Bulldog Weight Loss The Benefits of Meal Prepping for Pets
How to Meal Prep for Weight Loss: Meal Ideas and Recipes
When trying to lose weight, its helpful to have the right foods on hand. Meal prepping can be a helpful tool for anyone, regardless of whether you want to lose, gain, or maintain your weight.
Planning and preparing meals and snacks ahead of time can save you time, reduce stress around mealtime, help improve diet quality, and help you reach and maintain a healthy body weight.
This article breaks down meal prepping for weight loss and includes foods to prioritize, how to create healthy and filling meals, sample recipes, and evidence-based, sustainable weight loss tips.
Theres no need to follow a specific diet for weight loss. Although low carb and vegan diets have been shown to promote weight loss, any nutrient-dense diet thats right for you will work.
Meal prepping can help you stay consistent with eating nutritious meals on busy days. Youll also enjoy the food more because nothing is off-limits.
That said, some foods like fruits and vegetables are better choices and should be prioritized over things like donuts and cookies.
What does a weight-loss-friendly diet look like?
A weight-loss-friendly diet should be nutritionally complete, affordable, appropriate, culturally acceptable, enjoyable, and sustainable.
A balanced diet comprises mostly whole, minimally processed foods, especially fruits, and vegetables, as well as nutrient-dense whole foods like whole grains, beans, fish, chicken, eggs, nuts, and seeds.
These foods should make up the majority of your diet, while still leaving some room for treats. But its important to also make sure youre in a calorie deficit, which promotes fat loss.
Cutting back on nutrient-poor, high calorie foods and adding in more physical activity can help you create a calorie deficit without needing to be on a strict diet, which is often overly restrictive and can lead to an unhealthy relationship with food.
In fact,
Should you track calories when meal prepping?
Be wary of generic meal-prep-friendly meal plans available online or handed out by trainers and nutritionists with set calorie limits, especially if theyre rigid and deliver fewer than 1,500 calories per day.
Its better to work with a healthcare professional to determine an appropriate calorie range for your weight loss. You dont need to count calories.
Instead, choose the right foods, compose filling meals and snacks, and try to eat according to your hunger and fullness signals.
If youre new to meal prep, start by prepping just a few meals a week. Focus on nutritious options for meals when its harder for you to eat healthy.
Set aside an hour or two for meal prep day, make a grocery list from recipes found online, and shop the day or two before.
Alternatively, you can set aside a few hours once a week such as on Sunday, during which you grocery shop and meal prep for the whole week. Then, you cook and portion out servings in containers you can either refrigerate or freeze, depending on the food.
Even if it seems overwhelming at first, youll get better as you practice. Aim for balanced meals and snacks containing protein, fat, and fiber.
Protein is the most filling macronutrient and
Eating an apple paired with natural peanut butter is an example of how to increase calories with nutritious sources of fats and proteins. Fiber and healthy fats can also help make meals tasty and filling.
Foods to eat and a healthy meal prep shopping list
When planning meals for the week ahead, its helpful to create a shopping list. Grocery lists
That said, youll want to pick up nutritious foods but also have a plan to use them so they dont go to waste. Frozen and canned fruits and vegetables last longer and are typically less expensive.
Heres an example of a meal prep and weight-loss-friendly shopping list:
- Fruits: blackberries, blueberries, bananas, apples, and grapefruits
- Nonstarchy vegetables: spinach, peppers, onions, cauliflower, green beans, mushrooms, zucchini, lettuce
- Starchy vegetables: sweet potatoes, potatoes, butternut squash
- Proteins: canned salmon and tuna, frozen shrimp, chicken breast, lean ground beef and turkey, eggs
- Beans: chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, lentils
- Grains: oats, brown rice, whole grain pasta, quinoa
- Frozen foods: frozen mangoes, sprouted-grain bread, frozen cherries, frozen broccoli, frozen spinach
- Dairy and nondairy substitutes: milk, unsweetened nondairy milk, cheese, Greek yogurt, plain yogurt
- Nuts and seeds: sunflower seeds, pistachios, almonds, natural peanut butter, pumpkin seeds, cashews
- Condiments and pantry: salad dressing, salsa, marinara sauce, mustard, spices, chicken broth, diced tomatoes, garlic, etc.
- Oils: olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil
- Other healthy fats: avocado, hummus, tahini
- Beverages: sparkling water, coffee, tea
- Snack foods: dark chocolate chips, turkey sticks, nut butter packets, whole grain or seed-based crackers, whole-food-based bars, popcorn, plantain, bean chips, etc.
This is simply a suggested shopping list. Your shopping list will change weekly depending on the meals and snacks you choose to meal prep.
Here is an example of a 5-day easy and healthy meal plan.
Ideas for weight-loss-friendly meals and snacks
Here are some upgrades to get ideas on what well-composed, weight-loss-friendly meals and snacks could look like for you:
Although its a good idea to prepare many of your meals and snacks from scratch, using some premade foods such as turkey sticks, hummus, whole grain crackers, salad dressings, and more can help make your life much easier and save time when meal prepping.
Check out these additional resources:
Having food storage containers in different shapes and sizes can really help with weekly meal prepping. Look for glass or stainless steel containers.
A well-designed lunch bag or transport tote thats insulated with a place for ice packs to keep food cool can also be really helpful.
Consider how many meals youre planning on prepping and taking with you on a daily or nightly basis. If its just one meal and a snack per day, a smaller lunch bag will suffice. If youre prepping multiple meals, consider buying a larger tote.
Here are a few more things you can try:
- Bento boxes: Fill a multi-compartment container with things like fresh fruit, veggie sticks, hummus, nut butter, hard-boiled eggs, cheese, and nuts. Aim for protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
- Energy balls: Energy balls are a portable snack option that can be prepped in large quantities and frozen ahead of time. Try out this simple lime coconut energy bite recipe.
- Premade snacks: Keep healthy premade snacks handy to help save time. Think hummus, whole-food-based snack bars, whole grain cereal, whole grain crackers, and mixed nuts alongside fresh ingredients like fruits and veggies.
Here are 23 more helpful meal planning tips.
A nutritious diet is low in ultra-processed foods and foods with added sugar, such as fast food, candy, sugary snacks, deep fried foods, and soda.
Cutting back on these items
But you dont have to ban them from your diet entirely just leave room for them as occasional treats while focusing on eating nutrient-dense whole foods the majority of the time.
Can you lose weight just by meal prepping?
Theres no doubt that meal prepping can help with weight loss, but its only a small piece of the puzzle.
It takes time, self-love, and patience plus support from your loved ones and professionals like doctors, dietitians, or therapists. Dont hesitate to ask for help if you need it.
Is rice okay to eat when trying to lose weight?
Eating whole grains, like brown rice, may help with weight loss. White rice doesnt have as much nutritional value compared to brown rice.
Learn more about rice and weight.
Is Hello Fresh good for weight loss?
Hello Fresh is one of many subscription meal plans on the market. In theory, using such a service can be convenient if you incorporate the meals in your meal prep plan and if you consider the ingredients in the meals you choose.
Not all meal plans and meal types are right for weight loss.
Learn more about the best meal delivery services for weight loss.
Is pasta good to eat to lose weight?
Like with rice, its best to choose whole wheat pasta, which is more nutritious than the regular, white variety. Still, theres no reason to exclude pasta in a balanced diet, as long as you eat it in moderation.
Should men and women meal prep differently?
You can approach meal prep the same way regardless of your sex. That said, there
This can also depend on your body composition and health, so its best to speak with your doctor.
Meal prepping for weight loss doesnt have to involve calorie counting or complicated low calorie recipes.
Instead, a weight-loss-friendly meal plan should be high in nutritious, filling, and delicious foods and involve preparing recipes that appeal to you using foods that you enjoy.
Remember, if youre new to meal prep, dont go overboard. Start by preparing a few healthy meals per week to create a sustainable habit that can help you lose weight in a healthy way.
7-Day Meal Prep For Weight Loss
FULL WEEK of healthy meal prep for weightloss, ready in just about one hour. All 7 days, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even snacks - great for weight loss or if you just want to have your healthy meals all prepped for you for the week.
For so many years Ive been listening to other people, my friends and even family how sticking to a healthy lifestyle is hard and just takes up so much time. Instead of just waving them off (and saying telling them theyre wrong to their faces ;)), I love showing people how it's actually easier than they might think to eat real food, enjoy what they're eating, and even be FULL, all while losing weight. Yes, it's possible toeat healthy and not hate your food!
In This Post You'll Find:
Watch My Meal Prep For Weight Loss Video
How To Start Meal Prepping
Changing your eating habits can be intimidating, I know. It may even feel like youre leaving everything you love behind. All the midnight snacks, takeouts, sweets But, although it may seem like that at first, soon enough you realize that eating healthy will not only make you feel and look good but can also taste darn good! The key is finding a lifestyle you love (not one you dread) so that you stick to it.
Once you get the hang of it, making healthier and yet equally, if not even tastier, versions of your favorite dishes will bring you more joy than any unhealthy over-processed options out there. I've even made a healthier version of one of my all-time favorites -Mac and cheese, and it's one of my favorite recipes ever.
With our busy schedules, its often hard, impossible even, to cook every single day, and to be honest, sometimes even when I do have the time, Id rather spend it doing something else. Thats why we so often rely on meal prep!
Not only is meal prep a great way to save time, as you cook only once or twice a week and have a nutritious meal ready in a matter of minutes every day, but by planning, you can keep track of your calorie intake more easily. The idea is to plan to succeed, not wait to fail with eating healthy and, ultimately, with weight loss.
To help you jump on the meal prep train, Im sharing with you some of my favorite tips that will help you get started and a full 7 days meal prep for weight loss. This 7 day meal prep for weight loss includes 4 easy meal prep meals per day, including breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack to munch on in between and totals to 1500 calories per day.
Ready, set, go! You got this!
What Does Meal Prep Mean?
Meal prep, short for meal preparation, is planning and preparing your meals ahead of time. You canmeal prepone day ahead or take one day to prepare lunch and/or dinner for an entire week. While most meal prep only has one or two meals, you can easily meal prep breakfast, lunch, and dinner, even snacks for the week ahead. Its entirely up to you!
In this post today, I've shared a 7 day meal prep for weight loss that includes all your meals and snacks to make it as easy as possible to stay on track.
How Do I Make A Meal Plan?
First things first - planning. Before you start to prep your meals, you need a nice, solid plan. Coming up with a meal plan may sound overwhelming at first, but its not as bad as it may seem. Just take it one step at a time and start with one, simple meal you love and that you know is healthy, and then work your way up. Soon, youll be prepping all your meals! Watch out - it gets addicting!
How To Make a Meal Plan
- Write down all the meals you plan on having in the next few days, including breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner. Stick to proven recipes and meals you can easily make even in your sleep, to start. No need to try to learn how to cook something when you're wanting to be as efficient and quick as possible.
- List out all the ingredients youll need to make them and how much of each youll need.
- Time to go grocery shopping!
- Set aside one or two days to get all your meal prep done - try to keep it to 1 hour or less for each cooking session so you don't hate these days of actually cooking your meal prep recipes.
Thats it, youre set.
Can You Lose Weight With Meal Prep?
Meal prep is a simple and easy way to track your food intake. Whether you just want to stay away from over-processed foods and eat healthy to build muscle, lose weight, or simply feel better, meal prep is a great idea. Prepping all, or at least most your meals, ahead of time makes cooking and eating healthy, nutritious food easier and quicker than ordering take out or grabbing some fast food on the go.
Meal prepis one of the best ways to ensure youre eating healthy all day long and prevent the vicious cycle of skipping meals during the day and binging on unhealthy foods once youre finally home in the evening, one of the problems many people who are struggling with losing weight are facing with every day. Plus, it's so much easier to grab and eat food you've already prepared than to struggle with also cooking and/or prepping it when you're hungry.
How Many Times A Day Should You Eat To Lose Weight?
Theres no hard rule on how many times a day you should eat in order to lose weight. But, when it comes to weight loss, the first change you need to be making is your eating habits. They dont say that abs are made in the kitchen for nothing!
If you want to lose weight and feel better, you need to eat nutritious food that will keep you full for longer. Protein and fiber take longer to digest and therefore keep you feeling full for longer than simple carbohydrates and sugars. Whether you eat three bigger meals or five or six smaller ones throughout the day is entirely up to you, as long as you keep in mind the number of calories you consume. Typically, a woman should eat approximately 1400-1700 calories each day to lose weight, depending on their specific body and nutritional needs.
What Are The Best Meal Prep Containers?
I heart meal prep containers.
If you want my guide to the best meal prep containers, you can find it here.
When meal prepping, you definitely want a meal prep container that will keep your food fresh. Whether youre prepping meals for an entire week or just a few days ahead, the way you store your meals is just as important as cooking the food. You want to make sure you always store your food in airtight containers to prevent spoilage.
Food containers come in all shapes, sizes and equally important - materials. Depending on your lifestyle, you can pick the ones that fit into your lifestyle (and your bag!) best. If youll be taking a lot of your meals with you on the go, the slimmer and lighter the container is, the better. Also, make sure the container is suitable for keeping in the freezer and/or microwave use, depending on what youll be using it most - that's why I love these glass meal prep containers. There are plenty of options and after youve done your planning, it will be much easier for you to determine what kind of container is the best option.
My Favorite Meal Prep Containers
Personally, I love these glass meal prep containers for all my meals that will be microwaved. Then, I use these 1 quart mason jars for my salads and these 16-oz. mason jars for make-ahead smoothies and overnight oats prep.
How Long Can You Keep Meal Prep In The Fridge?
Once youre done with your meal prep, make sure you let your meals cool down before transferring them to airtight containers and storing them in the fridge, but make sure you dont keep your food in room temperature for more than two hours.If you are using meal prep containers and have stored your cooked meal prep well, it can last in the fridge for up to 5-7 days, depending on what you're prepping. Some foods will keep longer than others, which is something to consider when prepping 7 days at a time.
To make sure your veggies stay fresh in the fridge up to twice as long, a great tip is to soak them in ice cold water for 15 minutes and them store them in the fridge with a wet cloth or a damp paper towel.
If you prep your meals twice a week, that will help keep your food as fresh as possible.
Can You Freeze Meal Prep Food?
Freezer mealsare a great option, especially when you have extra food you know you won't get to in time before it spoils. Before you freeze any cooked food, make sure to let it cool down completely. You may need to transfer your meal to a larger bowl and place in the refrigerator to cool.
For easy thawing and storage, freeze your meal prep either in airtight freezer-safe containers or freezer bags. If using a freezer bag, make sure to squeeze out as much air as possible before placing your meal prep in the freezer.
How To Reheat Your Meal Prep
When youre ready to eat it, you can either let your meal prep thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheat in the microwave for around 2 minutes or reheat it in the microwave while frozen for 4-5 minutes. Easy peasy!
Remember that every person is different and requires slightly different calorie intakes to lose weight at a healthy rate. If youre combining this with a workout routine, you can increase the amount of calories easily by adding in another 200-calorie snack to find what best suits you and your needs.
The idea of this meal plan is for you to focus on enjoying your food and having meals prepped for you that you know are well-balanced so you dont have to worry about counting calories. I find calorie counting to be tedious and I get overly obsessive so I like to choose meals that are naturally healthy and nutritious to add into my meal preps like the recipes Ive chosen for you today.
You dont have to think about the calories youre going to eat, what youre gonna eat, its just so much easier to plan and prep ahead.
More Healthy Meal Prep For Weight Loss
Alright, now that I have you hooked on healthy meal prep for weight loss and al its glory, check out these other great meal plans to help you to keep eating healthy!
I hope you like the recipes Ive shared in this meal plan.The meals are recipes I love, and they happen to be the exact meals I ate when I lost weight.
7 Day Meal Plan For Weight Loss
Lacey BaierFULL WEEK of healthy meal prep for weightloss, ready in just about one hour. All 7 days, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even snacks - great for weight loss or if you just want to have your healthy meals all prepped for you for the week.
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 1 hour hr
Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins
Course Meal Prep
Cuisine American
Servings 7 days
Calories 1523 kcal
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats (Breakfast for 4 Days)
Quinoa and Kale Salad (Lunch for 4 Days)
- 1 cup quinoa, uncooked
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup lentils, uncooked
- 3 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups kale, packed
- cup cooked garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- cup cucumber, peeled and diced
- cup carrot, diced
- cup grape tomatoes, halved
- 2 tablespoon red onion, finely diced
- tablespoon raw sunflower seeds
- teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon raw honey
- teaspoon dijon mustard
- teaspoon sea salt, plus teaspoon for making quinoa
- teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1 tbsp. to massage kale
Veggies + Hummus (Snack for 4 Days)
Beef With Broccoli and Brown Rice (Dinner for 4 Days)
Mango Green Smoothie (Breakfast for 3 Days)
Chicken Cauliflower Fried Rice (Lunch for 3 Days)
Strawberries + Almonds (Snack for 3 Days)
Lemon Roasted Salmon With Asparagus (Dinner for 3 Days)
Instructions
To Prep the Grains and Beans:
- In a deep pot, combine the brown rice, sea salt, and low sodium chicken broth. Heat this over high heat until it begins to boil, then reduce the heat to medium, cover, and cook for another 25-30 minutes, or until the water is all absorbed and the rice is tender.
- To cook the quinoa, combine uncooked quinoa with sea salt and chicken broth, in a deep pot, and then bring to boil. Then, reduce the heat to medium-high and simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes. Once all the liquid is absorbed, fluff with a fork and set aside to cool as well.
- Next, lets get our lentils started. Add the dry lentils to a pot, followed by water. Be sure to use a large enough saucepan as the lentils will double or triple in size. Bring this to a boil over high heat, then cover, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until the lentils are tender. For whole lentils, it should take about 15-20 minutes. Then, drain the lentils and set aside for later.
For the Healthy Beef with Broccoli:
- To make the Beef with Broccoli, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add thinly sliced flank steak and cook until its well-browned, about 6-8 minutes. Once its well-browned, remove from the pan and set aside.
- In the same pan, add minced garlic, chopped shallot, and green onions. Cook one minute, stirring frequently.
Then, add the broccoli florets and cook for 5 minutes until the broccoli turns bright green and becomes mostly tender.Since well be storing this meal, we dont want to cook the vegetables completely through or theyll be super mushy when we reheat them later.
- To make the sauce, in a mixing bowl, combine low sodium soy sauce, coconut sugar, fresh minced ginger, and crushed red pepper flakes. Add arrowroot starch and water and stir until no longer lumpy.
Add this sauce to the pan and cook until it starts to thicken, about 3-5 minutes. Return the beef and stir to combine, cooking an additional 2-3 minutes. Then, set this aside to slightly cool.
For the Chicken Cauliflower Fried Rice:
- To make the cauliflower fried rice, heat a large pan over medium-high heat and add some sesame oil.
Season the boneless, skinless chicken breasts with sea salt and pepper, then place into the hot oil.
Cook for 4-6 minutes per side, turning occasionally, or until the chicken is cooked through.
Once its cooked through, remove from the pan, dice into bite-size pieces, and set aside.
Add the diced carrots into the empty pan and cook until theyre mostly tender, followed by the low sodium soy sauce, peanut butter, and chili paste and stir to combine.
Add the frozen edamame, minced garlic, and sliced green onions, and cook until heated through.
- To make the cauliflower rice, grate a head of cauliflower using a kitchen grater (or you can also use a food processoror buy pre-riced cauliflower).
Once youve grated all the cauliflower, add to the pan.
Add the rice and cook the cauliflower rice over med-high heat until tender.
Return the diced chicken back to the pan, and stir to incorporate.
- Push the fried chicken cauliflower rice mixture to one side of the skillet and add a couple eggs into the empty side of the pan and then scramble. Once the eggs are mostly scrambled, break up with a spatula and combine with the rice mixture.This is now done and can be removed from the heat and set aside.
For the Lemon Roasted Salmon with Asparagus:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Arrange the pre-cut salmon portions in the center of the making sheet and then arrange the asparagus around the sides.
Add thinly cut lemon slices around the edges of the salmon and over the asparagus.
- In a small mixing bowl, combine olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, sea salt, and pepper. Pour this mixture over the salmon and asparagus.
Then sprinkle parmesan over salmon and asparagus.
Place this in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, then turn the oven to broil and broil another 5-7 minutes. Then remove from the oven and set aside. This salmon is so easy and so flavorful.
For the Quinoa and Kale Salad:
For the Chocolate Peanut Butter Overnight Oats:
For the Mango Green Smoothie:
- To prep our mango green smoothie, divide fresh or frozen mango chunks, banana, and baby spinach into either ziplock freezer bags or mason jars. When its time to blend this all together, youll add in flaxseed meal, protein powder, and unsweetened almond milk for a tasty smoothie.
For the Strawberries and Almonds:
- Our snacks for four of the days will be raw almond with fresh strawberries. This can be prepped in a mason jar or a reusable bag. (This snack is roughly 200 calories. If you don't like almonds, you can replace wit cashews or walnuts. Fruits can be switched out as well.)
For the Veggies and Hummus:
Our other snack for the other three days is carrots and cucumber with hummus. You can
make your own hummusor buy it from the store, depending on your preference.
- To pack this snack, add the hummus to the bottom of a mason jar - were looking to do about 2 tablespoon in the bottom. Then add carrot and cucumber sticks for dipping right into the hummus. This makes a tasty, crunchy snack that is savory.
- To store the salad, you can either use a meal prep container or mason jars.
- To pack our beef with broccoli, add it to one side of the meal prep container and then add in the steamed brown rice on the side. Top with sliced green onions. This meal is roughly 500 calories and will make a tasty dinner for four of the nights.
- To pack up the chicken cauliflower fried rice, add it to one end of the meal prep container, and next to it add some fresh snap peas. I like to have a crisp veggie along with the fried rice for a little texture. This will serve as a lunch for three of the days and is roughy 400 calories.
- Now for our salmon meal, make a layer on the bottom of the container with the asparagus and then top it with one of the salmon fillets. If you wanted to add some quinoa to this meal, that would be a good option if you find youre still somewhat hungry.
Notes
- Remember that every person is different and requires slightly different calorie intakes to lose weight at a healthy rate. If youre combining this with a workout routine, you can increase the amount of calories easily by adding in another 200 calorie snack to find what best suits you and your needs.- Nutrition facts are for 1 day of the meal plan, including breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinnerNutrition
Serving: 1 dayCalories: 1523 kcalCarbohydrates: 173 gProtein: 72 gFat: 50 gSaturated Fat: 8 gTrans Fat: 0.01 gCholesterol: 108 mgSodium: 1099 mgPotassium: 3501 mgFiber: 39 gSugar: 49 gVitamin A: 16278 IUVitamin C: 260 mgCalcium: 672 mgIron: 16 mg
Keyword easy meal prep, meal prep for weight loss
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