7 Meal Prep Tips 11/84

Since I need tons of nutrition posts I figured this one needs to be a no-brainer. By now, most people should know that if you want to make any kind of real body composition changes then you need to make sure your diet is on point. The easiest way to make sure that you're consistent in your diet is to prep your food ahead of time. Most people refer to this a "meal prep" (duh). But I've come to realize that a lot of people are very intimidated by the idea of meal prepping and probably think it's way harder than it is. Everyone loves to post their pictures of 20 perfectly portioned meals on Instagram but the though of needing to do that can be a huge turn off for a lot of people. Although that method obviously can work, it definitely isn't the only way to go about it. Here are a few tips that I use in my daily life to make sure that my meal preparation works for me

1. Pick 1 or 2 days a week for your prep

This is meal prep 101. The point is that you don't have to cook every single day. Sunday is usually Worldwide Meal Prep Day but use whatever day you're going to have a lot of free time. Make sure to prep every week on this day so that you don't run out of food. Personally, I do Sunday and Wednesday.

2. Own a lot of sealable containers

Duh, you need to have somewhere to store and carry your meals. Any plastic or glass container that has a lid will work but some companies do make sectioned containers just for meal prep. I just buy packages that come with a variety of sizes for different needs. The biggest ones work well to store things in the fridge and the smallest ones work well for fat sources like almonds or peanut butter that you need to limit yourself on.

3. Definitely cook all of your protein

The most important thing that we prep each week is our protein sources. Of the things you're going to need to cook, this will take the longest and this will also be the most important part of your meal. Here's an example of what I do...

- Defrost an entire back if chicken breasts.
- Marinate them so that they are not dry. There will be a few extra calories in this but it will make next to no difference. Unless you're in contest prep, you don't need to worry.
- Place all marinated breasts onto a cooking sheet and cook at 375 degrees for 20 minutes
- You now have a bunch of protein. Either weigh it into individual meals or store it all together.

I typically do this with 1-2 bags of chicken and a few fillets of salmon or tilapia.

4. Invest in a food scale

You should definitely weigh out your protein for each meal so that you know how much to track. That amount will depend on how often you eat but I usually do 5-6 ounces cooked. The only other thing I weigh is fats, I just go off of the nutrition label for most carb sources but if you're super serious you can weigh everything. This will be the most accurate way to track.

5.Pick how you want to track and stick to it

Like how I mentioned in point 4, have a system and stick to it. My system is to weigh my protein and sometimes fat, and use the labels for carbs. This is what works for me and what I can stick too, seems to be working well too. You'll need to experiment but figure out what you can be consistent with.

6. Have convenient back-ups

I always try to keep convenient sources of protein, carbs, and fat that I can go to if I need to. That way, if I run out of food or am in a time crunch I can just grab that. Typically these are things like beef jerky, pre-cooked turkey sausage (takes on a couple minutes to defrost), almonds, PB, apples, bananas, Belvita Breakfast Biscuits (God I love these) and other easy items. This just makes for a good backup plan.

7. Sort all of your meals together ahead of time, or not

Some people do this and some don't. If you want to pre-portion your meals then more power to you. Personally, I don't like to do that because my meals will change based on my activity level for the day. So here is a basic plan for what I do.

- Store all my protein together then grab out my normal 5-6 ounces per meal
- Measure or weigh my fats and put them in individual containers
- Decide what I want for my carbs. I usually try to get some from fruit and some from whole grans each meal.
- Stick a crap ton of veggies in some large container.
- Through it all in my bag and leave.

Easy-peasy. Not the most time efficient but I like to be able to mix and match each day depending on what I'm feeling. I've been sticking to this type of plan for over a year now and it seems to be working great for me. Hopefully you found these tips helpful and get make a real change in the way you eat. Don't forget, if you want to be the first to hear about new posts, new programs, and get discounts on paid services, make sure to leave your email in the space above and join my Newsletter list! The list is growing rapidly so don't miss out!

See you tomorrow!

Facebook: Greg Herceg - Personal Trainer
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