5 Lazy Meal Prep Hacks that Help You Eat like a Dietitian
- emilytillsrd
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
Let’s be honest—meal prep can feel completely overwhelming when you’re already juggling work, family, and about 50 other responsibilities. But here’s the good news: it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. You don’t need perfectly portioned meals in color-coded containers to eat well and stay on track with your goals.
In fact, the most effective meal prep strategies are the simplest ones.
If you’re a busy woman trying to make your meals easier and more nourishing during the week, here are 5 realistic tips to make meal prep hacks for you—not against you.
1. Pre-Chop Once, Use Twice
One of the easiest ways to stay consistent with healthy eating is to actually use the food you buy. Instead of tossing your produce into the crisper drawer and forgetting about it, take a few extra minutes when you get home from the store to wash and chop it. This is one meal prep hack we always prioritize when getting home from the store.
Even if you don’t prep full meals, just having sliced bell peppers, cucumbers, or grapes ready to grab can save you precious time during the week. Think of it as your future self’s best gift—snack trays, salad toppers, and stir-fry ingredients, done.
✅ Pro Tip: Store prepped produce in clear containers so it’s visible and inviting when you open the fridge.
2. Batch Cook Just Your Proteins
You don’t have to prep everything to stay on track. Just focusing on cooking your protein ahead of time can go a long way.
Grill chicken breasts, bake tofu, brown ground turkey, or toss some pork in the slow cooker on Sunday. Then use that protein for different meals throughout the week—like chicken for tonight’s tacos and tomorrow’s salad. It’s one less step to worry about during the week.
Most proteins stay fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days if stored properly, making this a time-saving habit worth building.
✅ Pro Tip: Use gadgets like the Instant Pot, air fryer, or slow cooker to make cooking even easier.
3. Use a Meal Formula Instead of Full Recipes
Raise your hand if you’ve saved a recipe and then never found it again.
Instead of stressing over exact recipes, use a simple meal-building formula you can rotate all week:
Protein + Carb + Color + Healthy Fat
This can look like:
Chicken + quinoa + roasted broccoli + olive oil drizzle
Turkey burger + sweet potato + side salad + avocado
Hard-boiled eggs + whole grain toast + berries + peanut butter
Once you have the formula down, you can swap in what you already have or what’s on sale that week. It’s meal prep, simplified.
4. Prep Just Snacks (If Nothing Else)
If the idea of cooking or chopping anything sounds like too much, just focus on prepping your snacks.
Things like:
Portioning out trail mix, chips, or popcorn into containers
Washing and slicing fruit
Prepping yogurt parfaits in mason jars
Having grab-and-go protein options ready (like cheese sticks or hard-boiled eggs)
When your snacks are ready to go, you’re way more likely to stay on track and avoid last-minute choices that don’t support your goals.
✅ Pro Tip: Keep a “snack basket” in your fridge and pantry so the healthy options are always within reach.
5. Stock Up on Freezer Staples
Let’s stop pretending frozen veggies don’t count. They absolutely do.
Frozen fruits and veggies are picked at peak ripeness and flash frozen to lock in their nutrients. Things like steam-in-bag green beans, stir-fry blends, or frozen berries are staples I recommend to every busy woman.
They’re budget-friendly, last longer, and require zero prep. Win-win-win.
✅ Freezer Favorites: Steam-fresh broccoli, frozen cauliflower rice, frozen mango chunks, veggie blends, and frozen edamame.
You Don’t Need to Be Perfect—Just Prepared
Meal prep doesn’t have to be all-consuming. With a few small changes—like pre-chopping your veggies or having frozen go-tos on hand—you can make your week feel less chaotic and more nourishing.
Inside the Nourished Membership, we share even more real-life strategies to make food easier, not harder. From snack ideas and meal formulas to time-saving shortcuts, these are the tools that help you eat well consistently—even when life feels busy.
✨ Want help making meals easier this summer?