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Influencers online make food prep appear so easy, and it appear as though it doesn't take more than a couple of minutes on Sunday night. Of course, they put much more time into it than most since they make a living sharing their lives on social media. But what about us??? People who don't get paid to prep or paid to write a grocery list?
Benefits of Food Prepping
You will find a number of benefits to prepping your meals for the week. The three major benefits include eat more healthy meals, save money, and save time.
When you eat healthily, you may lose weight. You can put less strain on your heart and muscles while also increasing your self-confidence. You will also feel more energized, encouraging more exercise.
It may not seem like you are saving money when you see your grocery bill, it's important to remember that when you prep your meals, you won't spend money on eating out. Most of the time, eating out provides less than healthy options. Plus, you end up paying a small amount every day. To help put things into perspective, eating out makes up about 40% of a person's food costs each month. If you eat out more than normal, this can be significantly higher.
With the time you save by prepping your meals, you can go to the gym or even spend more time with your family. We only have so much time in the day, and saving time becomes more and more valuable as we get older. However, you may wonder exactly how much time to expect to spend while meal prepping.
Time Spent Shopping
Most influencers act as though you have everything ready for meal prep in your fridge already. However, they fail to consider how much time goes into shopping for the average person.
According to a recent study, people usually spend an average of 41 minutes at the grocery store, and most people visit the grocery store about two times a week. This adds up to 82 minutes a week.
Of course, you can find ways to reduce the amount of time you spend on grocery shopping. Two ways to reduce time spent at the grocery store are to shop at less busy times or buy your groceries online.
Buying groceries will save you time, and you will also get the added convenience of the groceries getting delivered to your front door. Only about 10% of people regularly buy their groceries online, but it's becoming more popular. In fact, 47% of Millennials buy their groceries online.
If you prefer to go to the grocery store yourself to ensure you get quality products, you should try to avoid shopping on Saturday. Saturday tends to be the busiest day for grocery stores, so shopping on a weekday can save you time in the long checkout lines.
Time Spent in the Kitchen
When people think about how much time it takes to meal prep, they think about the time spent shopping and in the kitchen. In a study conducted by the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, researchers asked people how much time they spend every day preparing their meals. According to their findings:
16% spent less than an hour on food prep
43% spent 1 - 2 hours on food prep
41% spent more than 2 hours on food prep
This study ONLY included the COOKING part of meal prep.... If you fall into the middle tier, you can expect to spend between 7 - 14 hours a week on food prep. It can actually save you a lot of time to knock it out in a couple of hours on one day of the week.
Best Food Prep Practices
When you decide you want to take advantage of the benefits of meal prepping, you want to do it in the most effective way possible. Follow these tips to make the most out of your meal prepping.
Buy Proper Containers
You don't want to spend your time prepping a great lunch only to have it fall out of the container in your car or in the fridge at work. Spend the money on quality containers that will keep your food fresh and secure.
Mix it Up
You can't eat the same thing every day. You will end up facing food boredom. Make sure that you do your part against food boredom by mixing up your meals throughout the week. Even small variations can make a big difference, so get creative! Try using a couple of different proteins, vegetables, and grains in different combinations and with different spices.
Use a Service
Not sure how to get started? Let a professional prep service do the work for you. It can make things convenient, simple, & easy, especially as you adjust to meal prepping. There are always hurdles and home delivery or pick up services can help with planning and cooking your meals.
Good Clean Food Hawaii
Good Clean Food Hawaii offers healthy meals already prepared for you. You can select from a number of different plans and meal options, so you always have ready to eat meal to fuel your healthy lifestyle. You also get the opportunity to save time even more by having them take care of the details for you. No shopping or prepping required!
Learn more about Good Clean Food Hawaii and their natural, healthy food prep options today!
Have questions? Let us know in the comments below!