There are many ways to plan and prep meals; the best approach is to find what works best for you, your time constraints, and your cooking style.
I have created a three-part blog post series in which I share three different meal prep methods and sample days that I use in the transformation program. The goal is to spread your meals evenly throughout the day in 4-5 smaller meals, with balanced macronutrients to support protein synthesis (build lean muscle mass), stabilize blood sugars, and encourage weight loss if that is your goal.
In this post, I share what I call “simple” meal prep—this method is enjoyed by those who are on the go, have minimal time to prep, and/or haven’t discovered their badass cooking skills (yet).
For this sample day, I have purposely chosen a variety of omnivore, vegetarian, vegan and pescatarian meals to show you how easy it can be to incorporate your own personal eating style into a macro-friendly plan.
Even though most clients favor one method, they tend to use a combination of all three meal prep styles.
My clients are given a personalized macro plan based on their goals, activity level, and current body weight. They use my sample days, like this one here in this blog post, as inspiration to create their own plan based on their taste buds, cooking styles, and macro goals.
I encourage you to use these meal examples below to get creative in the kitchen and discover what macro ratios are right for you.
Here is a quick overview of the three different types of meal prep:
OPTION 1
MEAL PREP – Fridge Buffet (click here Meal Prep – Fridge Buffet)
With this method, you can prep/cook 2-3 foods in each macro category and store them in the fridge. When you are ready to eat, you can pick and choose what you like and toss together a quick meal. This option allows you to have 4-5 days of meal prep.
OPTION 2
MEAL PREP – Simple (here in this blog post)
This meal prep style is perfect for those with limited time because most of the meals I suggest use mostly healthy prepared foods with minimal cooking, making throwing a meal together easy peasy.
OPTION 3
MEAL PREP – Sophisticated (click here Meal Prep – Sophisticated)
This option is for those who like to cook and have the time to do so. The clients who enjoy this option want to be creative in the kitchen, and some like to use some unique ingredients. With this method, you can cook one meal and make enough leftovers for additional meals. With this option, you will be doing most of your cooking every other day.
Let’s dive into Option 2…
MEAL INSPO FOR MACROS | PART 2 SIMPLE
SAMPLE DAY
MEAL 1 Vanilla Latte | Omnivore w/ Cottage Cheese + Berries | Vegetarian
MEAL 2 Protein Green Smoothie | Vegan
MEAL 3 Turkey Soft Tacos w/ Salsa, Avo + Lime | Omnivore
MEAL 4 Shrimp + Zoodles | Pescatarian
MEAL 5 Lettuce Wrap Burger | Omnivore
DISCLAIMER: The macronutrients listed below are not meant for you to follow. They are meant to be used as building blocks to create your own meals according to your personal macronutrient needs. The macros listed below are on the lower end so that you can easily increase your macronutrients to meet your needs.
MEAL 1 – Vegetarian
25.1 g P | 24.9 g C – 0 S | 7.1 g F | 271 calories
VANILLA LATTE
8 ounces coffee
17 g vanilla collagen (ladybird provisions)
Using a handheld frother, froth ingredients together in a mug and serve. If you do not have a frother, place your ingredients in a blender and serve.
COTTAGE CHEESE + BLUEBERRIES
100 g cottage cheese (good culture, 18 g F*)
145 g blueberries
Place ingredients in a bowl and enjoy.
*I use organic live cultured Good Culture with 18 g protein and 3 g fat. It’s thick and creamy.
SUGGESTIONS:
+ for more carbs, add more fruit
+ for more fat, add ground flax or chia seeds
MEAL 2 – Vegan
26.6 P | 25.9 C – 0 S | 7.1 F | 251 calories
PROTEIN GREEN SMOOTHIE
50 g spinach
35 g banana
10 g flax seeds
2 scoops chocolate protein powder (epic protein)
Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth and serve.
SUGGESTIONS:
+ for more protein, add more protein powder
+ for more carbs, add more fruit
+ for more fat, add ground flax or chia seeds
MEAL 3 – Omnivore
25.8 g P | 15 g C – 0 S | 7.2 F | 221 calories
TURKEY SOFT TACOS W/ SALSA, AVO + LIME
1 almond flour tortilla (siete foods)
50 g lettuce
1 T salsa
6 g avocado
2 slices herb-roasted turkey breast (columbus craft meats)
fresh squeeze of lime
Place tortilla on a plate and layer lettuce, turkey slices, avo, and salsa. Top with a fresh squeeze of lime.
SUGGESTIONS:
+ for more protein, add more turkey
+ for more carbs, add another tortilla
+ for more fat, add extra avocado
MEAL 4 – Pescatarian
25.9 P | 10.2 C – 0 S | 7.7 F | 213 calories
SHRIMP + ZOODLES
250 g zucchini
75 g tomatoes
150 g shrimp, cooked
6 g extra virgin olive oil
sea salt + pepper to taste
red pepper flakes – optional
You can use a spiralizer or a simple vegetable peeler to turn your zucchini into noodles. Toss zucchini noodles, tomatoes, olive oil, sea salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Add to a plate, top with shrimp and serve.
SUGGESTIONS:
+ for more protein, add more shrimp
+ for more carbs, add more veggies
+ for more fat, add olive oil or hemp seeds
MEAL 5 – Omnivore
25.7 P | 14.6 g C – 0 S | 9.3 g F | 243 calories
LETTUCE WRAP BURGER
50 g lettuce leaves
50 g tomatoes, thinly sliced
30 g onion, thinly sliced
130 g turkey burger, cooked (applegate organics)
pickles
sea salt and pepper, to taste
Using the lettuce leaves as a bun, layer burger, tomatoes, onion and pickles. Salt and pepper to taste.
SIMPLE SALAD
50 g lettuce, torn
60 g carrots, chopped
60 g cucumber, chopped
lemon, to taste
Toss all ingredients together; along with salt and pepper, to taste.
SUGGESTIONS:
+ for the burger, you can use any frozen patty you like; I chose Applegate Organics turkey burgers because they are leaner than beef. I find that frozen burgers don’t have the same flavor as freshly made from ground meat, so be sure to season with salt and pepper.
+ for more protein, slap on an extra burger
+ for extra fat, add avocado and/or mayo
+ for non-starchy carbs or more carbs, add a portabella mushroom, roasted beets, and/or a sliced tomato
I hope you found this helpful. I am offering an upcoming class if you’d like to learn more and it would be great to have you.
