Food Prepping for Success
Food prepping. This is where many people fail. They fail because they don't really try. They don't want to try. It is easier to hide behind the "I'm too busy" mantra than it is to get up off of the couch and meal prep.
Yes I know there are busy people out there. They have 4 kids or work 12 hour shifts and don't "have time" to prepare meals. You do have time. If you currently grocery shop you can buy healthy options. If you are currently cooking any food you can do this.
Today we spent about $150 on organic food and prepared several healthy recipes in bulk to save us time all week.
Money invested: $150
Time invested: 2 1/2 hours
We have a lot of cookbooks. Many of them came from Beachbody programs like Body Beast, Asylum, P90X3, T25 and 21 Day Fix. Many of the recipes are available through an On Demand subscription so you don't have to have cookbooks laying around.
What did we make?
Turkey Taco Meat (from the Fixate cookbook)
Black Bean Chili (from the Asylum cookbook)
Turkey & Beef Meatballs (from Body Beast)
Red Pepper & Sweet Potato Soup (Ultimate Reset)
Cauliflower Pizza (my own recipe from Heather Dietel Fitness)
The taco meat and black bean chili were pretty much the same stuff. We chopped all of the onions and peppers and divided them between the 2 recipes. As my husband cooked the taco meat I opened the cans of beans and made the chili. Season and boom.
Next I mixed the ground beef and turkey for the meatballs. Not much to them either. Mix them up, form the balls, bake them and set them aside to cook and portion.
While all of that was cooking I had cauliflower steaming in the other steamer. The cauliflower pizza is the most labor intensive one with the most steps. I've perfected the process so now it doesn't take me as long. I make 2 crusts so we can eat both for dinner that night or freeze one for later in the week.
After we cleaned the kitchen from all of that I started steaming the sweet potatoes. To speed up the roasted red pepper part I bought roasted peppers from the olive bar at Central Market.
I also steamed 12 eggs too. Steam? Yes, steam! I have an electric egg cooker that I bought when I was in college and it is such a time saver. Perfect eggs every time.
What's next? Chopping veggies for salads so all we have to do is add dressing and tomatoes the day we want to eat the salad.
Being busy is not a competition. Sometimes I feel that it is. Oh you have 1 kid? I have 4. Oh you only work 3 days a week, I work 6. Oh you only play 1 sport, we play 3. Okay okay you win. You've signed up for more stuff.
However, we are all the same. We eat, sleep, poop and shower right? We go to the grocery store. We watch TV. You have 2 hours a week to dedicate to healthy meal prep that will end up saving you time later in the week and perhaps doctor visits and sick time.
Which day of the week is the toughest for you? Is it Monday? You worked all day, your kid has cub scouts and you are tired. Make extra servings of taco meat on Sunday and save it for Monday. Or take a frozen serving the freezer that you made last week and throw it in the crock pot while you go run errands.
You don't have make 5 different things on Sunday and spend 2 1/2 hours doing it. You could make one thing like black bean chili and have it for a few days and then make something else for the second half of the week.
Done is better than perfect. Don't try to be Martha Stewart. Just be you and do your best. Take it from me, sitting on your rear ordering pizza on Sunday while you watch football will not help your ass shrink. It will not get you healthy. You can still have the game on while you prepare meals. Turn meal prep time into a fun time. Music and family fun. Let your kids pick a recipe from the book you will prep it that week.
Meal planning and food prep can seem overwhelming. Don't let it. Just pick a few things that are basic and grow from there.
For example:
If you are used to stopping at drive thru for your morning coffee and breakfast sandwich STOP IT. Make coffee and a breakfast wrap at home. Pre-make veggie cups and use them for a few mornings.
If you are used to going out to lunch with co-workers at lunch only go out with them 3 times a week instead of 5.
If you are used to ordering pizza every Friday night at home try making a healthy version at home.
If you are used to going out for Mexican food after Church on Sunday switch it up. Ask your family to meet you at the park with a picnic lunch for more fun.
Meal planning and eating healthy doesn't have to be a chore. You don't have to be perfect. Start adjusting your current life a little and see what you can do with just a few changes.
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