Why Meal Prep?
eat healthier. control weight. save time & money. so much win!
Are you always behind schedule, sometimes to the point that you skip or delay regular meal times? Our lives are getting busier and busier, and more and more Americans are turning to the restaurant industry in the hopes of saving on cooking and clean up time. But what if I told you, it just takes a little bit of planning to beat the system and in essence, escape the restaurant matrix!
First off, meal prep allows you to hit your goals. For example, if your goal is to lose weight and become healthier, meal prep helps you avoid all of the added salts and sugars that most restaurants throw in when you're not looking (even the "healthy" ones!). If your goal is to gain or bulk up, meal prep helps prevent the "I ran out of time during my daily schedule to eat enough" moments. On those days, having ready made meals is a God-send. You will no longer miss a meal when you need it most.
Secondly, if you find your energy isn't stable throughout the day, meal prepping will solve that too - the body loves receiving stable calories in a consistent manner throughout the day, and your energy levels will flourish! Not to mention, it will also help your metabolism. Lastly, if you want to save time, cooking all of your meals for the week in one 2 hour window will do just that. Why? Consider you will no longer have to waste time driving to and from restaurants or waiting for your food to be served.
You're probably already thinking of the excuses of why you can't do it. Nonsense! All you need to get started is a set of food containers, we prefer using glass containers such as the Pyrex 3-cup Rectangle containers
Veggies & Sides
Baby Kale (5 oz bag) $1.99
Packed with nutrients to keep you healthy.
Carrots (16oz bag)$1.99
For cooking as a side dish, or for salads.
Broccoli (16oz bag) $1.99
Same as the carrots, can be cooked as a side or used in salad.
Sweet Potatoes (2 or prepared in bag)$1.99
To really save time buy the pre-prepped ones.
Green Beans (16oz bag)$1.99
Makes a great side dish.
Brown Rice (2 lb bag)$2.29
Go Brown, it's high in Gamma-oryzanol and helps increase the body's secretion of HGH!
Instant Mashed Potatoes$1.99
Saves a ton of time, if you prep on your own it's healthier and cheaper, but a huge time suck.
Meats
2x 1 lb Steaks - Cut of Choice $19.95
Ribeye is the favorite, but you can also rotate in NY Strip or Filet.
2x 1lb Chicken Breasts $19.99
This will result in about 4 Chicken meals for the week.
1lb of Alaskan Salmon $11.95
Salmon is a nice way to breakup the Steak/Chicken routine.
1lb of Ground Beef $9.99
This provides variety for the week!
How to Prep
Set your Meats out to Thaw FREE
Steak should be out of the fridge for about an hour (fish/chicken can be cooked right away)
Marinade the Chicken$.25
Place Chicken in a big ziploc with vinegar and spices for ~1 hr.
Boil Water for Veggies & Sides FREE
Just use water from the tap.
Chop Up Sweet Potatoes FREE
If you didn't buy the prepped kind.
You're All Set FREE
In about two hours you'll have everything done, eat a meal after all of that work and pack away the rest as lunch and dinner for the week!
Helpful Video: How to Meal Prep In Under an Hour
Watch the video below for one of our favorite videos on meal prep. This will help answer any additional questions you have. Plus, their time saving techniques capture exactly what we are describing in this article! Happy prepping! P.S. If you really don't want to do even a small amount of shopping, cooking and cleaning, there are many meal prep services out there ranging from $6-$10 per meal. We highly suggest doing a Google search for a meal prep service in your area and taking advantage of these services. Again, having these meals ready will still save you time from going out and are healthier than what you would get at a restaurant, so you're far better off even paying for them, then you would be without them!