You know the drill: you wake up, shower, rush to the Tube and then you’re in the office for eight hours. Around 11am, you remember that, once again, you’ve got to buy lunch. Your midday break is spent queuing in the local falafel house queue to spend the best part of £20. If only you’d had the time to make lunch. If only you’d had some of last night’s dinner leftover.

Between the cost of living crisis and imminent cold season, it’s never paid more to be organised. Meal prepping is a super-simple way of saving money, getting enough nutrients and – in the long run – saving time. But if you’re forever rushing with no spare pockets for cooking, how can you hope to put together a bunch of meals?

It’s understandable if you’re thinking that meal prep just sounds like another thing to add to your to-do list. Meal preppers often get a bad rap; they’re those organised, dedicated people who don’t mind eating five-day-old steamed broccoli out of their plastic container. But that doesn’t have to be your experience.

“All meal prepping means is that you get your food ready upfront, rather than scrabbling around for whatever happens to be in the fridge when you get home from a busy day,” says Emma Crick, UN1T head coach and sports nutritionist. “It’s certainly not just about dry chicken breasts and rice packed into a plastic box!”

Like with everything, prepping ahead has some big benefits when it comes to supporting your training and your busy lifestyle. 

“The best thing about meal prep is that you never need to go hungry if you come in late or something unexpected crops up that means you don’t have time to cook,” says Crick. “It’s also easier to make sure you’re getting all the nutrients you need across your week.”

Then there’s the money-saving element: there’s nothing more depressing than seeing how much money you’ve blown on miserable lunches at the end of the month.

Of course, there’s a spend-to-accumulate system going on here. You do initially need to spend a little more time shopping and cooking, but if you stick to your shopping list, it’ll actually save you time and money in the long run. Make sure you’ve got storage room too, says Crick, as “you will also end up with an extensive container collection (and inevitably lose half the lids”. And, of course, you need fridge or freezer space.

Meal prep can be smart and delicious if you make it work for you. Firstly, you need to think about the effort-to-pay-off ratio. No one is expecting you to prep a complicated risotto or stand over the stove waiting for a stock to come together. Instead, meal prep should be about streamlining your dishes so you can have easily accessible food that you enjoy eating.

It can be as simple as double or tripling up the recipe you already had at hand. Making a chilli, a soup or even a stir fry? Always make more than you need.

Alternatively, you can spend five minutes chopping some vegetables for the week and popping them in the oven while you get on with the rest of your day. Then, when you come to throw a wrap together at lunchtime, you’ll have some pre-prepared veggies to stuff it with, upping the nutrient level and reducing the time of the dish.

“Grilling, oven-cooking or barbecuing meats is ideal because you can cook loads with very minimal effort. And prepping plenty of starchy carbs such as rice and pasta is also super easy to do, and will ensure you keep your energy topped up across your week,” says Crick. 

Not all dishes work, however. Veggie stews are great – in fact, they actually get better after a few days of resting. But salads run the risk of going soggy, so it’s best to make those on the day or the night before. You can, however, prep any salad dressings ahead and batch cook the carbs you want to have alongside any fresh veg. Get your couscous, rice or barley boiled ahead of time. Think about creating a tray of date bombs and energy balls for mid-afternoon pick-me-ups. 

Of course, you can meal prep any meal. Batch cooking breakfasts can save loads of time; whip up a big container of overnight oats and simply dish out a serving every morning. Yoghurt barks, fruit salads and home made baked beans are also brilliant, nutritious options that can be made well ahead and keep in the fridge or freezer. 

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