Welcome back, Lifers! OK, let’s continue our discussion about Meal Planning and Food Prepping for Success. We’ve planned our week like a BOSS, gone grocery shopping, and are back at home with all of this healthy and delicious food. So….. now what??? Well, now it’s time to put it all together!
Listen to the Podcast!
To listen to the Day 6: Meal Planning and Food Prepping for Success Podcast and follow along, please click the player or the download link below.
Food Prepping Tips and Tricks
Here are some tips and tricks we have learned to get you started. Happy food prepping!
- Start with a clean kitchen. Believe me, this is so important. You will want clear counters and an empty sink and dishwasher.
- Pull out your utensils needed before you get started. This will eliminate the need to constantly be opening and closing drawers and cupboards and rummaging around trying to find what you need.
- Pull out all necessary ingredients. See the point above. Ditto.
- Have a large bowl on the counter to throw all the compostable scraps in. We have this compost scrap container that sits on our counter top all the time. Not only is it cute, but it has a charcoal filter to help with smell control so you don’t have to empty it every day.
- Pull your garbage container out of it’s cabinet or closet, it that’s where it lives. Again, see points two and three. Ditto again.
- Start with the things that have the longest cook time. For example, if you are making soup and need to boil meat, get the meat boiling on the stove. Or if you are making whole grain rice, get it started.
- While the long cook time items are doing their thing, chop any veggies, nuts or other items that are needed for all planned recipes. If you have things on the stove-top, don’t forget to give them an occasional stir if needed!
- Also during that time, package your snack items
- Chips, nuts and crackers: Portion those bulk packages into single serving containers or ziplock baggies to have at the ready to grab and go. Throw them all into a larger container in your pantry or cupboard.
- Veggies, fruits and dips: Fruits and veggies along with dips like hummus or ranch dressing can also be portioned into single serving containers.
- Protein rich snack foods (in addition to nuts listed above): We often boil up a bunch of hard-boiled eggs and have them peeled and ready to go in a container in the fridge. You can even put two eggs into small ziplock baggies to have them grab-and-go ready. We also like to pre-portion cottage cheese servings. Other good options include beef jerky, turkey roll-ups, or greek yogurt parfaits – among many others!
Give Food Prepping a Try!
In the beginning start slow! Just like with our exercise, you don’t want to go too crazy and overwhelm yourself at first! Start by picking one thing to try, for example, a breakfast recipe or a snack. Some good things to start with include mason jar salads, oatmeal (click here for our Pumpkin Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal recipe, here for Apple Pie Steel Cut Oat recipe, or here for our Bulk Preparing and Freezing Oatmeal post), breakfast burritos or bowls, meat for sandwiches and meals, soups, or casseroles. If you are looking for recipe inspiration, check out Tammy at Organize Yourself Skinny. You will see a lot of where I get my ideas!
Here’s another easy place to start. If you’re planning to grill chicken or steak for dinner, grill up a bunch so you will have extra for meals the rest of the week. Then slice it up for salads or wraps, or even dice it or shred it for quesadillas or pastas. Here’s another one: if you are browning up some ground beef or turkey for tacos, make extra for spaghetti or chili to get another meal out of it. Rarely do we cook for one meal at a time!
Remember, you are putting in the effort now to make sure your upcoming week goes smooth. Hoping for change is not going to get us anywhere. We have to set ourselves up for healthy wins. As Kevin Geary from Rebooted Body likes to say, devise a plan and execute it!
Happy Food Prepping, Lifers!
Listen to the Podcast!
To listen to the Day 6: Meal Planning and Food Prepping for Success Podcast and follow along, please click the player or the download link below.