Ask Morela – Healthy Meal Prep for a Busy Routine
"Hey Morela,
How can I eat healthy with a busy routine? Any tips for weekly meal preps?”
I love meal prepping! It saves so much time and energy while ensuring a family can enjoy healthy meals daily. I completely understand why cooking a healthy meal every day can be almost impossible with work, family, and other chores to take care of. This makes meal prep an attractive idea for many people.
That said, I have to give you a heads-up here. It does require a lot of effort to get meal prep done for the whole week in a single day. The bright side? It is not impossible. As I always say, start small when you are making a change. Slow and steady wins the race.
Select the Healthy Recipes You Want to Try
Meal prep can be overwhelming if you are starting out. One thing that can make things easier is shortlisting the healthy recipes you want to enjoy during the week. These can be well-loved recipes, along with some easy new ones. I create a monthly meal plan, making it easier to prep my meals every week and help with grocery shopping.
Determine the Portion Size for Each Meal
Up next is deciding the portion size for all your meals – breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. This will include the number of portions you need for all meals throughout the week. This will help you determine how much cooking you need to do to ensure healthy eating during the week.
Include Some Staples
Aside from the main recipes, it is a good idea to include a few staples, like cooked protein, roasted or steamed veggies, and complex carbs. These will be useful if you want to mix and match the ingredients or need a side dish for any meal.
Select the Day You Can Meal Prep
Sunday is usually the day most people do the meal prep for the week, but you must decide the day that works best for you. Pick the day you know you will have extra time to prep all the recipes without feeling rushed.
Make Double the Recipe
Based on the portions you have to create; decide how many ingredients you will need for every recipe. You might want to double or even triple every recipe to make it through the week. Remember, you can always freeze anything left for the next week.
Use the Right Containers
Many people neglect the importance of using the right containers for meal prep. Trust me; it can make a massive difference. Stock up on individual serving-sized containers so you can quickly grab the container and heat it up to enjoy your meal. Bento-style containers are a great way to mix and match all the meals.
Learn to Repurpose Leftovers
When you are meal planning on a busy schedule, finding ways to repurpose prepped recipes is the trick. You can mix and match the prepped ingredients to create a different dish every time. Here are some ideas:
- Prepped turkey or ground beef can be used for a stir-fry at dinner, used in an omelet for breakfast, and on a sandwich for lunch
- Prepped veggies can be added to your eggs for breakfast, salad for lunch, and pasta for dinner
- Leftover cauliflower rice can be used as a pizza base that can be topped with prepped veggies and prepped turkey
Get creative! Depending on your routine, you can also do meal prep once or twice a week. These tips will save you time and effort while you prepare meals. Once you get the hang of it, meal prep will become easier.
