How to Meal Prep for a Healthy Week

I have partnered with Dannon^® Light & Fit^® to help promote their Show Us Your Meal Prep Challenge. I have been compensated for my time commitment. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments.

I'm really excited to share my first solo blogger sponsorship.

Dannon Light & Fit reached out to me a few weeks ago, and I'm so excited to be a part of this campaign that aligns so tightly with my food philosophy that it's insane! Plus, I've been asked to share how I incorporate a staple in my house: yogurt. Needless to say, it was a 'duh' moment for me on all levels.

Thanks again Dannon^® for valuing my message & platform, I'm totally humbled and thrilled to participate!

now, let's get to the good stuff...

There are a few tips I share with all my clients, one of them is to incorporate meal planning & prep into their lives. Meal prep, for example is taking a bit of time to prepare meals or components of meals ahead of time. The major benefit to meal prepping, and the reason why I ALWAYS recommend it, is because taking that time sets you up for better choices and less food waste during the week. That means more delicious nourishing foods, more time to spend on activities and tasks you need to do & enjoy to do, and more $$$$ in your wallet. I mean, c'mon!

I live a complex busy life, as do all my clients. Eating nourishing & delicious food is often something that goes by the wayside... yet it's something nearly everyone I work with really values. Again, meal prep is the bridge between that value and incorporating nourishing, delicious food into your life. Meal prep allows me to eat better during the week, cut way down on those 'standing in front of the fridge scratching my head' moments that lead to a giant bowl of cereal, ice cream, or take-out. Turn that head scratching moment into an excited grab for something delicious, that's already ready or nearly ready to devour.

On top of recommending meal prepping, I recommend EASY meal prep. Ain't no time for hours to be spent planning and prepping food that exhausts you and sours the benefits of meal prep. Let's make meal prep easy and enjoyable enough. That's the point both Light & Fit^® I are trying to make, eating well and living a healthy life needs to be enjoyable, simple, and individualized. Because, well how likely are you to follow any beneficial health habits if they're hard, too time consuming, or worse- miserable. Not likely, and that's ok! Let's find a better way. Let's find ways to fit healthier choices into your lifestyle, and do what works for you. Not for that really popular health guru, not for your best friend, not for me, but for you. That's when habits stick, when it works for you & allows you to spend time and energy on what you love to do.

Here are a couple meal prep tactics I follow:

• Double up on recipe size. You're making it already, might as well leave room for leftovers.
• Double-duty meals. Essentially you make one protein or a part of a meal that can be used in 2+ different dishes. It's like getting exciting & new leftovers (here are a bunch of double duty recipes on Pinterest).
• Prep ahead veggies & grains. I can chop a bunch (or buy pre-chopped) of different veggies to throw in a quick salad or in any other dish. Grains are also easy to pre-prep because you can cook them plain, then add different toppings or spices to them for different meals (but I wouldn't recommend pre-cooking pasta that you'll eat hot, that's just nasty).

Dannon^® Light & Fit^® Greek nonfat yogurt is a great breakfast addition, snack, or dessert. It’s easy, quick, and delicious while being packed with a protein punch. I also love Dannon^® Light & Fit^® nonfat yogurt as a light and super flavorful snack. How many times do you find yourself getting hungry just 2 or so hours before you're planning on eating? You don't want to eat a big snack or take any time prepping, but you're getting hungry. Or you're planning on hitting the gym and can't eat anything heavy before you exercise. This happened to me just yesterday. I ate a Light & Fit^® blueberry nonfat yogurt, and it was tasty, hit the spot, and didn't overfill me. 

So, here's a glimpse into what I'm eating tomorrow. I plan all 3 meals, and for the sake of a pretty photo, I made my dinner salad, which I don't usually do beforehand. 

• Breakfast: (I eat breakfast at work) cherry flavored Dannon^® Light & Fit^® nonfat yogurt + seasonal fruit + pistachio nuts to add a bit of fiber and healthy fat

• Lunch: my favorite Spanish Tortilla de Patata on sourdough bread (link to recipe). 

• Dinner: quinoa and veggie salad with a tangy hummus dressing and whole wheat pita. 

• Snacks: extra Dannon^® Light & Fit^® Greek nonfat yogurt. I packed 2 sandwiches because neither are really big, so I've got an extra if I get hungry. I always try to overpack (or at least keep) protein packed snacks for when I get hungry between meals

• not pictured: something chocolatey for dessert. I don't intentionally plan dessert into my day, but I will have something if I want to, which almost always happens. I've been loving chocolate + peanut butter anything lately. 

Enough on meal prepping, here's how you can incorporate Dannon^® Light & Fit^® into your meal prep.

It's just one of those ways you can make planning & prepping your meals super easy & quick. You can literally just grab it & go. Nothing is more simple than that!

Are you incorporating yogurt, such as Dannon Light & Fit into your daily eats? I highly recommend it. I'm a huge dairy fan, because: carbs + protein + calcium (for me and my 80-year-old bones, that's no joke!) + deliciousness... and when we're talking yogurt, you get what I mentioned + good cultures (or good bacteria)  to help balance the diversity of bacteria in your gut . Long story short, yogurt is bomb, it has so many nourishing components to it. BTW: I most often go for the Greek yogurt varieties. I love the extra creaminess of Greek yogurt (which is normal yogurt that's been strained, leaving it thicker and more full of protein), and the extra protein. Protein is one of the most satiating nutrients and it keeps me fuller longer. See why I'm such a huge dairy fan?

The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend increasing intake of nutrient-dense foods, such as fat-free or low-fat dairy products, like yogurt. Yogurt is nutrient-dense and many yogurts are usually a good source of protein, calcium and vitamin D.

Healthy choices don't have to be boring. With a balanced variety of delicious choices, Dannon^® Light & Fit^® has better for you options that that also fit your active lifestyle and fit within the most recently released Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Incorporating Dannon^® Light & Fit^® into your nutrient dense food choices is a great way to balance health and enjoyment in what you're eating.

Check out & follow Dannon Light & Fit on Instagram for more ways to include delicious & nutritious yogurt into your life.

• How do you incorporate yogurt into your day?
• Have you tried Dannon Light & Fit varieties? Which is your fave? (I'm currently drooling over cherry. All things cherry!)