A Nutritionist’s Guide to Meal Prep: Fail to Prepare, Prepare to Fail

A nutritionist’s guide to meal prep : fail to prepare, prepare to fail

As a nutritionist I’m often asked the best way to “stay on track” with nutrition and what can be made ahead and prepped. Planning and spending a small amount of time each week making some meals or at least drafting a plan for the week can really help take the stress out of eating well. 

Here are my 3 top tips for bossing your weekly planing & prep: 

1. Decide on a time when you will plan some food and make some meals. This sounds super simple but its easy to lose track of the week and get caught up in busy work and family schedules. Try to get the household together for 10 - 15 minutes once or twice per week and have a brain storm of some meals you’d like to cook.
   
   Again it sounds simple but also make a note and plan where you will  be for each meal time. Are you at home? Are you at the office? Do you have a meal out with friends?
   
   Also be mindful of which nights you will be late home and who you are cooking for. This can help with being more proactive with food rather than reactive and means too don’t have to be inventive with food when you don’t have the energy.
   
   Having a dedicated afternoon or evening when you will batch cook or make some lunches for the week will get you ahead of the game. This could be an evening when you are cooking a meal anyway and you just double or triple the portions.
   
   ‍
2. To help plan and prep write a list of your favourite fresh foods/vegetables, proteins, carbs & healthy fats to choose from.
   
   For example categories could include:
    

‍

‍

It’s important to remember that as lot of foods overlap in their categories and it’s unwise to box all foods in to being either a carb a fat or a protein. For example lentils are both a great source of carbohydrates as well as protein, and eggs, dairy and fish contain both proteins and healthy fats. 

You can also always add spices and herbs to any meal to increase the nutritional value as well as the taste. But choosing from each category makes it easier to create meals, especially lunchbox lunches and ensure that you cover all bases nutritionally. 

Some examples you could try from the table above 

• Overnight oats with protein powder, frozen berries & pumpkin seeds 

• Protein bagel thin with tuna, salad leaves, tomatoes & sweetcorn and 1/4 avocado 

• Wholemeal pasta with a salmon fillet & roasted Mediterranean veg cooked in olive oil 

• Sourdough with scrambled eggs, mushrooms & a sprinkle of pumpkin and sunflower seeds 

• Baked sweet potato with cottage cheese, cucumber, tomatoes & spring onion and 1/4 avocado

• 1/2 pack microwave lentils, roasted chicken, broccoli with an olive oil & balsamic dressing 

‍

3. Treat yourself to some lunch boxes, pots & jars that you really like. This might seem like a trivial investment but if you really want to get into prepping and taking more of your own food to the office or even if working at home, then making it look nice can really help. Also storing food well in good air tight containers can help maintain quality and taste and mean that you don’t have soggy salads for lunch. It may reduce food waste too. 

Follow these 3 steps (or even just the first 2) and I’m confident that you will start to feel a bit more in control of your food for the week and start really enjoying your meals rather than just eating something because its quick and there! 

‍

‍Want to chat through how to plan your food and to make sure you weeks are nutritionally dense, get in touch and let’s jump on a call. 

Hannah 

‍