As a strength coach and nutrition adviser the biggest
complaint I head from students is their ability to be consistent with their eating
habits. This is a key area that to get right consistently over a period of time
in order to see fantastic results.
Yes I understand that we all work a lot of hours and have
family commitments but I doubt that its impossible for someone to find a spare
45 minutes to prepare food if they also can somehow find time to watch their favourite
television show or spend an hour on Facebook.
Preparing multiple
meals in advance with just a bit of planning ahead allows you to have the meals
ready to eat. With a small bit of planning to figure out hitting your macro
nutrient targets which is easy to do with online tracking software you then
have a plan of attack in which to cook up the food that you need. Like anything
this takes practice and gets very easy over time. I recommend coming up with
four to five variations of batches and then simply rotating them. This covers
your bases in regards to getting a broad range of nutrients.
Here is how to put it all together-
Whether you choose salmon, chicken, beef or another meat I
find the best two ways to cook meat up in bulk is to either bake it or stir fry
it. The key to making meat taste good is not to overcook it and dry it out,
this is why I am not a fan of grilling lean meats.
The Stir fry simply chop the meat into small pieces so they
cook quickly and then use a wok with a teaspoon of coconut oil and whatever
herbs and spices you choose to flavour the meat. It should take not more than
5-10 minutes if you stir it vigorously to ensure even cooking. You can add a
bit of chopped onion here for extra flavour.
To bake meat or fish in bulk chop it into small pieces and
then place in a baking tray with added herbs and spices to your taste. Add a
very small amount of water in the bottom of the tray, this allows the meat to ‘steam’
and prevents sticking to the tray. Cover with silver foil and then bake for
around 15-20 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius until the meat is tender and cooked
through. For added tenderness place the meat in a pot and cover and leave for
another 20-30 minutes while you prepare your vegetables and other food. This
will serve to tenderise it further as it will ‘steam’.
To preserve the nutrients in your vegetables I recommend to either
steam or stir fry your vegetables. Cook them for the minimum time so that they
still have some ‘bite’ to them and are not soggy. I recommend to choose at
least three different vegetables and combine them so that you get a broad range
of nutrients. Some of my favourite options are - broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprout's, spinach, chard, kale, green beans, red peppers, tomatoes, green peas, carrots, beetroot, celery.
Having adequate fats in your eating crucial as they are used
everywhere in the body for processes such as hormone production and cell growth.
If you have used a lean source of protein above then you will need to add some
extra fats.
This can come from adding nuts to the side of your meal or
your could add extra virgin coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil or organic ghee
to your meal. Its good to vary your fat sources in order to get a broad range
of nutrients.
The amount of carbohydrate I recommend for you will be very
specific to you. The general rule is that the leaner you are the more
carbohydrates you can eat.
My preference for complex carbohydrate are from the highest
to the lowest fibre content- lentils,
beans, chick peas, butternut squash, turnip, sweet potato, potato, quinoa, millet and wild rice.
Its best to choose sources that are high in fibre as this
will lead to a more steady release in the body and negate and bit spikes in
blood sugar. This will serve to keep you feeling fuller for longer and lessen
the likelihood of cravings. I recommend to avoid pasta and other processed
sources of carbohydrate.
5, Combining the above
Once you have all of the above its simple a case of
combining them. You could keep it all in one large food container (BPA Free
please) or you could divide it into individual containers for each meal. Its
your choice, the main thing is to keep it cool to avoid food poisoning so either use a cool bag with ice packs or
keep them in the fridge.
Fermented foods for a healthy gut
I would further recommend to add to above a serving of Sauerkraut or Kimchee to each meal (mono sodium glutamate free) as these are foods which are high in 'good' bacteria which will help nourish your digestive tract and keep your gut healthy.
Batch Example
My protein goal is 250grams. I know that in a 100 grams of
most meats contains around 20-25 grams of protein. I decide I will prepare for
2 days so I bake 2000 grams of chicken breast. I use ‘Dunn’s River Jerk
Seasoning’ with the chicken as this doesn’t contain any added sugars and will
add a delicious flavour to the chicken breast. I will also add a bit of turmeric
as this enhances the flavour and has anti inflammatory benefits.
To this I decide that on day one I will add broccoli and
green peas and carrots. On the other day I will have green beans, red peppers
and tomatoes. I prepare 250 grams of each veg and steam them if needed.
The 750
grams of vegetables will ensure I have a high fibre intake, will keep me full
and also that I get a broad range of nutrients
The chicken breast is very low in fat so I add 100 grams of
cashew nuts to my meals this will give me around 48 grams of fats. On my other
day I add three table spoons of olive oil which will give me around 45 grams of
fat.
I have some allowance for carbohydrate so I add a tin of
chick peas (400g weight) to one batch and a tin of kidney beans to the other
batch which will add around 60-65 grams of carbohydrate.
Finally I combine all of the above and add extra fresh
garlic and ginger to the batches for extra taste and season with sea salt and
pepper.
So the two batches looks like this-
Day 1
1000 grams of chicken breast ‘flavoured jerk style’
250 grams of broccoli
250g grams of green peas
250 grams of carrots
100 grams of Cashew nuts
400 grams (1 tin) of chick peas
Day 2
1000 grams of chicken breast ‘flavoured jerk style’
250 grams of green beans
250g grams of red peppers
250 grams of tomatoes
45 ml grams of extra virgin olive oil
400 grams (1 tin) of kidney beans
Job done, I have just prepared food for 2 whole days and its
taken more no longer than 45 minutes. This can of course be expanded in the
quantities and you could prepare a week ahead if you choose. I have students
who do all of their cooking on Sundays and then freeze half of the batch cooked
food.
There is no excuse, start cooking
As you can see from the above the whole process is very
simple to follow however you have to choose to put in the effort. Making time
in the kitchen to nourish your body is a key component for both fat loss and
muscle gain.
Your results are always reflected by the choices that you
make. Learning to cook for yourself is a skill that is crucial to learn if you are to guarantee long term fat loss. Choose to invest the time and you will reap the rewards.
Good stuff here, thank you!
ReplyDelete~Sõl