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It often feels like preparing a healthy meal takes time. But by following this weight loss meal prep guide you will save a lot of time.
A meal prep is basically preparing your upcoming meals in advance. Doing a weight loss meal prep the right way can save you a ton of time. It also helps you make healthier food choices that will show up on the scale.
In this guide you will learn how to do it the right way so your meal prep can save you time and provide you with the tastiest and healthiest meals.
Requirements for a succesful meal prep session
Before you can get started you need a few things. Chances are big that you have most of these things already. If not, you should really consider getting them if you want to do a succesful weight loss meal prep.
Food storing containers
You need something to store all that tasty and healthy food in.
Make sure you have enough food containers. Healthy food tends to take in more space than for example a peanut butter en jelly sandwich.
They don’t have to be anything complicated. Depending on how much you will shake them around they might have to be watertight.
A place to keep your food cool
If you’re doing a weight loss meal prep the time-efficient way, you will regularly prepare meals a few days before you eat them.
It’s smart to think in advance where you will store the meal preps. In most cases you want to keep them cool so they don’t go bad.
Weight loss meal prep recipes
Doing a meal prep for weight loss does require some thinking ahead.
You should have an estimate of how much calories and micronutrients you want to eat and what food you will eat to get them. This is mostly just continuing your regular diet but preparing it in advance.
Some important parts are enough protein and enough fiber. These two things will help you feel full without adding too many calories to your diet.
If you want to save some money it might be smart to watch out for upcoming deals in your local grocery store. Choosing the foods that are discounted can be a great way to avoid extra costs.
Bonus points if you choose foods that are easy to prepare together in one pot or pan.
How to get started with a weight loss meal prep
The first few weight loss meal preps will likely feel a bit weird and overwhelming. You are doing multiple things at the same time.
Paying attention to a few key things can save you both time and effort. Follow these steps to prep your meals succesful over and over.
Step 1: Choose what kind of meal prep you will do
Yes, there are actually different kinds of meal prep. Don’t worry, they are quite simple and easy to choose from.
The first one is making ingredients ready-to-cook. After you know what you’re going to eat this week you can chop the ingredients in advance. This one is not the greatest one because you will still have to cook later.
Next up, individual meals. This is cooking all the meals of upcoming days at the same time and putting them in seperate containers. Doing this allows you to have a different meal every day but saving some time too because you are cooking all the meals together.
Then you have big portion freezing. With this one you buy bigger portions of what you are planning to eat and you freeze the excess portions to eat it at a later date.
Step 2: Shopping for the right food
Now before you go pack your bags and go to the store you need to think about what you already have. What foods do you have lying around? What herbs and spices will you use?
Some foods will also be less costly if you buy them in bulk quantity. This depends from store to store so it’s worth doing some investigating.
Step 3: Getting your hands dirty
It’s time for some cooking.
Meal prepping is all about making the most use of your time. So, begin with the things that will take the most time, you can for example start by preheating the oven.
Your first weight loss meal prep cooking session will probably not be perfect. Don’t worry about that. The more often you do it the better you will get at it.
After you’ve prepared your food it’s time to store it. Open up your fridge or freezer and put the containers in the right places.
What’s next?
Now you’re set to enjoy days of eating without having to prepare anything! That’s the weight loss dream.
All you have to do now is think about what you want to eat next week. Keep an eye out for upcoming deals from your local stores.
Practice makes perfect
Your first few meal preps can have some hickups. But sooner or later things will go more and more smoothly. And when that happens you will never want to go back.
