branchdavidian - fridge + microwave at work are needed. cook your meats/egg/oats sunday and tupperware them in said fridge for the week. Freshies like greens/fruit/nuts/dairy should fill the rest of the fridge. Get a digi and weigh out your prot/carb/fat as needed per meal. I can usually plate stuff in about 5 mins, which keeps bossman happy for 'lunch' every 2-3 hrs... Eat clean 90/10 and stick to water. I personally like the oats & broccoli (low oxalate veggie) for main carb source.
I like to do meal prep for a few days at a time; I work 12-14 hours shifts at a hospital 3 or 4 days a week, and if possible I like to have breakfast and lunch ready to go in advance of each shift (no time to cook on work days, and i don't like the cafeteria food at the hospital).
I have the most double with making food I can keep eating for a few days at a time without getting tired of it, so I like to only go 2-3 days in advance and focus the prep on more intensive "ingredients" that I can use for a couple of easier to make things, like cooking up a bunch of meat (bacon, pork roast, piles of ground turkey sausage, hard-billing a dozen eggs, etc) and garnishes (dicing up a bunch of cilantros, green onions, etc etc) so I can throw it in to some easier to make meals and save time.
I also like to make larger portions of types of food that improves when it sits for a day; like some stews, curries, italian foods? The sort of stuff with a lot of different spices and flavors that (in my opinion) taste better the next day because the flavors have had a chance to blend better.
Like tonight, we made a large pot of taco stew (my wife has a really delicious recipe she found) and some nasi goreng, which is indonesian-style fried rice; I used eggs, bacon, pork roast, and peanuts mixed it with a medium amount of rice and seasoned with a small amount of soy sauce and then a bunch of chili sauce, garlic, black pepper, paprika, ginger, and olive oil, and when I eat it I'm going to have a bunch of cut up cherry tomatoes mixed it so it has a nice contrast with the cool, fresh, crisp flavor/texture of the tomatoes with the rich, savory, spicy, warmth of the rice and meats.
I have enough of each for a couple days, so my wife and daughter and I had a nice dinner and will be set for breakfast and lunch for the next few days (nasi goreng is a breakfast food, and the way I make it theres tons of protein and fat, so its a nice meal to have to support lifting/training).
I made extra bacon, too, so I have that waiting in reserve to use for wraps or sandwiches if we want.
We can usually manage to cook a nice dinner most nights, but the meal prep on weekend days or off days is really helpful for having good, nourishing, satisfying food for breakfast/lunch.
I am super impressed at the guy talking about having his fridge stocked at work, thats hardcore and sounds delicious and effective. I agree too that doing some basic meal planning coupled with some low-maintenance cardio a few times a week is generally enough to prevent middle-aged fatness, and for me at least it saves a TON of money; if I have some meat or eggs, rice, and garnishes ready to go I can have some really good rice and beans with fresh veggies/cilantro/green onions on top and some sort of savory meat or eggs on the side ready in about 5 minutes, and we'll all eat a reasonably healthful and tasty meal for like a dollar a piece, lol.
I used to do that shit. I'd try to eat 3500 calories a day. I got the results I wanted but it was ruining my life. Counting clean calories is the biggest pain in the ass. Now I just make extra dinner and take left over the next day for lunch.
Crock pot cooking saved me a lot of money. I don't eat out at all anymore. Eggs are quick in the morning so that's not a problem. I will make something low carb in the crock pot and grill a pack of chicken breast...that's all I need for the week
When I'm dieting I do but I keep it simple. I go to the store and buy chicken, beef, shrimp, potatoes, rice and vegetables. I would spend Sunday cooking, I would put meals in Tupperware. I split everything each container in 3rds, protein, carb and green vegetable. I eat a lot of the same foods during the week but it works for me.
