Do those two 4 letter words elicit a certain amount of fear and panic in your chest? Do you become paralyzed by the very thought of tackling a seemingly insurmountable and tedious task? Does your mind start spinning with all the possible ways that your sure you can screw this up? Do you have yourself convinced it won’t work before you’ve really given it a chance?
I’m going to show you a better way.
If you have fitness goals, or health goals, or life goals, or any goals really, then you should be putting some thought into what you eat. You should be putting some thought and planning into everything that you do in life, but I think that food is the best place to start if you are trying to get your life together.
Why is that you ask? Well, food directly effects the chemistry of your body. It can instantly start changing your metabolic systems and improve your overall feelings of well being.
It effects your physical appearance as well, there by increasing your self esteem and how you physically feel. So often the little aches and pains and that gasy-bloated feeling that we grow accustom to are simply due to inflammation brought on by the crap food that we consume.
It also effects mental alertness and energy levels. Ever make a bad decision because your blood sugar was low and you were hangry? (hangry: adj; irritable or angry due to hunger) That could have been avoided with a little bit of planning and prepping. Also, when you’re eating healthy foods consistently, your blood sugar doesn’t crash like it does when you eat junk on the daily.
My point is, there are many benefits to planning your meals ahead of time and I think everyone can benefit from adopting this habit on their journey to becoming the best version of themselves. Not only will you be feeling better inside and out but you’ll soon notice that you have more time AND money as you won’t be eating out nearly as often.
Macro nutrient overview
Before I tell you how I plan my meals, I wanted to do a brief overview of what macros are and how you need to consider them when prepping your meals.
At the very basic level, macros are just protein, carbs, and fats. Each one of them as vitally important as the next. The body needs all three of them to function. They are your body’s fuel source and your body uses each one of them differently, so I would not advise you to follow a meal plan that is lacking drastically in any of the above mentioned nutrients.
You can read more about macros here.
What I typically eat in a day
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After every workout, I have a protein shake immediately after to help my muscles recover quicker. This protein is great because it comes from grassfed cows and has no added crap. When choosing a protein, just remember that not all protein powders are created equally. Check the labels!
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These gluten free oats from Trader Joe’s are a great carb source, especially post workout.
I mixed mine with 1/2 cup of almond milk and added this grain free granola and honey on top. Simple. Quick. And it gave me plenty of energy to get my day moving. You can do these in the morning or prepare them the night before for overnight oats. If you make them in the morning, just let the oats and almond milk sit for about 10 minutes in the fridge before heating.
While my oats were soaking in the fridge, I took that 10 minutes to get the rest of my food together for the day….
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My mid morning snack is usually this go-to guy right here. All the heart eyes for him. It’s almost like a cheat but not.
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Short on time? It doesn’t get much easier than this. 3 oz of turkey lunch meat and a cup of grape tomatoes. Now, while I don’t recommend that you have this every day, as lunch meat is processed and you should really limit your consumption of processed meats as much as possible. But in a pinch, I condone it.
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Costco is just the greatest of all time, aren’t they? They have these hard boiled eggs prepackaged and ready to grab and go. Pair them with an Orange, and boom. Easy snack.
Our family dinner’s usually consist of a meat (chicken, pork, or beef) and a veggie and/or rice. I weigh my meat out to 3 oz and usually have a cup of veggies with it and a 1/2 a cup of rice.
That’s it. Super quick and easy. This is how I stay feeling in shape and feeling strong and full of energy all day long. Your body deserves for you to take care of it. You deserve to love yourself and to quit stressing over food. Food is not the enemy, we are.
Let me know if you have any questions on macros or meal prepping. Until next time, XOXO