You’ve probably heard of meal prepping and how beneficial it can be when you’re trying to lose weight. It doesn’t need to be complicated or Instagram-worthy, you’ve just got to find what works for you. Here’s how.
What is meal prepping?
It’s preparing your meals ahead of time. A common time to do this is on the weekend so you’re ready for the week ahead.
Your prep can be as simple as chopping veggies ready to add to meals or have as a snack throughout the week, or it could be grilling an entire pack of chicken breasts ready to add to meals. It could even be planning, preparing, and cooking your meals and snacks for the entire week.
Why should I do it?
By the time you get home from work at the end of the day and are feeling tired both mentally and physically, a takeaway just sounds so tempting. Does that sound familiar? No judgement if it does.
The aim of meal prepping is to make eating a healthy, balanced diet easy, so you’ve got an option ready to go that’ll help you stick to your weight loss goals.
How does it help me lose weight?
Takeaway dishes can be really high in calories thanks to cooking methods, processed ingredients, added sugar, and portion sizes. If you get into the habit of ordering a takeaway several times a week, that’s a lot of unnecessary extra calories added to your diet (and a lot of money to spend too!).
Taking the time to plan out your meals means you’re fully in control of what you eat, and you can make sure your menu for the week is tailored to your weight loss goals (calorie controlled, high in protein, etc.)
Do I have to meal prep everything?
No! Do what works for you. If you enjoy cooking to relax after work in the evening, carry on doing that. Think about what you’d like to streamline: if you know you’re short on time in the morning, focus on preparing your breakfasts in advance. But you certainly don’t have to do everything if you don’t need to.
How do I get started with meal prep?
First up, make a plan. What do you need to prepare, and for when? Are you going to go all out and try making all your meals for the week, or are you just going to focus on one thing, like prepping lunches, or making a batch of healthy snacks? Try to identify times when you feel like you need a little extra help to stay on track and start there. Figure out what’s going to work with your lifestyle, and pick foods you love to eat: this isn’t a punishment!
Isn’t it a pain in the arse?
It depends on how you look at it. It can seem like a lot of effort when in the middle of a meal prep session, surrounded by Tupperware boxes with the kitchen looking like a bomb has hit it. But that’ll soon be forgotten when you eat like a king for the rest of the week for minimal effort.
What do I need?
Time to do it.
Carve out some time to do it. Sundays are a popular time to meal prep so you can prepare for the work week ahead. If you’ve got a different working pattern, then choose a time that’ll suit you better.
A space to do it.
Before you start, make sure your kitchen is ready. It’s a lot easier to meal prep if the dishes are done and the kitchen counters are clear. The downside of meal prep is that you’re also going to be making a few days’ worth of mess when you make a few days’ worth of meals, so do your best to clean up after yourself as you go.
Something to put your meals in
People showing off their meal prep on TikTok might have fancy glass containers, but you don’t need them. Reusing old, mismatched food containers is fine – if you can find the lid, it’s good to go. Old takeaway containers are fine too but check that they’re ok to microwave.
If you’re buying new ones, things to look for are whether they’re microwave-safe, reusable, and if they’re plastic, BPA-free. Other things that can make life easier are whether they’re stackable, and if you’ve got one, suitable for the dishwasher.
An idea of what to make
The world’s your oyster when it comes to what you make for your meal prep. Think about what you enjoy eating as a starting point.
That said, there are some things that lend themselves to meal prep a little better than others. Salads that are full of leafy greens aren’t great for meal prep unless you’re eating them in the next day or two, for example.
Some things that work very well for meal prep include soups, stews, chili, oats, and curries.
Pinch of Nom, which is much-loved by MAN v FAT members, has a section for batch cooking recipes here. BBC Good Food, which is always a reliable source, has a meal prep section here, and we’re also a fan of recipe blog Beat the Budget, which has a collection of healthy, budget-friendly meal prep recipes here.