Meal Prepping: How to Get Started

Where to begin? That is the question.

Meal prepping can seem overwhelming, how to get started is a question many people ask. It can look like a lot of work, you might not know which recipes are best for meal prep, or maybe you already meal prep but find yourself eating the same recipes each week. Each of my recipes tells you whether they are good for meal prep or not, if they are freezer friendly, and how long the meals will last.

How I got started:

I have been there, wondering where to start. I began my meal prep journey about 5 years ago. A super busy work schedule and found myself missing meals because I was too busy, rushing out of the house in the morning, working through lunch, and just not making time for meals.

I needed to change that. I’ve known for a long time how important it is to properly nourish your body and I knew I was not doing that. I was eating whatever was quick and available, under-eating, and eating meals that just were not providing my body with the right nutrients.

That’s when I decided to hop on the meal prep bandwagon…I haven’t looked back since. I found a new passion in my cooking, creating recipes that are great for meal prep! Not all my recipes are meal prep-able, but many are! Over my years of trial and error, I figured out exactly what makes a recipe good for meal prep, taking all the guess work out for you!

Let me save you time and Allow you to:

• Enjoy a better variety of meals
• Easily adjust recipes to meet your macro and/or calorie goals
• Eat healthier
• Meal prep with ease
• Save money by reducing food waste
• Create exciting meal plans

If you have never prepped before…Where to start:

Start small! You do need to meal prep every single meal of every day. You can leave room for being creative and cooking throughout the week if you want. Or saving some macros/calories for eating out. 

Starting small still provides you with some great benefits and allows you to get the hang of meal prep slowly. 

Start Meal Prepping by:

• Picking one of my recipes to prep. Snacks and breakfast are a great place to start. They tend to be easy recipes and you can eat them almost any time of day.
• Double up the ingredients of one of your favorite recipes so you have leftovers…yup that is also meal prep!
• Cook a few chicken breast following my perfect juicy chicken recipe, then slice them up and keep in the fridge to add to salads, grains, pasta, or eat as part of a protein snack during the week.
• Prep veggies by, washing and chopping them up. This will allow you to have them ready for snacking, and available for adding to recipes…saving time on prep work later.

All of the above will help to get you more comfortable with meal prepping. Before you know it you will be prepping, 2 meals a week, then 3, then 4, then as many as you want for how ever many people you want!

Here are a few of my favorite snack/breakfast recipes that are EASY to start your prepping journey:

• Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
• Oat and Date Bars
• Blackberry Granola Yogurt Parfait

Tips for Beginners:

• Use reliable meal prep recipes: This is where A Dash of Macros comes in handy. I have tested, adjusted, and tweaked every recipe ensuring they are great for meal prep.
• Give yourself the time: Schedule it, put it on your calendar, meal prep can be fun when you’re not stressed for time. If you have a plan and a schedule you will find meal prep relaxing and rewarding.
• Keep it simple: Start small with snacks, then add in more meals as you become more comfortable. You will be prepping several meals at one time, in no time.
• Have fun: Use ingredients you love, crack up the music, listen to an audiobook, or watch some Netflix (if your TV faces the kitchen) while you’re cooking!

Meal Prepping: How to get started with the right containers.

I personally prefer glass containers over plastic for several reasons:

• Glass containers don’t scratch, meaning you can eat your prepped meals right out of your containers and not worry about those extra dishes. Did you know that once a plastic container is scratched you should toss it out? The scratch in a plastic container can hold germs and bacteria.
• Glass is free of chemicals. Sure, you can buy BPA-free plastic containers but who knows what else makes up plastic. It’s better to just go with glass and not have to worry about contaminating your food with plastic containers.
• They are microwave, dishwasher, oven, fridge, and freezer safe. Again making life just that much easier: fewer dishes when re-heating, you can cook the initial prep right in the glass container…all of which makes clean up a breeze.
• Food re-heats more evenly in a glass container.
• With glass, food stays fresher longer. Strange tastes and smalls aren’t absorbed into your food, the way they can from plastic containers.
• Glass containers last longer. So while they might cost a little more upfront, you will save money in the long run over having to replace plastic.

Here are just a few of my favorites:

• Glass 16 oz Mason Jars
• Juicing 16 oz Glass Jars
• Single compartment glass containers
• Two-Compartment glass containers
• Three-Compartment glass containers
• Souper Cubes 1 Cup Portion

What to learn more about how meal prepping and counting macros go hand in hand? Click Here

Want to live a healthier lifestyle? Learn how to properly fuel your body, and create Exciting Meal plans? Become A Dash of Macros Member!

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