Overwhelmed. How to cook healthy for one when you're extremely busy?

Options
marialou891
marialou891 Posts: 20 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
5th day tracking now. I have been eating frozen meals (low sodium ones) for lunch and dinner most days. It's working for me mostly except I can't help but notice so many people say they are terrible things to put in your body. I guess I'm looking for other ideas for meals I can prep for my busy weeks. I work afternoons and evening so breakfast I can do at home.
«1

Replies

  • Laurend224
    Laurend224 Posts: 1,748 Member
    Options
    Can you do a bulk cooking day and freeze in individual portions?
  • marialou891
    marialou891 Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    Laurend224 wrote: »
    Can you do a bulk cooking day and freeze in individual portions?

    I could yes. I just have no idea where to begin or what to cook.
  • Laurend224
    Laurend224 Posts: 1,748 Member
    Options
    Cook what you like to eat!
  • agal129
    agal129 Posts: 215 Member
    Options
    Yeah, you can cook a large batch of things (chicken breasts, soups, beans, chili, lean meatballs, pasta dishes with sauce) and freeze them in individual portions. Make your own "frozen meals". Frozen vegetables are great too.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Options
    What you ate before but less of it :)
  • Snooozie
    Snooozie Posts: 3,447 Member
    Options
    Maria. use the search feature at the top of the recent discussion page and search terms like "cooking for one" "meals for one" "quick and easy" etc... you will find at least half a dozen threads on the cooking for one alone, with lots of tips and ideas... also check out skinnytaste website; lots of simple healthy and quick recipes for one or two.. hope this helps!
  • PRMinx
    PRMinx Posts: 4,585 Member
    Options
    Ok. I'm on my own. On Sundays I typically prep a bunch of stuff:

    Hard boil some eggs (enough for 2 a day)
    Grill 5 chicken breasts
    Blanch some veggies (broccoli, peppers)
    Wash a bunch of fruit
    Make some spaghetti sauce that I can freeze in individual portions
    Make a soup that I can freeze in individual portions
    Marinate some meat in individual portions, freeze

    I also buy every other week:

    Single serving yogurts (so they are easy to bring to work)
    Cheese
    Salad stuff
    Frozen shrimp
    Individually frozen fish (tilapia, cod, salmon)
    Dried fruit
    Peanut butter
    Sweet potatoes
    Veggies that are easy to sautee or roast quickly (asparagus, brussel sprouts, zucchini).

    For lunch, grilled chicken with salad
    For snacks, yogurt and dried fruit....or fruit....or fruit and peanut butter

    For dinner, I just take something out of the freezer in the morning and cook it when I get home. As long as everything is in a single portion, you are good to go.
  • sheldonklein
    sheldonklein Posts: 854 Member
    Options
    marialou891 wrote: »
    5th day tracking now. I have been eating frozen meals (low sodium ones) for lunch and dinner most days. It's working for me mostly except I can't help but notice so many people say they are terrible things to put in your body. I guess I'm looking for other ideas for meals I can prep for my busy weeks. I work afternoons and evening so breakfast I can do at home.

    Frozen meals are not "terrible things to put in your body." I rarely eat them because I like to cook and home made food tastes much better, but if they satisfy you and work calorically, don't listen to "so many people."
  • lynndot1
    lynndot1 Posts: 114 Member
    Options
    I bulk cook every Sunday. You don't have to do anything crazy or take too much time of your day depending on the recipe.

    My advice is get a crockpot if you don't have one, and find some easy crockpot recipes. Stews, soups, roasts, etc. When it's done at the end of the night divide it up into however many servings you want and freeze. I do this every Sunday. This week was oyster stew, last week was jambalaya - sometimes I just cook a bunch of chicken breasts and then throughout the week do something different with it. Shred it over salad, stir fry it with veggies, etc.

    There's two of us here so I cook 10 servings of lunch and then some kind of breakfast food that will last us throughout the week. Usually I make egg muffins (the base recipe I use is here http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/05/100-calorie-cheese-vegetable-and-egg-muffins.html but you can do whatever fillings you want) and then I might add oatmeal or a smoothie to my breakfasts if I want more than that.

    Dinner I just cook the same day, but if you want to cook a few dinners ahead, go for it!

    My routine is to pull down the next day's lunch from the freezer when I get today's out of the fridge. So for instance I just pulled down the baggie of oyster stew for tomorrow when I pulled today's out for lunch. Some things freeze better than others, so keep that in mind. If any dish needs a cheese dressing or something similar I would just omit that until you actually eat it. Potatoes don't always freeze well - mash them first if you do - and milk based sauces might separate a bit and look weird but will taste fine.

    You can also cut/wash some veggies to have in the fridge on hand so you don't pick convenient "bad" snack foods.

    For tracking, I just make a recipe on myfitnesspal for the bulk food and add it to my diary so I don't have to figure out calories the day of. My jambalaya last week was about 450 calories per serving. MFP makes it easy to add your ingredients in and calculate servings.
  • pplastics
    pplastics Posts: 135 Member
    Options
    Try this website, http://onceamonthmeals.com/, or do a web search for once a month cooking.
  • marialou891
    marialou891 Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    Snooozie wrote: »
    Maria. use the search feature at the top of the recent discussion page and search terms like "cooking for one" "meals for one" "quick and easy" etc... you will find at least half a dozen threads on the cooking for one alone, with lots of tips and ideas... also check out skinnytaste website; lots of simple healthy and quick recipes for one or two.. hope this helps!

    I will do this for sure thanks! I appreciate everyone's help so much. I'm so new to all this!
  • marialou891
    marialou891 Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    PRMinx wrote: »
    Ok. I'm on my own. On Sundays I typically prep a bunch of stuff:

    Hard boil some eggs (enough for 2 a day)
    Grill 5 chicken breasts
    Blanch some veggies (broccoli, peppers)
    Wash a bunch of fruit
    Make some spaghetti sauce that I can freeze in individual portions
    Make a soup that I can freeze in individual portions
    Marinate some meat in individual portions, freeze

    I also buy every other week:

    Single serving yogurts (so they are easy to bring to work)
    Cheese
    Salad stuff
    Frozen shrimp
    Individually frozen fish (tilapia, cod, salmon)
    Dried fruit
    Peanut butter
    Sweet potatoes
    Veggies that are easy to sautee or roast quickly (asparagus, brussel sprouts, zucchini).

    For lunch, grilled chicken with salad
    For snacks, yogurt and dried fruit....or fruit....or fruit and peanut butter

    For dinner, I just take something out of the freezer in the morning and cook it when I get home. As long as everything is in a single portion, you are good to go.

    Thanks so much!
  • marialou891
    marialou891 Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    lynndot1 wrote: »
    I bulk cook every Sunday. You don't have to do anything crazy or take too much time of your day depending on the recipe.

    My advice is get a crockpot if you don't have one, and find some easy crockpot recipes. Stews, soups, roasts, etc. When it's done at the end of the night divide it up into however many servings you want and freeze. I do this every Sunday. This week was oyster stew, last week was jambalaya - sometimes I just cook a bunch of chicken breasts and then throughout the week do something different with it. Shred it over salad, stir fry it with veggies, etc.

    There's two of us here so I cook 10 servings of lunch and then some kind of breakfast food that will last us throughout the week. Usually I make egg muffins (the base recipe I use is here http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/05/100-calorie-cheese-vegetable-and-egg-muffins.html but you can do whatever fillings you want) and then I might add oatmeal or a smoothie to my breakfasts if I want more than that.

    Dinner I just cook the same day, but if you want to cook a few dinners ahead, go for it!

    My routine is to pull down the next day's lunch from the freezer when I get today's out of the fridge. So for instance I just pulled down the baggie of oyster stew for tomorrow when I pulled today's out for lunch. Some things freeze better than others, so keep that in mind. If any dish needs a cheese dressing or something similar I would just omit that until you actually eat it. Potatoes don't always freeze well - mash them first if you do - and milk based sauces might separate a bit and look weird but will taste fine.

    You can also cut/wash some veggies to have in the fridge on hand so you don't pick convenient "bad" snack foods.

    For tracking, I just make a recipe on myfitnesspal for the bulk food and add it to my diary so I don't have to figure out calories the day of. My jambalaya last week was about 450 calories per serving. MFP makes it easy to add your ingredients in and calculate servings.

    Thank you! :-) much appreciated.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    Options
    A baked potato is one of the easiest things to fix. You wash it. Prick it. And leave it in the oven for 40 to 60 minutes and it's done. Frozen vegetables, you pull them out of the freezer, dump them in a pan with water for a few minutes until the water boils and they're done. Fish fillets, you thaw them in the microwave for a few seconds, put them in a pan and cook them on both sides. Steak, you sear on both sides and put it in the oven for 15-20 minutes. And most of it you can do while you're doing something else. You can throw some rice in a pan with some water and chicken breasts (seasoned to taste), put it in the oven for long enough to cook the chicken and the rice will be done as well.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    Options
    Bulk cooking (chilli, spaghetti, soups, casseroles, etc..) I cook for two every Sunday afternoon for the entire week. Use the recipes and make my own entries too.

    It is cheaper and you can add things to it if you want. Easy logging once you in put the recipe.
  • Snooozie
    Snooozie Posts: 3,447 Member
    edited January 2015
    Options
    p.s. on the main newsfeed page.. on the right hand side... is a link to the "hello healthy" blog on MFP here..there's different categories on the blog (eat, move, live, etc) but in the eat section there's a lot of recipes there that can be easily converted to one or two portions, and you can add the recipe to your food diary with just a click of a button as well (I made the balsamic pork chops the other day for the first time and halved the recipe as I was only using two piggy chops lol) here's the link in case you can't find it... i remember when i first started being a little overwhelmed trying to find my way around :Dhttp://blog.myfitnesspal.com/.
  • getstrongkaylen
    getstrongkaylen Posts: 137 Member
    Options
    literally the best place to find meals that you can make ahead of time in pinterest! i go there ALL THE TIME!(:
  • oncem0re
    oncem0re Posts: 213 Member
    Options
    I had the same problem, then I started my weekly planning and I actually cook them every morning when I wake up or the night before. Here's what mine looks like - sorry this is not SUPER healthy I have 2 kids that are a bit picky eaters, so we kinda work around them and just eat in proportion on those days that I HAVE TO HAVE Spaghetti in our week meal! :)
  • oncem0re
    oncem0re Posts: 213 Member
    Options
    I can't post the picture! oh well maybe later!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,741 Member
    Options
    For awhile when I first started MFP, I was solo Monday through Thursday, although it was kind of the reverse (worked 8-5) and I was able to cook dinners at home.

    Not everyone can stand eating the same stuff over & over, but I am that type of person who really doesn't mind as long as it's not every single day.

    Most weeks I did some version of the following...

    French toast w/ fruit and veggie bacon

    2-egg omelets of all types (my favorite being spinach & feta) often w/ toast or English muffin

    tuna salad sandwich or tuna on a salad, lots of extra veggies like baby carrots & sugar snap peas, and then a small "treat" like an ice cream bar

    nachos with sliced avocado & pico de gallo (sparingly used chips & cheese, piled on veggies)

    brown rice, veg (usually broccoli or asparagus) & salmon fillets (frozen ones thawed the night before, then seasoned & broiled in the oven for just a few minutes)

    burrito bowl - some combination of rice, beans (cooked on the weekend usually), chicken or shrimp, shredded lettuce, sautéed veggies, salsa & either sour cream or Greek yogurt

    For nights when I may have overindulged at lunch (like a workplace lunch out), I had my favorite go-to as well. Mushrooms, onions & bell pepper sliced thin & sautéed in a little olive oil or grapeseed oil, topped with Sriracha and a little bit of mozzarella. Super low calorie but much more filling than half a sandwich in my opinion.

    Hope this helps...I see you have gotten many great ideas from others but this was just the easy quick stuff I counted on.

Categories