5 Steps To Start Food Prep

We have all heard of food prep but where to start. Many of my clients ask where to start when it comes food prep. So, this is a guide that can help you begin.

Ever heard of the quote, ‘failing to plan, is planning to fail?’ This applies to so many areas of life, and it definitely applies to food prep.

What is food prep?

Food prep is taking the time to plan and prepare your meals ahead in bulk sessions throughout the week, so you have food ready for the days ahead so you can focus on work, family or whatever else is in the front of your mind.

You can plan and prepare one meal or multiple meals throughout the week. I suggest starting slow and planning and preparing one meal at a time. And try and keep it simple by finding one or two meals that you can enjoy all week, so you don’t have to make something different for each day. Batch food by cooking once and eating two or three times.

Why is food prep important?

Food prep is important because it allows you to create a healthy routine that will form into a habit. Once you’re in the habit of food prepping you can make your meals as healthy as you need to reach your goals.

By having meals planned and prepped you are pre-empting your healthy meal choices throughout the week. This allows you to bring meals and snacks to make healthier choices throughout the day.

5 Steps To Start Food Prep

There are so many different ways to start your meal planning and prepping journey. When I am suggesting food prep to a client, I like to start with 5 steps to start food prep. The five steps are budget, containers, planning to prep, meal plan and shop.

1. Budget

How much money do you have each week to spend on groceries?

Our budget is important because sometimes when we buy or are given meal plans, each day is different. This can mean buying a lot of food and having a lot of leftover food as well.

The object of a weight loss journey is to build happier, healthier habits. Buying more food that it is costing you more money because let’s face it, healthier food costs more which is a whole other blog article in itself, is not a goal of mine. Let’s do this and save some money.

By understanding your budget, you can understand if you need to prep a few days of the same meals or if you can diversify a bit more. My opinion is I like routine, I like knowing what works for me, so I like having the same meal about four times a week and breaking it up three times.

Understanding your budget, you can shop for your requirements. You can slowly over time purchase more and more healthy foods. Buying flours, nuts and meats in bulk will help you to save over the long term. You don’t have to be 100% healthy right off the bat. Use what you have and tweak your meal plans and recipes as your budget allows.

2. Containers

Invest in containers to put your food into. If you want to prep for a full 5 days at a time and you need breakfast, lunch and dinner, then you are looking at needing fifteen containers for the week.

Ok, now what containers should you get? Plastic containers are ok. BPA-free containers are better. Glass containers are best.

I have a combination. I am slowly investing in more glassware containers. For my plastic containers, I used them to store and transport my food, but I do not use them to heat the food in. Heating up food in the microwave in plastic containers deteriorates the containers at a quicker rate. I put the food onto a plate or into a bowl and then heat it, however, I can.

I also try for the same size containers. Do not get bigger 1-litre containers you feel that you have to fill. Always put your food from the container onto a plate so you can see how much you are eating and you don’t overeat. Containers can be deceiving.

3. Plan to Prep

When are you going to plan out your meals?

Plan out some time to pick your meals, look up recipes and make a grocery list. This way you can stick to the list and only get what you need and on budget.

When are you going to cook your meals?

Sunday afternoon? Maybe? Choose a time that works for you. I like Sundays and Wednesdays. I used to prep for the full 5 days a week, but I was never happy with the food after it sits in the fridge for 5 days. So now I break it up, and on Sunday I cook for 3 days being Monday – Wednesday and Wednesday I cook for 3 days being Thursday, Friday and Saturday or Sunday. I give myself some wiggle room being the weekend.

I recommend no wiggle room if you are food prepping for a weight loss goal, but do allow yourself not to have to be perfect all week. Progress over perfection.

4. Meal Plan

Now that you know when you’re going to plan your meals for the week ahead, you have a better chance of sitting down and doing it. You are planning for success.

Think about how many meals you want to plan for. How many of those meals should you prep for? Do you have recipes or do you know what ingredients you need?

Use a grocery list to keep track of why you need to buy and a meal planner to schedule your weekly meals and put it somewhere in the kitchen, so you don’t have to memorise them. Just look at the planner and take what you need when.

5. Shop

Grocery shopping can be the kicker. You can go with a list and still walk up and down every aisle and be overwhelmed with choice.

To not sway from your grocery list and buy food that you don’t want and won't serve you throughout the week to help you reach your goals, try and stick to your list as best you can.

Choose not to go up and down the isles that you can avoid because this will help you resist temptation. You can also ask a friend to go with you and help you stay focused.

These seem like reasonable tricks to help stick to a list but changing up the grocery shopping routine can prove to be most difficult. It’s a routine that we don’t know we have set in stone until we try and do something different.

Willpower is often lowest when you at the shops and have so much choice. Make sure you plan to succeed at your grocery shopping.

Now you are all set to start your food prep journey. Do you feel ready? Now all you have to do is cook and cooking, to me, is the fun part.

Still not sure about food prep? You can always schedule a free Weight Loss Breakthrough Session if you have some questions that I haven’t quite answered. I am happy to talk it through to you.