Coach Jen's Tips For Meal Prepping

A common theme is that it's hard to find time in our busy lives to prep/cook food and it's just easier to grab it to go.  If you add up the time it takes to make multiple trips to the store, time waiting for take-out, time spent eating at restaurants, etc. you may be surprised that a couple hours spent planning, prepping and shopping for homemade meals might not seem so bad.  Some tips for prepping meals at home:

 

1.  Make a meal plan for the week and include left-over nights on busy days.

2.  Don't grocery shop the same day you're trying to prep meals.  If you try to do everything in one day it may seem exhausting and too time consuming versus breaking it up into smaller chunks.

3.  Make it a family affair.  Turn up the music and have fun working together to make meals that the whole family can enjoy.

4.  Portion out meals into individual containers for ease of grab and go.  If you have an extra meal here or there, throw it in the freezer for a day when the best laid plans go out the window.

5.  Choose recipes that allow you to use ingredients more than once.  For example, baked chicken for lunches and re-using the chicken for tacos or a pizza topping.

6.  Keep it simple.  The easier the recipes and the shorter the ingredient list, the more likely you are to execute your plan.

7.  Line baking trays/ pans with foil or parchment paper for super easy clean-up (sometimes, none at all).

8.  Slow cookers are awesome!  Pick meals that you can set and leave them while you work on a separate meal, clean the house or get a run in.

 

Prepping saves time in the long run, helps you to eat healthier and more than likely will help your bank account.