If you're looking for healthy, easy meal prep ideas that don't compromise on taste or flavour, then you're in the right little corner of the internet. Welcome, fellow healthy foodies!
Hello and welcome!
My name is Taylor Stinson and I'm The Girl on Bloor! I create healthy, easy meal prep recipes that are perfect for busy people.
I know you're probably wondering: what's with the name? Well, Bloor Street is one of the main streets in downtown Toronto, and I've lived on this street on and off for the past several years. I love the area so much and really identify as a busy city girl!
My blog aims to help other super busy people like me eat more wholesome, homemade foods on-the-go, and a large part of that is meal prepping! I've lost 25lbs thanks to meal prep and it's this lifestyle that I credit with helping me to stay fit and healthy – keep reading below for more on my story and how to use my blog to its full potential.
Whether you're cooking for just yourself, or you're cooking for your family, this Start Here page will help you navigate the blog and how you can best use all the info and articles to help with your fitness and diet goals.
I've got everything from recipes to meal prep resources to help you eat healthier and plan ahead so you can reduce stress, save time and money, and just be more efficient in the kitchen in general.
If you'd like to contact me, hit up my contact page!
What is meal prep?
Whenever you prepare a meal or ingredients for a meal or snack in advance, you are meal prepping!
I love meal prep because:
- it saves you time
- it saves you money
- it reduces stress
- helps you get organized
- keeps you on your toes and trying new recipes
Now I know what you're thinking: “But Taylor, I don't want to eat the same thing every week!”
Well you don't have to!
Meal prep is all about making your life EASIER. Whether that's cooking up some baked chicken breast at the beginning of the week to use for fresh salads, tacos and pita pizzas, or you're making a full-blown casserole to pack up for the week, meal prep is all about changing things up and cutting back on the time you spend in the kitchen.
How to get started with meal prep
This is probably one of the toughest questions, and all I can say is that you have to get honest with yourself about WHY you even want to meal prep!
My 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge helps to address this more in full (sign up using the form below), but you could start just by asking yourself which meal you struggle with most.
- Is it eating a good breakfast in the morning? (I've got some breakfast ideas here)
- Is it packing your work week lunches? (check out my healthy lunches here)
- Is it making a healthy dinner after work? (I've got some great dinner ideas here)
- Or is it finding high-protein, healthy snacks to eat? (I've got healthy snacks for you too!)
Whatever the case may be, get clear about why you want to meal prep and then start with making just a couple of recipes per week until you get in the habit of it.
If you'd like to learn more about meal prep step-by-step, make sure to sign up for my 5-day Meal Prep Challenge below! I also list out my meal prep routine here too!
And make sure to check out my post on meal prep containers if you're looking for the safest ways to store your food.
Why should I meal plan?
In my opinion, the key to eating right and getting everything on your lengthy to-do list done is definitely all in how you shape your menu for the week.
That's where meal planning comes in (peep my meal planning routine here)
You'll want to outline what you're going to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner each week, preferably at the start of the week before you do your groceries. Once you identify your social gatherings and other activities, you can fill in what you're going to make and eat and when.
Let's say you've got a super busy week. Well, you can make one or two recipes for work week lunches, whip up a batch of egg bites for your morning breakfast, and then make dinner on the nights you aren't busy while relying on the dinner leftovers for other nights during the week. That's just an example of meal planning.
If you want to learn more about meal planning I walk you through my step-by-step process in my free 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge. You'll receive 5 days of helpful meal prep emails filled with my process and free printable work sheets to put it all together. Plus, you'll get access to my meal prep Facebook group as well!
How do I use your website?
You should use my website to learn more about:
- Meal prep
- Eating healthy on a budget
- Meal planning
- How to cook in general
The “Meal Prep Resources” section is a great place to start if you're new to meal prepping and want to learn more. Under the “Tips & Tricks” page, you will find helpful resource articles and recipe round ups that will get you on the fast track to meal prepping quickly and efficiently while saving money doing it!
What types of recipes do you have?
Whether you're new to cooking or know your way around the kitchen, you'll likely find a whole bunch of recipes you like! I try to use ingredients that are familiar and can be purchased from your local grocery store,
You'll find a lot of the following types of recipes on my blog:
- One pot meals
- Low-calorie snacks
- Mason jar salads
- Freezer-friendly food
- Meal prep bowls
- Grab-and-go breakfasts
- 30-minute dinners
All of my recipes (from 2017 onward) include full nutritional information and videos so that you can see step-by-step how I make the recipes. Hopefully they'll help you out if you feel overwhelmed!
Do you have recipes that are vegan, Whole 30, gluten-free, etc?
You can navigate the menu at the top of my website to see all the delicious options, and you can organize all recipes according to type (slow cooker, gluten-free, etc) or by course (breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc).
This way you have the option to sort through my existing recipes to see the options that are a good fit with your diet!
My background and meal prep story
I initially started The Girl on Bloor as a way to capture some of the meals I was making as a full-time graduate student and freelance writer.
For 7 years I balanced full-time school, part-time work, volunteering and extra-curricular activities. I knew how to eat healthy, but I found it so difficult to make single servings for myself, or use leftovers in creative ways, or plan out a whole week's worth of meals around my weird schedule.
Like lots of other university students, I gained the Freshman 15 my first couple years away from home. Actually, it was probably closer to a Freshman 25 lol!
Downtown Toronto is filled with all kinds of crazy amazing food, so I was like a kid in a candy store, eating my way through the city and I could have cared less about what I was putting in my body.
For so many years in my early twenties, I struggled with yo-yo dieting because I had trouble with meal planning. 🙁
I would care less what I was eating over the school year, then I would start my full time job in the summer and realize how much weight I'd put on over the school year and restrict myself to a lifestyle that was unsustainable in the long run: counting calories and feeling so guilty if I had to skip a workout. Then it was back to school and …well, rinse and repeat as they say.
I knew there had to be a better way to focus on my overall health and well-being while controlling my weight in a mentally and physically healthy way. Turns out the problem could be solved with the thing I love most in the world: FOOD!
Since losing over 25lbs and recommitting to my personal fitness, I've found I have so much more energy to do all the things I love, and meal prep has been a huge part of that.
Through a little bit of adventurous meal prep and menu planning, and some delicious food, I've been able to finally achieve and maintain a healthy body weight, and you can too!
Do I need to be on a diet to meal prep?
Not at all! Even though I found I lost weight as a result of eating healthy and working out more, I never felt as though I had to restrict what I was eating.
I just had to plan a little bit better!
Hopefully between the resource articles I have on the site along with the healthy recipes, you'll be on your way to meal prepping and eating better in no time.
And if you're still stuck, the 5-Day Meal Prep Challenge will get you started on the right foot! When you sign up, you'll get access to 5 days' worth of emails filled with meal prep tips and tricks, along with free printable PDF meal planners, shopping lists, cheat sheets and more! Oh, and did I mention that you'll get access to a free Facebook meal prep group too?!
Sign up below, you've got nothing to lose!
My all-time favorite recipes from the blog
So with all the recipes I create, which are my absolute favorite?
Here they are listed below:
- Coconut Mango Chicken Meal Prep Bowls
- Tahini Coconut Energy Bites
- Sashimi Tuna Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing
- Chicken Spring Roll Jars
- Fajita Stuffed Chicken
The takeaway
When you have a busy lifestyle, it can be hard to commit to whatever diet or food fad is out there, so I say it's time to forget about the complications of cooking.
We're only human, and food should be about enjoyment and nourishing your body so you can feel and look your best – and I find that that's really only possible when you're eating delicious food you love. Hopefully I can help out a bit with the healthy meal prepping part 😉
Rather than restrict ourselves, I think it's time for all of us to just get back in the kitchen, and start cooking again! Find your groove and your style, what you like and dislike.
Be adventurous, or be simple.
But most of all, be authentic to what your own food philosophy is and what your time constraints are.
I'll be along for the ride! ❤