Many of my friends have never heard of this, don't engage in it, or try to "over-prep" making the whole idea counter-productive in my opinion. I spoke to one friend recently who asked how many 'weeks' I prep in advance. WEEKS? Seriously? No ma'am, just a few days. I am not THAT committed to prep 5-6 weeks in advance (nor do I have that kind of time at the moment).
We'll start with the basics, and since I'm not a paid blogger, I do not endorse any brand or product.
1. Grab a few lunch and snack-sized containers. They can be any size, color, or brand. I used some from my local market, which I purchased on sale. Although, you can buy much more expensive items that suit your needs.
I have several different sizes for different foods.
2. Make a list of foods that you would like to enjoy for the next few days. This is very important because you are actually making a plan. I always say, "Failure to plan is a sure-fire way of planning to fail." Be as specific as possible.
- Carrots
- Peppers
- Cukes
- Chicken
- Cheese
- Grapes
- Strawberries
- Blueberries
You get the idea! I keep a running list of food on my phone and place a checkmark beside the items that I need. You can also use various apps on your smartphone for this. Whatever works for you. After you have your list, go to the market and buy the items on your list.
3. Make the most time out of your cutting boards and other utensils by limiting work on yourself. Wash fruits and veggies first before cutting up raw chicken/meat. This will save you some time by not having to wash items 2 or 3 times.
4. If you have little hands or "spouse hands" hanging around on prep day, allow them to help. My mate tolerates prep day because he knows how beneficial having food on hand while I'm working overnights can be. Plus, it allows us to spend some time catching up on small talk while being productive. Give them tasks they enjoy. I would never ask him to cut up an onion for soup because he hates the smell, taste, and texture of onions. However, he loves using our slicer and finds it amusing to slice an English cuke from one end to the other!
5. Keep a garbage bowl or the trashcan nearby while you work. This will save you much clean-up time if you "throw as you go".
6. Pre-measure single serving size products and place them in their assigned containers. This seems so easy, yet gets the least attention when I speak to people about prep days. So many of us are overweight because we do not know the single serving size of food. It is easy to track your nutritional values if you already have food measured out in single servings.
7. After washing, chopping, cooking, and arranging all of your food into containers, it should resemble something like this:
Marinated Chicken Salad
Lunch Main
Lettuce, peppers, cukes,
carrots, spinach, & chicken
Keeping pre-measured cheese
in individual containers will
prevent it from becoming
soggy in your salad.
*Same for pre-measured croutons*
Fridge-ready should look something like this:
I will add a small container of Greek yogurt and pre-measured salad dressing and I'm out the door in 2 minutes! I like to use the glass containers for soup because they do not stain when you nuke them in the microwave.
Nutritional Info
via MyFitnessPal
Marinated Chicken salad, Aldi Fit & Active cheese, grapes
Marinated Chicken salad, Aldi Fit & Active cheese, grapes
Calories: 425
Carbs: 37g
Fat: 17g
Protein: 36g
Fiber: 4g
Sugar: 22g
You can get more ideas for food prep day by reading The Lean Green Bean & Kath Eats Real Food
You can get more ideas for food prep day by reading The Lean Green Bean & Kath Eats Real Food
