Published on November 1st, 2023
Meal prep is one of the best ways to eat healthy consistently.
When you do so, you’re being intentional about the food you put in your body, which helps you live an overall healthier lifestyle, says fitness expert Eugene Pallisco.
Yet, it can be challenging to do complete meal prep if you’re extra busy.
While meal prep has many benefits, it is time-consuming and can be a drag for people who want to relax when they have free time.
But meal prep can significantly benefit busy individuals, saving time in the long run while saving money and reducing stress.
Here are some healthy meal prep ideas for busy individuals.
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Make A List
One of the most time-consuming aspects of meal prep is shopping for all the ingredients you need.
A great way to cut down on this time is to shop only once for the entire week.
To do this effectively, you must create a fine-tuned grocery list of everything you need. You can do this on paper or a note on your phone.
Doing the latter can be more effective if you’re very busy because it allows you to add, edit, or delete things as you think of them throughout your day.
Then, before you head to the store, give your list a once-over to ensure you have everything you need.
Order Delivery
Ordering grocery delivery can be relatively expensive, depending on where you live.
However, the extra money you spend to have your groceries delivered could save you a lot of money in the long run, resulting in you eating healthier.
Just think of how much time getting your groceries delivered saves you versus shopping at the store yourself.
You don’t have to take an hour or so in the store to get your items or drive to and from the store.
That time savings alone could be well worth the delivery and shopping fee.
Moreover, people who get their groceries delivered often spend less money and make healthier choices.
That’s because they’re better able to stick to their list and avoid being lured by some unhealthy items dotted around the store.
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Cook Strategically
You can also save a lot of time when you cook by being strategic about your cooking.
Try grouping a bunch of foods that can be baked in the oven at the same temperature, for example.
You can multi-task while cooking if you can put three different meals on three other sheet pans, all in the same oven — even if they have to cook at different times.
You can even split your sheet pans by making a lip in the middle with foil, which can help you increase the number of ingredients you can cook at once.
Eugene Pallisco says another great way to reduce the time and effort you put into cooking is to have at least one recipe per week in a slow cooker.
With these meals, you throw all the ingredients into the pot and let the appliance do its thing.
Feature Image Source: Louis Hansel
Fitness expert and licensed trainer Eugene Pallisco works in Dallas, Texas. Since he began working with motivational fitness mentors in high school, Eugene has devoted a significant amount of time to sculpting and molding his training philosophy, which is centered on improving others. Before starting his private training firm in the fitness industry, he gained more expertise by working one-on-one with gym patrons after beginning as a group fitness teacher.