Meal prepping is a great way to save time and money, while also making sure that you’re eating healthy. Here are the three reasons why you should meal prep:
Saves you time and money
The first big benefit of meal prepping is that it saves you time. You don’t have to cook every day, which means you can spend more time with friends, family and loved ones. It also means that you don’t have to worry about making last-minute dinner plans or cook a late-night snack when it’s already dark outside.
The second big benefit of meal prepping is that it saves money—and not just by reducing your grocery bill at the end of the month (though I’m sure most people would appreciate that). Meal prep can save money in other ways too:
- You’ll probably buy in bulk because buying certain items in bulk tends to be cheaper than buying them individually at the grocery store. This helps cut down on waste and makes cooking easier because there are less ingredients involved.
- If you’re taking advantage of produce deals during your weekly trip to the market or farmers’ market, then by all means stock up on as much produce as possible for future meals!
Helps you to make healthier eating decisions
Meal prepping helps you to plan your meals, which means that you are less likely to make unplanned decisions about what foods you will eat. This can help ensure that you are eating healthier.
When you have prepped food available you can avoid unhealthy choices by helping keep the temptation of eating out at bay. You know that if it’s already prepared and ready for you in the refrigerator, it is easier not to make an impulsive decision on whether or not to grab something quick from a restaurant or grocery store instead of cooking yourself for lunch or dinner.
Meal prepping means more fruits and vegetables! Since these items typically don’t last as long as other foods, it can be hard for those who want them but don’t always buy them regularly enough (or at all). Having a few days’ worth of smoothies in your fridge can get even picky eaters into the habit of drinking their greens without them even realizing they’re doing so!
If eating greens isn’t your favorite thing, check out this product by Driven Nutrition!
Helps to reduce food waste
Meal prepping helps you to reduce food waste by ensuring that you use up all the ingredients in your fridge. As Americans, we waste a lot of food. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that we throw away 40% of our food supply each year. That’s an estimated 133 billion pounds of wasted food per year!
This isn’t only bad for the environment because it means more landfills and more methane gas emissions to deal with—it’s also expensive! An average family spends $1,200 per year on wasted food–that’s almost $300 per month! And while some people may feel guilty about throwing out perfectly good produce or leftovers, they might not realize how drastically cutting back on food waste can lower their grocery bill and help them save money in other areas as well (like eating out).
In case you’re wondering what types of foods are commonly thrown away: fruits and veggies make up over 40% of America’s wasted produce; dairy products (like milk) account for about 15%; meat contributes an additional 13%.
You should meal prep!
At this point, you should be thinking: “If meal prep is so great, why aren’t more people doing it?” Well, there are a few reasons people don’t meal prep.
Here are the top three most common excuses and why they’re not good enough:
- I don’t have time to cook all this food. There are plenty of quick and easy ways to get dinner on the table! You can even find fun recipes that will help you make your meals in less time than ordering takeout or eating out.
- I eat out too much as it is; I don’t want to start spending so much money on groceries. It’s true that meal-prep cooking can cost more upfront (though if you’re buying healthier foods, that extra cost could end up saving you money in the long run).
But here’s a secret: If your goal is saving money from eating out or buying fast food all the time, then meal prepping might just save your wallet! By planning ahead via meal prepping and batch cooking larger portions at home instead of grabbing something quick when hunger strikes between meals—and especially if those snacks contain empty calories—you’ll be able to stay within budget without feeling deprived when it comes down to it. Plus, smaller batch sizes mean fewer trips back into town for errands during business hours—saving even more cash on fuel costs while still giving us more free time!
If you really have trouble finding time to cook, we work with a couple of local healthy meal prep companies that can alleviate some stress throughout the week. Check out Nutrition Kitchen and Coronatos Clean Cuisine for better options.
We hope this article has given you some ideas on how to meal prep and how it can benefit your life. We know that there are many reasons why people choose not to meal prep, but we want everyone to know that it’s a great idea. It will save you time and money, help you make healthier eating decisions, reduce food waste and much more!
