Meal Prepping 101

Eliminate the stress and time of having to cook every single night by meal prepping!  It saves you time during the week and helps keep you on track with healthy eating!  Wether you are a student, you work full time or are a stay at home mom, it can be hard (I mean seriously impossible) to cook all of your meals at home every single day. This is where "Meal Prep" can quickly become your best friend! Without prepping your meals ahead of time you are most likely to eat junk food if you're too busy or on the go.

The amount of prep you do, depends on how much time you have to dedicate to prepping and your personal preferences.

I prep twice a week, Sundays and Wednesdays. I create a meal calendar depending on our schedule for the week and make a grocery list. I cut up all my fruits and veggies and precook all my meats (except fish and steak) and large meals like Meatloaf or Casseroles.

What the heck is Meal Prep??

It can mean different things to different people. For me it means cooking in bulk and creating grab and go snacks throughout my day. My most important prepped meal is lunch. I am a snacker and if I do not have a prepped ready to eat meal I will raid my pantry, fridge and pretty much munch on anything I can find. 

You may choose to prepare only lunches, grab and go snacks or all of your meals if you have the time. 
Chances are it will be a little bit of trial and error to get settled into a routine that suits your lifestyle and preferences. 

If you always find yourself rushing in the morning and your breakfast consists of a cup of coffee and a pop tart then prepping breakfast will help you. Or if you work late hours and have a difficult time cooking dinner on a nightly basis then maybe Dinner is where you start. 
There is no right or wrong. 

3 Days of Lunch

Before you Start

The first thing you need to do is invest in some good quality containers - these can be tupperware or glassware. Make sure they are microwave/oven safe and BPA free if you choose plastic. Also getting the same size containers will help you stack them and prevent having to play fridge Tetris. 
I prefer glass containers myself for large quantities and also have special 3 compartment containers for lunch that make it easy to separate and take on the go. 

Planning

The first thing you need to do is PLAN.

If you have never meal prepped before it is so easy to become overwhelmed!  Cooking for an entire week is a pretty big job and even the best of us can struggle with that. My best advice is to take it slow and sticking to a few days at a time to help you get you used to the process. Take a look at your weekly family schedule and plan a food calendar around it. 
I like to start with my proteins and create several meals around them. 
Chicken Breast for instance can be used for so many different meals and leftovers can be recycled into lunch the next day. Salads, Stir-fry, Tacos, Breakfast Omelets.. Oh the possibilities. 
As I mentioned before I like to prep on 2 different days. One of the reasons why I do this is because I don't want to have food spoil. So also keep in mind longevity in the fridge. Fish for instance I cook the day of so it is fresh, but Overnight Oats will stay good for a few days. 

Prepping

Grocery shop for the week. 

I love going to Farmers Market on the weekend and save on fresh produce. 

Now, how you choose to prep your meals is up to you. 
You can:1. Cook enough protein, veggies, starches to eat for the week 
(keeping these items basic will make them more versatile to use during the week)
This way you will get larger quantities of food and can put together meals everyday. 
OR
2.Cook several meals to generate enough to alternate for the week (five/six days of dinners) 
This way you will have pre packaged individual meals. 
OR
3. Cook your meals throughout the week based on your schedule and prep your breakfast and lunch the day before. If you know you will have time on Monday to cook dinner but not Tuesday then cook Monday and prep for Tuesday as well.  

Cooking 

1. Cut and Prep Fruits and Veggies (I do this while my protein is cooking) 
2. Cook as much of your protein that you would like to have for the week

• Grill chicken in bulk with a variety of seasonings to switch up the flavor during the week
• Use your crockpot!  Probably my favorite way or food prep. Meatballs or shredded chicken is a breeze. 
• Hard boil enough eggs for the week for a grab and go breakfast snack. 
• Roasting or grilling veggies in bulk.

3. Snacks- Separate in baggies and labeling them works best for me. 
My boyfriend goes to work when I stay home so I pre-pack his lunch and snacks the evening before and keep in a lunch bag in the fridge so he can just take it with him when he leaves at 6 am. (I am not awake enough to do it then) 4. Don't forget your Freezer! Pre-packing crock pot meals that you can freeze until you need it during the week is a life saver. Imagine having everything you need in a bag that you can just put in a crock pot when you go to work and have a delicious meal when you get home. 

Remember, do what works best for you!!!!

If cooking everything at once on Sunday is too much because that's your day to spend time with family, then divide your prep to two days, its what I do! 

I had to start somewhere and a little bit of meal prep is still better than none at all. Even if that is just chopping up a few veggies or grouping things in containers, you will feel so much better about cooking your food if you have it organized ready to go!

Core De Force - Marital Arts Program

AHHH New Workout!! 

Listen I am not really one to get excited over a workout program... Okay thats a bit of a lie, I get giddy every time something new comes out for me to try, BUT this is totally different than anything Beachbody has ever done.  This Program is based on MMA training !!! I have actually taken real MMA classes before and that stuff is NO JOKE! I had my butt handed to me by a 12 year old boy who was half the size I was. 
This is going to be amazing and I am excited to tell you more about it!

CORE DE FORCE is the first program from Super Trainers Joel Freeman and Jericho McMatthews. 

Here’s how it works: each workout is broken into 3-minute “rounds” — just like a real boxing match. In those 3 minutes you’ll alternate between addictive Boxing, Kickboxing, and Muay Thai-inspired combinations, bodyweight training, and cardio spikes that kick your fat burn into overdrive. But all that punching and kicking doesn’t just burn calories. Each move, whether it’s a jab or a knee, is rotational, giving you a 360-degree core workout that will tighten up your entire midsection. All you have to do is hit it hard 3 minutes at a time and before you know it — you’re done!

This program is for anyone who wants to lose the belly — whether you’re a beginner or you’re more advanced. There’s even a modifier in every workout and move breakdowns to help you master your hooks and kicks from the get-go.

CORE DE FORCE includes 4 MMA-style workouts, 2 bodyweight workouts, 2 core workouts, 1 active recovery workout, 1 quick before-bed stretch routine, a quick-start guide, a 30-day calendar, and an eating plan.  

This is going to be available late November so just in time to shed some of those Holiday lbs that I will be putting on! 

Im not myself when I am Hungry

Most days its great being an adult, but ever so often I wish I was a child and someone stood behind me mouthing "she's just hungry" when I am not in a fantastic mood. 

There is this strange phenomena that seems to occur when I am overdue for a meal.. its called getting HANGRY which is an amalgam of hungry and angry. I seem to get short tempered, moody and just outright grumpy. 
There are several other moods that my boyfriend has so eloquently named HANKY and HOODY.  
Let me explain..... 

So HANGRY is when anything and everything is irritating. It really doesn't matter who or what it is I am just irritated about it.. I would say this is the worst mood out of all three. This one pretty much is code red for -Get this girl fed STAT- 
HANKY is hungry and cranky. This particular mood is not so bad, well its not good, but its not Code Red. This one is when I stop caring and walk around with a look on my face that says don't talk to me. If you ask me a question I will most likely answer with "I don't care" and nothing anyone does will be pleasing me. 
HOODY, if you've caught on, is hungry and moody. If want to put these in order, this is the least threatening of the 3. I just am listless and quiet and don't have much to say which according to Pat this is a welcoming mood every once in a while.  Its still not a pleasant mood because I am pretty much useless when it comes to decision making and have this cloud of sadness following me around. If you imagine a sad lonely puppy sitting in the rain looking at you with those big sad eyes- yeah thats me when I am HOODY. 

Us HANGRY people never mean what we say or do, but it still doesn't count as a valid excuse to be a raging cranky pants.  You can accessorize and advertise your hunger issues with shirts, pillows and even necklaces which can serve as a fair warning to those poor schmucks caught in our cross hairs. 

If you're not sure wether or not you fall into any of these aforementioned categories there are some telltale signs that you are one of us. 
Have you ever felt perfectly fine one moment and then instantly been catapulted to the hunger pit of doom??  At that point its on and you need a meal.

Ever sat down on the floor next to the fridge and eaten cold mashed potatoes out of the container with your hands? Locate all the snack food in your house, eat it all, have a 20 minute sugar high and regret it for the rest of the day?? You're so hungry the only thing that can possibly satisfy you is potatoes topped with pasta topped with rice smothered in butter?? Once you finally get food, there’s never enough time to eat it. You’ve got to get it in your face and people wonder if you've either been in prison or starved your entire life??  You are definitely a HANGRY person.

So why does this happen?? How come we get in strange moods from lack of food? 
Well it has to do with carbohydrates, proteins and fats in everything you eat. The nutrients mainly glucose(sugars) from these foods pass into your bloodstream and are used for energy.  
You might be asking yourself (like I did) I don't feel tired when I am HANGRY.... Let me explain further.
So pretty much when you start to run out of these nutrients circulating in your blood stream your brain goes into "life-threatening" panic mode. Your brain needs glucose to do its job and if you don't have any its not happy.  Your brain might be a small part of your body but it used up to 30% of your energy to work. 

When you're hungry and do not have enough sugar hanging around to make your brain happy it becomes more difficult to focus, concentrate and pretty much be nice to people. Once that panic mode sets in your body is also going to be releasing adrenaline into your bloodstream which could cause some of those "unexplainable" outbursts of anger. 
HMMMM makes more sense now doesn't it?  

There you have it folks... You're not yourself when you're hungry because your brain needs energy and turns you into a psychopath until you feed it. 

Going Allergen Free

Something that has been on my mind lately is how difficult it is to adjust to a special diet. 

I have struggled with my diet since I was 11 or 12 years old, never truly knowing what was making me sick. Doctors never figured it out and essentially I learned by trial and error what my body did and did not tolerate. 

So my list of things that I cannot eat are : 

Gluten : Wheat, Barley, Rye.

Dairy: Pretty much everything that has Casein and Whey which are proteins in milk

Corn: Which is in EVERYTHING and it has fun names like Dextrose (found in iodized salt?!?) and Maltodextrin (found in most Deli Meats) 

You're probably thinking -How on earth did you figure all this out? Well it certainly took over 15 years, a lot of journaling, frustration and several meltdowns inside grocery stores. 

I recently had a few people reach out to me who have been told by doctors to adjust their diets and stay away from Gluten and I remembered how hard it was to change my diet at first and how much I struggled. There is so much to learn, not just about what gluten is but also how to monitor ingredients. 

I am by no means an expert, but I can tell you my story and what I went through learning to live with a limited diet in hopes that I can help you.  

Lets just start with what Gluten is 

Gluten is a general name for the proteins found in wheat (wheatberries, durum, emmer, semolina, spelt, farina, farro, graham, KAMUT® khorasan wheat and einkorn), rye, barley and triticale – a cross between wheat and rye. Gluten helps foods maintain their shape, acting as a glue that holds food together.  (source: https://celiac.org/)

It is prey much all the good things in life- BREAD, PIZZA, SPAGHETTI, DONUTS and one of my all time favorite, ENGLISH MUFFINS.  If it is made with flour chances are it is gluten. 

Not being able to have Dairy for me was not so difficult. Soy milk was getting popular when I was younger which I thought was quite delicious and honestly I was a huge fan of sorbet rather than Ice-cream.  Cheese was a bummer but I was still eating Pizza minus the cheese but twice the pepperoni so not all was lost.  

When I had a friend suggest I go gluten free is when I had my first meltdown. I feel so bad for the boy that worked at the health food store I visited for my first ever gluten free shopping trip. Basically I started hysterically sobbing and crying in the baking isle with this boy trying to figure out what was wrong with me. I most likely scarred the poor kid for life.

Honestly I had no reason to be in that isle because I do not bake but I googled "going gluten free" and printed out a list and just went with it. 

That was so not the right thing to do !  

I went to the store with a list of things I have never heard of and some I did not even know how to pronounce... I was particularly upset over Sorghum flour (WTH is that?? I have never used it EVER) and also Xantham Gum (Seriously??? ) 

Ok the point I am making is that it is difficult at first but really not that complicated. 

I am pretty sure adjusting a diet has stages just like grief that go something like this 

Shock & Denial-  Those are the first emotions you feel when you find out you can no longer eat something you enjoy and you think NO WAY!! Im sure the doctor is wrong. 

Anger & Retaliation- This is crap and Gluten Free/Allergy specific foods probably taste like poo. I don't even know where to start. This sucks. You're probably gonna try to eat it anyways and regret it afterwards. 

Fear & Depression- What will I eat? Will I ever fit in? How will I deal at Restaurants, going out and holiday parties? You look at your pantry and panic.  My thoughts were- going to be awful and I'm just going to stay home forever and starve. 

Relief & Acceptance-  You knew something was wrong and the last thing you want to be is  sick and you're eventually gonna be hungry and want to leave the house and be a functioning human being.  

It’s overwhelming going gluten-free/allergy-free at first. The couple months are the hardest and then it gets easier.  You're gonna learn why it's good to ditch food thats not good for you, paying attention to how foods make you feel, and adjusting your diet accordingly.  Once you cut out whatever it is you can't tolerate, you will wonder why it took you so long because you feel AMAZING

So here are some tips to not go crazy: 

1. Quit Cold Turkey - Figure out what in your house contains your allergen, take it all out and write it all down so you can catalog it so you can replace it with things you can eat. 

2. Find Substitutions- So lets say Gluten is what you're replacing:  

• Pasta- Corn, Brown rice, Quinoa and Black Bean Pasta is available. 
• Bread- TONS of GF options are out there. 
• Flour-Even more options available depending on what you're doing.. Remember that Sorghum I mentioned earlier? Yeah thats one of them.. but there is almond, potato, corn, coconut, tapioca.. all sorts of stuff. 
• Pizza- Yep, gf, soy free, dairy free vegan pizza is available. 
• Cake and Cookies- You beta. 
• Here is a website with more Substitutions

        Sounding better right ???  

3. Meal Planning- This is one of the reasons I am such a fan of Beachbodys Portion Control containers and meal prepping. It makes it easy to have a clear vision of what you're going to be making through the week and help prepare you. Lets say you have Taco Tuesdays, well chances are the taco seasoning you were using is not gluten free and flour tortillas are out. Well being able to plan ahead will make things easier. Making taco seasoning from scratch is better for you and delicious and you can use either corn tortillas or in my case lettuce wraps.

I have come to the point in my life where I can make anything to meet my dietary restrictions but I need a plan and I spend a day prepping my meals so all I need to do is plate my meals and heat them up.  

4. Grocery Shopping- So here is the most difficult part, the time it will take you to grocery shop will increase. My boyfriend jokes that I could live at Publix (it is a pretty amazing grocery store) but the reason is because I read labels and ingredients for EVERYTHING. I mean I have to look for a lot of ingredients, dairy, wheat, barley, dextrose, corn starch, maise flour, maltodextrin.... that is a lot of reading !!  A couple of things to look for depending on your sensitivities. Some of you may be so sensitive that contact with or cross-contamination with gluten/ allergens can be an issue, so when you are buying deli meat or anything that the store prepares make sure they wipe down the equipment. Also on labels it will tell you if a food is prepared in a factory where there are other items processed that contain allergens. 

5. Eating Out- I am so thankful that Gluten free has become a trend because there are so many options available. Not every server will be knowledgeable about gluten/allergens so make sure you let them know you have an allergy and that they inform the chef.                                                                          
Here is an amazing resource for allergy free restaurants !!!

5. Google & Pinterest - Google can be your best friend. I can't even tell you how many times I have googled, "Is there gluten in _____?" "Is there corn in______?" and Pinterest is amazing for finding recipes and blogs that are devoted to allergy free recipes and cooking tips !!

This stuff is confusing and when you are just starting out...it kinda feels like... well what the hell CAN I eat???
But over time, you will be a pro (I promise, If I can do it so can you). 
You have an advantage...gluten free/allergen information and options are becoming more available and part of every day living.

I promise if you keep it simple, keep reading and learning, and continue to have an open mind, you can become completely Gluten/Allergen Free without going crazy.