Why do I have hot dogs on the face of a clean eating and meal prep post????!!!
It felt like a fun thing to do. TBH, I am not a fan of hotdogs, Something about what's inside of them makes me feel gross.
One of the tips you will be given often when you look up clean eating diets is that you should meal prep. The reason this is so effective is because it is more convenient and ends up saving time, plus it really gets ahead of those temptations you might have. Here are some of the top benefits of meal prepping and planning on the clean eating diet.
You Can Avoid Unnecessary Snacking
The first reason you should consider meal prepping is so you can avoid snacking on foods that aren’t clean. This is a very common pitfall among people who are used to hitting up the vending machine at work or grabbing a few cookies for a snack. If you prepare before the week begins, you should already have all the clean snacks you need, from fruit and nuts to homemade clean baked goods and won’t need to grab a candy bar while at the gas station.
It Ensures You Have Enough Food for the Week
In addition to avoiding the little snacks that can add up fast, you can also make sure you have all the food you need for a week or longer. Another common pitfall of clean eating is that you run out of food for meals later in the week, leading you to getting fast food or ordering pizza, since it’s easier than going back to the store. By planning out all your meals, you can then prep them and have all the hard work done so that cooking is a breeze.
Your Week is More Streamlined
Nobody wants to spend time each day figuring out what to pack in their kids’ lunches and deciding on what to cook for dinner. If you spend a good portion of your day thinking about what to cook, you are stressing yourself out, and that mentality often leads to failure of these types of diets. This is a brand new healthy lifestyle and one that does take some prep work. Think about how easy it will be going through your day knowing your breakfast and lunch is packed and ready to go, and everything for dinner is scheduled, prepped, and ready to put in the oven. It really does not get any simpler than that.
Remember that meal prep isn’t always cooking ahead of time, but prepping ingredients like chopping veggies, putting smoothie packs together, and making salads.
Super Easy Clean Eating Smoothies
Smoothies are a wonderful addition to meals and snacks when you are eating clean. You can have a smoothie during any time of the day, from breakfast to a post-workout snack, and there are an endless amount of combinations. Take a look at some of these easy smoothie tips and some ideas for putting it all together. Pre-packing smoothies are a great way to save time in the mornings if you love a morning smoothie. Oh! you thought you couldn't smoothie-prep?! Of course you can, and here are a few recipes.
The formula for Making Smoothies
Before starting, here is an easy formula for putting your smoothie together:
Frozen banana or ice + fruit + greens (optional) + yogurt + liquid + optional flavorings
This is a really simple formula that will help you when creating your own smoothies. Of course, there are many variations on this as not all smoothies need yogurt and you may have just fruit and juice in your smoothie. However, this works great when you really aren’t sure what kind of smoothie you want to make.
Simple Green Smoothie
A green smoothie is ideal for clean eating if the smoothie is replacing a meal because it helps to give you more fiber, increases the nutrients, and makes you fuller for longer. A good green smoothie includes about a cup of greens, a cup of frozen fruit, ½ frozen banana or handful of ice, and some liquid. You can also choose to add a little yogurt, but since you have a banana in there, it isn’t required. Here is a fun green smoothie recipe:
1 cup of kale and spinach 1 cup frozen strawberries 1 cup almond milk ½ frozen banana
All Berry Smoothie
To simplify it even more, you can have a smoothie with just frozen berries. Bananas that are frozen are often used in most smoothies because they not only thicken it up and make it to where yogurt isn’t a requirement, but if it’s frozen, you don’t actually need ice. That way, if you are using fresh berries, but a frozen banana, your smoothie is cold even without the ice. So for a berry smoothie, try this simple combination:
½ cup strawberries ½ cup raspberries ½ cup blueberries ½ frozen banana 1 cup liquid – milk or juice
Breakfast Smoothie
This is where you can really get creative with it. When your smoothie is for breakfast, and you don’t think fruit and veggies is enough to keep you full, add in some other ingredients that turn it more into a filling breakfast. For example, you can use oats or peanut butter in your smoothie. Try a simple smoothie with:
1 frozen banana ½ cup oats ½ cup peanut butter 1 tbsp maple syrup 1 cup milk
Comments