It's school time.
This means one thing for me: meal prep. In order to make my mornings a little easier and not make me an utter failure with my own diet, I will take one evening and prep for the week. As a bariatric patient, I always try to prep something high in protein, low carb, with a healthy mix of vegetables and fruit. My solution: grain bowls.
Grain bowls are essentially the same base, but the dressing and toppings are what make them flavorful. I will start by grilling or roasting my protein (usually chicken). I will use shrimp, steak, ham, whatever I have on hand if I get tired of chicken. I will put about 3 ounces in each bowl. I typically weigh my protein on a small food scale. While the protein cooks, I will prepare my whole grain. I always choose quinoa, but brown or wild rice would be a great option too. I find quinoa filling but not to the point where I feel like my stomach hurts. Sometimes with bariatric patients this can be a problem. Next, I choose my vegetables. I might add roasted sweet potatoes, peppers, cucumber, avocado, spinach, tomato- really whatever I have on hand or that is in season. Finally, I'll choose a cheese, maybe add in some hard- boiled egg for extra protein if I feel like it. In the morning, I will choose my dressing. The beauty of this bowl is that it can be customized to whatever you are feeling. Sometimes I will skip the dressing and just add salsa or balsamic glaze (my personal favorite). You can eat it hot or cold which is an added bonus. By eating grain bowls and salads for lunch I have more flexibility with my calories at dinnertime. I lost a significant amount of weight after a long stall simply by eating salads and grain bowls consistently.
I wish I could say my meal prep stops there. I often prepare homemade "lunchables" for my youngest. Thanks to these handy containers from Amazon, I'm able to customize these to her tastes and make it an easy grab and go in the mornings. I have a snack cart fully stocked so she can grab the rest of her lunch items and she's good to go. These are perfect for your little ones and much more cost effective than the real deal.
The final preparation I make for the week is vanilla yogurt. I always make it in the Instant Pot and by morning, I have a huge container of homemade yogurt. The kids will eat this for breakfast with fruit, as a snack, mix it with smoothies, and I will use it in baking as well. Yogurt is always something simple to have on hand and it's virtually no prep.
While I know meal prepping seems like one more thing (and it is), I promise, the extra flexibility and time are worth it. Also, knowing that I have a healthy, nourishing meal rather than processed foods definitely makes me feel more energetic and satisfied during the day. If you really think I'm extra, you'll be delighted to know that I also meal prep every single dinner meal for the week as well. I'll save that for another post though.