How to Meal Prep Painlessly
When you hear the words “meal prepping” many different things may come to mind. For some, they think of ridiculously healthy food and spending hours in the kitchen. For others, meal prepping may just be making a grocery store list and sticking to it.
No matter what you think about meal prepping or how you do it, try to get into the habit of planning your meals. Meal prepping is a great way to make sure you are eating the way you want and keeps you from spending too much money eating out.
Here are a few tips to help you if you are thinking of meal prepping, or feel too overwhelmed when trying to come up with a plan.
Store up some recipes
Having a strong bank of recipes that you enjoy and are easy to cook is essential to sticking to your goals. Since Facebook food videos became so popular, there are many ways to find awesome recipes, many with helpful videos to go along with them. You can save videos on Facebook to view later, which is a good way to save recipes that you see while scrolling.
Another way to store up recipes is through creating a Pinterest board for them. Pinterest has a lot of different types of recipes and specific search terms, so you can search for exactly what you need. Then, you can pin them and find them anytime you need a recipe.
Make a list
Once you have your recipes, you are ready to make your grocery list! You should never go to the store without a grocery list if you are trying to eat healthier. If you don’t make a list, you may come out of the store with Oreos and ice cream and no fruits or vegetables. Also, making a list ensures that you don’t forget something and prevents you from having to go back several times a week.
Create a relaxing environment
A lot of people see cooking as a chore instead of something that is enjoyable. If you don’t like cooking, try to make it more of a treat than something you have to do. Play some music while you cook or cook with friends. Try to think of meal prepping as time off from work or school and it will become something you look forward to.
Cook to your strengths
One thing that seems to scare people about meal prepping is they think they have to cook really difficult recipes in order for them to be healthy. I promise you don’t have to try to spiralize zucchini or dry your own fruit to meal prep.
When you see a recipe you think you want to make, read the directions. If the recipe looks too hard, either look up a video to learn how or move on to the next recipe. As you start cooking more, try harder recipes. If you haven’t been cooking as long, stick with things you think you can handle until you feel more comfortable.
Don’t stress
At the end of the day, don’t stress about what others say meal prepping is. Make meal prepping what you want it to be. Schedule time in your week to search for recipes and make your list. As long as you are trying to eat healthier and focusing on yourself, you are doing great!
