Imagine you’re back in school. It’s the first day of Biology class. The bell rings. The teacher walks to the front of the room, opens up her bag and says, “Okay everyone, here are copies of the answer key to the final exam” as she passes them out.

You are ecstatic, right? You are sure to get an “A” now. You have all the answers written out for you and you don’t have to do any of the work of learning what you need to know to pass the test.

Raise your hand if you have ever been on any of the following diets:

SlimFast, The Grapefruit Diet, The Scarsdale Diet, The Beverly Hills Diet, The Liquid Diet, The Low Fat Diet, The Zone, The Blood-Type Diet, The Subway Diet, The Atkins Diet, The South Beach Diet, Master Cleanse, The Raw Food Diet, The Apple Cider Vinegar Diet, Paleo, Whole 30, Keto, Intermittent Fasting.

Now raise your hand if you are still on any of these diets. Anyone?

These glorified meal plans tell you what to eat, what not to eat, even when to eat. They all give you an answer key to the proverbial nutrition test.

Now let’s go back to Biology class. Sure, you could remember the answers and ace the test, but do you think you could apply the knowledge 2 weeks later? A month later? A year?

This is why meal plans don’t work. In concept, it sounds great to have everything laid out in an exact structure which you then just follow. The problem is we are all different - different tastes, different food availability, sensitivities or allergies, different texture likes and dislikes. Then life happens. Schedules change. Suddenly, that rigid structure starts to crack, if not totally crumbles.

Like with the biology class, you will discover through your own meal planning and prepping that the magic is in the learning process, not in being given the answers.

Their Meal Plans vs. Your Meal Plan

While any of the diets mentioned can help you lose fat, there are two questions that must be answered to discover what kind of plan will work for you:

-Does it make your life easier?

-Can I eat this way for years to come?

Preparing your own meals ahead of time undoubtedly will make your life easier. Think of all the poor nutrition choices you’ve made when you were overly busy, tired, emotional or worn down. The fast food industry thrives off of people who are short on time, cranky and decision-fatigued. But when you have food ready to go for the next meal, you insulate yourself against emotional eating and poor choices made because of lack of time or energy. The better food choice is already there - You just have to eat it!

This is where the second question comes into play. While some of the fad diets above can make life easier (for a time), rigid meal plans don’t take into account what you like. Often, they rely on getting a drastic weight loss (notice I didn’t say fat loss) in a short amount of time so that they can market dramatic results and sell more books and programs. But very few of them consider the long term.

The long term requires exploration, experimentation and fine-tuning to discover what foods are:

-Enjoyable for you

-Aligned with your goals (properly nutrient-dense and not overly calorie-dense)

-Abundant and easy to prepare

Maybe it’s cooking a meat or vegetable in a different way than you’ve ever had it before. I know I never liked certain fish until I had it grilled the right way. I never liked brussel sprouts or asparagus until I learned to roast them with garlic and salt.

Maybe it’s constantly trying new spices on a variety of foods to discover ways to add taste without adding calories.

Maybe it’s discovering how easy it is to throw a bunch of healthy foods into a crock pot.

Meal prepping is about both convenience and learning your style of healthy eating.

So now it’s time to begin your meal prepping journey! Here are a few action task questions to answer that will get you going:

-What simple snacks can I prep to keep me on track throughout the day? Think simple, like pre-slicing apples or buying Greek Yogurt cups.

-What is the most problematic meal of the day for me? This is the one where most of your poor decisions happen.

-What protein-rich, easy-to-make meal can I make a large quantity of to replace some or all of those problematic meals this week? This could be as simple as throwing a bunch of chicken and frozen veggies in a big crock pot and letting it slow cook.

This week, focus on planning and prepping 1 or 2 meals and daily snacks. Staying consistent with just those few preps over the course of a few weeks can become habitual and from there you’ll be ready to add in more.

To start off this week’s lesson, take a look at the video: The Why and How of Meal Prep and fill out the “What Should I Eat?” Worksheet at the bottom of the page.

This worksheet will help you discover combinations of foods that work for you and your goals! The lists you fill out can be the basis for recipes that you make.

Enjoy your meal prepping journey!

The Tasks:

-Create 1-2 recipes from our cookbook that will get you at least 3 meals from each. These recipes are high in protein and easy to make!

-If you go out to eat, view the menu in advance and pick what you are going to get. After you decide, log your meal (as best you can as seen in the video above) before you go out. This takes away another decision and will keep you from straying off what your plan is