Easy Meal Prep Ideas For A Healthy New Year

We all love the idea of eating and living a healthy lifestyle. But it all takes time, thought and energy. Setting goals to eat healthy may be easy, but actually finding a way to stay consistent may be harder than you think. You need some easy meal prep ideas and a plan to make those changes so you can stick to them. With easy meal prep ideas, you’ll always be prepared for your weekly dinner plans. 

Why Is Meal Prep So Important?

Cooking all your meals at home can be a challenge for most people. You’re busy working all day or running around driving your kids here and there, and cooking is furthest from your mind. It seems so much easier to pick up some fast food and not have to do all that cooking. 

But you may be tired of not eating healthy and spending so much money on junk food or restaurants. You want to eat the right foods and you want your kids to eat healthy too.

This is why an easy meal prep plan is so important. It will save you time and money. To be honest, it’s one of the best habits to start in the New Year!

Imagine coming home after a hard day of work, and everything is prepared and ready to cook. Your meal is planned and ready to prepare. Meal prep or planning is the best way to keep yourself and your family on a healthy eating track. 

It does require planning though. But you can pick one evening a week to plan out a whole weeks’ worth of menus and meals. You can even plan the lunches you’ll pack every day.

Pick one day a week and plan your meals. Write out the shopping list too and just buy what’s on your list. It’s fun to try new recipes too, so just pick one recipe and try it once a week or once a month and if it’s delicious, use it weekly in your easy meal prep plans.

Create a plan for what you’ll have for dinner for a week in advance. Maybe you’ll enjoy cooking for a whole week on one certain day of the week. This makes it even easier to have dinner ready when you get home. 

How to Meal Prep

It’s easier especially for beginner cooks, to start out slow. Focus on making one main dish or get an Instant Pot that cooks meals really fast. Then you can focus on one-pot recipes that are super easy and so tasty. You won’t have to spend a whole day cooking some new fancy recipes. This is the simplest solution to prepping and preparing for weeknight meals. 

Related: Instant Pot Stuffed Peppers

What you’ll need to do to make meal prep easy, is first to get high-quality food storage containers, choose recipes and build your menu, buy all the ingredients ahead of time, schedule what you’ll eat each night, and schedule a day once a week to prepare everything. 

Then you’ll be all set!

Tools for Easy Meal Prep

Here are some great tools to help you plan your meals ahead of time. 

Meal Planner

This weekly meal planner will help you track and plan your meals. Use this 52-week planner to write down recipes and your grocery list. You can also use it for writing out breakfast and lunch ideas. Keep it all neat and tidy in a planner that you can use year after year. 

This easy meal prep planner will help save you time and money and keep you on track with your healthy eating.

Reusable Silicone Storage Bags

These reusable storage bags are great! They’re great for storage and they don’t contain anything unhealthy that could seep into your food. And you won’t have to use plastic anymore. Just wash these in the dishwasher or handwash if you like. 

They have larger sizes where you can store a whole meal that you prepped. This is an easy and convenient way to keep your planned and prepped meals fresh and ready to go.

Meal Prepping for Weight Loss

Make your easy meal prep days even easier with this Big Book of Quick & Healthy Make Ahead Recipes. This is a great tool if you are seeking a healthy lifestyle. You’ll save time, money and lose any unwanted weight if you want to. 

This book teaches you everything you need to know to prep meals for a week in advance. If you have a busy schedule this recipe book is all you’ll need to prepare healthy, delicious meals. 

These meals are low in calories but high in vitamins and nutrients. You’ll be living that healthy lifestyle you want and shed some pounds too. All the details for nutrition, instructions on how to prepare the food and how to store and re-heat those meals are in this book. 

Compartment Meal Prep Containers With Lids

Save time and money with these meal prep containers with lids. These 3 compartment containers are perfect for storing your meals that you’ve already prepared. Plus you can take them with you anywhere so you won’t be tempted to hit that fast food place or waste your money at a restaurant.

These containers are stackable so you can take several for your whole family when you’re out and aren’t going to make it home in time for dinner. You can also use them to take to your office or school or use them on vacation. No need to worry about not eating healthy anymore, when you can bring your healthy meals with you wherever you go. 

You can also freeze meals with these containers! And they’re safe in the microwave and dishwasher. 

Food Storage Containers With Lids

These food storage containers are great for keeping your prepped meals neatly packed and ready to pop into the microwave. These containers do not absorb any colors from food so they stay looking great forever.

You can pack meals, fruit and vegetables, salads, nuts, and other snacks to take with you traveling or for school or work. They’re all the same size so you can enjoy good portion control. You won’t have any spills with these containers either!

They are stackable so everything will look neat stored in your fridge or cupboards. 

To Go Yogurt Pack 

Enjoy your yogurt and toppings on the go with this yogurt pack and topping containers. They have lids that seal so your yogurt won’t spill! 

These are also stackable and dishwasher safe. Use them for snacks too!

Insulated Lunch Box

Use this double-deck lunch-box for work, school or play. You can keep cold food separate from hot food in this thermal, insulated lunch box. 

This lunch box is leak-proof and has several compartments for your healthy food. Fill it with all your easy meal prep ideas and have a healthy meal on the go. 

---

Now you have no excuses! All these easy meal prep ideas are meant to help you stay healthy and save time and money. Prepping meals will help you with portion control and you won’t waste any food. Take the time to prep your meals and reduce the stress and worry about what you’re going to cook every day.

How will you start to prep your meals?