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High-Protein Meal Prepping with a 1-2-3 Rotation

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This will outline a 5-day high-protein meal prep system that utilizes a 1-2-3 framework for daily variety to prevent fatigue. I'm not eating prepared meals on weekends, but it could be extended to 7 days.

The purpose of this is to take the thought out of eating and remove novelty without sacrificing nutrition. The 1-2-3 system keeps variety which is super helpful for me personally because I get bored and this tricks my brain a little into accepting the program. Sauces are a huge part of that too because theycan be varied and interesting.

I've got a full spice cabinet and that's a big help. There are no recipes below since this is a framework!

Everything is prepared with minimal added fats and oils. Yes, butter and olive oil are delicious, but absolutely blows out the calorie count and leaves me hungry. So we go heavy on the protein and light on the fat to keep the ratios in check and leave me feeling full and satisfied.

1-2-3 Framework

Each week you have 3 proteins, 3 starches, and 3 vegetables. For the 15 prepared meals you will vary the proteins, starches, and vegetables.

Example

Proteins:

  1. Chicken breast (marinaded)
  2. Ground Turkey (meatballs, taco meat, etc)
  3. Fish (salmon, cod, etc airfried)

Starches:

  1. Rice
  2. Yams
  3. Quinoa

Vegetables:

  1. Peas
  2. Broccoli
  3. Zucchini

[1,2,3] [2,3,1] [3,1,2]

Three plates, three different combos!

Basic Plan

Note that this is maximizing protein and not necessarily focused on caloric deficit for weight loss. You could eliminate a meal or adjust quantities to fit your needs.

In my planning each meal has 6-8 ounces of protein, 5 ounces of starches, and a cup of vegetables.

Macro Breakdown

Here's the rough daily macro split with this setup:

Total daily calories land around 2700-2900 depending on protein sources and sauce choices. Adjust portions to hit your targets.

Each prepped meal hits roughly:

Scaling

This system scales cleanly for different needs:

For lower calories (1800-2200):

For higher calories (3000+):

For multiple people:

Equipment

I wanted to avoid plastic for storing and reheating, and I also want my storage containers to have separate sections so that the foods aren't touching and getting fuckin gross. They also need to be microwave safe.

PrepNaturals 3 section 34oz containers are perfect for this. You'll need 15 of them for 1 person to prepare 15 meals for monday through friday.

For the overnight oats I got 16oz wide mouth mason jars and ordered these plastic mason jar lids for them.

For preparing smoothies I got these OXO Good Grips Silicone Reusable Bags that are perfect and have flat bottoms so they don't roll around and are east to fill.

Chalk markers are great for labeling the containers and are easy to remove.

A rice cooker is a must.

Logistics

Saturday is shopping. I buy the dry goods and other stuff in bulk so week to week it is proteins, starches, almond milk and fruit.

Sunday is prep day, and it takes about 2-3 hours total. Here's the workflow:

  1. Start rice/quinoa in rice cooker first (45 mins)

  2. Prep proteins while that's going:

    • Season/marinade all proteins (marinade the day before!)
    • Get proteins in oven/air fryer (30-45 mins)
    • Yams go in at the same time if using

  3. While proteins cook:

    • Chop all vegetables (I use frozen)
    • Make sauces for the week
    • Prep overnight oats
    • Pack smoothie bags

  4. Final assembly:

    • Everything must cool completely (30-45 mins)
    • Pack containers using the 1-2-3 rotation
    • Label containers with contents and day to be eaten
    • Store sauces separately

I put the Thursday and Friday meals in the deep freezer and pull them out on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively to thaw. This helps with freshness and food safety.

Pro tip: Clean as you go. Nothing worse than finishing meal prep and facing a mountain of dishes.

Meal Timing

Timing matters if you're training. Here's what works for me:

I'm strict about this and allow a single free-agent piece of fruit as a snack if I want it.

Sauce System

Keep it simple with 2-3 sauces per week. Store them separately in small containers. Some reliable options:

There are so many combinations of sauces, just remember that oil based sauces add a lot of calories so adjust accordingly.

Flavor tips

For rice and quinoa cook it in chicken stock instead of water.

Salt.

Emergency Backup

Shit happens. Keep these ready:

Numbers

Weekly shopping runs about:

This works out to roughly $5-7 per meal which beats the hell out of eating out.