Losing Weight and Saving Time With Meal Prep

Meal prepping helps you stay on track with your weight loss goals. If you don’t have a plan
about what to eat, it’s harder to stick to a healthy regimen. You’ll be more likely to eat
whatever’s around and not give enough consideration to lowering your intake of empty calories.
In addition, you’ll likely end up not getting enough of the healthy stuff that your body really
needs. Here are some tips about how to plan your diet for outstanding results that will make you
look and feel better while making life easier.

Stay on Track

One great way how meal prepping helps you lose weight is making it easier for you to commit to
your goals. In the course of a busy workday, the temptation to have whatever your coworkers
want to order may preempt your nutritional goals if you haven’t already resolved what you’re
going to have. Likewise, when you get home, you may find that you’re just too beat to think
about preparing something healthy and you’ll order whatever’s closest to you or just heat up the
easiest thing to make in your freezer. Meal prepping adds structure to your diet and spares you
from making unhealthy choices in the name of convenience.

Avoid Skipping Meals

When you don’t have a meal prepared and you’re trying to avoid eating whatever junk food is
easy and available, you may be more likely to skip eating entirely. However, depriving yourself
will cause you to suffer a dramatic drop in energy and it can leave you feeling tired and sluggish
or even give you a headache. Highs and lows may also make you feel more compelled to
overeat later in the day. Rather than skip a meal entirely, try incorporating some fast and easy
alternatives into your regular diet. Meal replacement options are a good way to eat something
when you’re on the go and still get important nutritional intake. You’ll skip all of the dietary
content that you don’t want in a meal while still getting all of the important protein-rich content
that your body needs to stay fueled throughout the day.
Another option you could utilize if you are in a rush or don’t feel like preparing anything, but
need to eat, is ordering food from a restaurant for takeout. As long as where you’re ordering has
nutritious meals, such as Ayza’s healthy menu, this is a quick and easy route to take. During
these times of COVID-19 many restaurants are closed for dine-in eating, but their kitchens are
open for take-out and delivery, including Ayza which provides these options for your
convenience starting June 11.

Stay on a Budget

Putting some thought into your meals also helps you keep track about what you’re spending on
them and helps you avoid exceeding your budget for meals and snacks. Preparing healthy
options in advance and bringing good snacking and meal options with you when you go to work
will save you from paying a premium for unhealthy food in vending machines or take-out places.

Manage Your Time Efficiently

If you prepare meals in advance of when you’re going to eat them, you’ll be better able to fit
healthy meal prep into your schedule on your terms. When you put yourself in the position of
having to make a meal whenever you want to eat, it may be harder to fit the task into your
schedule. Aside from the prep work, you also have to consider whatever cleanup is involved
with whatever you want to make. When you have meal prep taken care of, you’ll be less likely to
make excuses to yourself about why it’s okay to eat something unhealthy.

Don’t Sacrifice Options

Some people may feel put off about meal prep because they won’t know precisely what they’re
going to feel like eating until they’re hungry. However, this same argument makes a case for
trying meal prep. If you don’t have something prepared in advance, odds are that you won’t
have the time or ability to seek out something you feel like eating that’s also good for you. The
best strategy is to prepare a couple of different options that keep well so you won’t feel like
you’re stuck with something that you don’t want to eat.
Meal prep saves time, money, and helps you eat healthier. Regardless of what your individual
nutritional goals are like, planning your meals and snacks in advance is a life-hack that
everyone can benefit from.

by Lindsey Patterson