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Health & Fitness

Simple Meal Prep

It’s no secret that I love my meal prep. For as long as I can remember I have been a planner. So it should come as no surprise that when it comes to my meals, I like to plan ahead to keep them healthy. For me, meal prep Sunday is key in this.

When I first started prepping though, I had no clue where to even begin. Now however, I kind of have it down to a science so I thought I’d share some of my favorite tips and things to prep ahead with you.

First up is planning. I typically plan the majority of my meals ahead of time so that I can stay within my macros (a post for another day). I usually do this on Thursday or Friday using MyFitnessPal.

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Saturdays are usually my grocery day where I get whatever I need to prep as well as anything else I want to have on hand for the week.

Then Sunday is my prep day. I usually start with something that needs to cook in the oven and start with the things that take shorter to cook, that way they finish fast, and I can put whatever else I need to in next.

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For me, this usually means starting with a pre-workout snack.  I can never stomach a lot before I work out so having just a bite of something small in the morning is perfect for me. I typically make something higher in protein and carbs and lower in fat.

Egg muffins are a favorite of mine but lately I’ve been loving pumpkin protein bars too.

I make sure I have 6 servings of whatever I make for Monday-Saturday mornings and then store them in the refrigerator to last throughout the week.

Once those are in the oven, I move onto Crockpot chicken. I could eat this each and every week and never get sick of it. It’s the easiest way to cook my chicken I can make a lot of it so it ends up accounting for a lot of the protein I consume throughout the week.

All I do is lay boneless skinless chicken breasts in the Crockpot, sprinkle with black pepper and red pepper flake, cover with water, and cook on high 5-6 hours depending on how much I am making.

I also always cook sweet potatoes for the week.  Fun little tip, but these actually double as my dog’s treats for the week so I always make a really big batch (she’s hypoallergenic and can only have fish and sweet potatoes). For these I scrub, wash, and poke holes in the potatoes and microwave 5-6 minutes. Then I slice them thin and lay on a baking sheet sprayed with coconut oil. I bake them at 400 degrees for about 40 minutes.

Lastly depending on the week I will usually prep some extra veggies, especially if they take longer to cook – spaghetti squash I always do ahead.

I also usually put together some other meal option with a protein source in it. For example a turkey chili, spaghetti squash and turkey meatballs, lean ground beef, etc…

And that’s it. With all of this prep, I hardly do much cooking during the week with the exception of throwing things together that I’ve already prepped.

Some other staples I like to have ready to go for the week are things like eggs and egg whites, gluten free oats, sliced carrot sticks, protein for shakes (I use this brand), and non fat yogurt or cottage cheese.

What do you like to prep ahead for the week? Any favorite tips to share?


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