Decision Fatigue and Food Prep, how are they related?

I wrote a post about Food Prepping, but I only get so many characters in an Instagram post, and I feel that I could do it more justice! Food Prepping is important if you want to be successful with meeting your goals, whether that's fat loss, maintenance or gaining muscle. We all experience decision fatigue at some point in the day or week, and having your food ready to go is just one less thing you have to decide on. With having meals already prepped, you won't be tempted to just eat out, or grab fast food on the way home, or eat the bag of potato chips while you're figuring out what to eat (we've all been there!).

We face hundreds of choices everyday — from what to eat for lunch, to more complicated decisions that involve our emotional, financial, and physical well-being.

Regardless of how strong you are, your ability to make the best choices can eventually run out due to decision fatigue. That’s the official term for that feeling when you’re overly stressed by the endless amount of decisions you’ve had to make throughout the day. Learning how to manage your decision-making can help you avoid feeling drained and conserve your mental energy. Here’s what you should know. Coined by social psychologist Roy F. Baumeister, decision fatigue is the emotional and mental strain resulting from a burden of choices.

“When humans are overstressed, we become hasty or shut down altogether, and that stress plays a huge role in our behaviors,” says Tonya Hansel, PhD, director of the Doctorate of Social Work at Tulane University.

In other words, when your mental energy begins running low, you’re less able to override basic desires and more likely to go for whatever’s easiest. Few things are as stressful as constantly thinking about what to eat every day. This is partly due to the sheer number of decisions involved (thanks, internet).

For example, maybe you scroll through dozens of recipes, waiting for one to stand out. Except… they all look good. Overwhelmed, you randomly select one without taking a close look at what’s involved.

After making your list, you head to the grocery store, only to stare down 20 or more options for milk alone. Reduce decision drain by planning ahead and taking relatively minor decisions out of the equation. For example, take your lunch to work to avoid having to decide which restaurant to order from. Or lay out your clothes for work the night before.

You get home and realize you won’t have time to get through that recipe until this weekend. And that milk you bought? It’s not the kind the recipe called for. Set up your day so that you have to make the fewest decisions possible.

This means having strict and clear rules about certain things, such as:

• when you’ll go to sleep

• specific days you’ll hit the gym

• going grocery shopping

• eating the food you prepped

Getting your food ready for the week does not need to take 3+ hours. Pending how much you're making, you can get it done in 1-2 hours. Some like to cook dinners fresh each night and others already have it batch prepped and simply throw it on a plate and heat it up. I'm going to outline the basics (batch/bulk prepping). The benefit of batch prepping is that you will have a variety of protein/carbs/fats/veggies cooked and all you have to do is mix and match and enjoy!

Hit the grocery store and buy 2-3 protein options, carbs, fats and veggies.

Some protein examples: Chicken Breast, Chicken Thighs, Bacon, Whole Eggs, Wild Caught Salmon, Shrimp, Grass Fed Beef, Ground Turkey, Deli Meat, Turkey Sausage, Egg Whites, Bison...

Some carb examples: Rice, Sweet Potatoes, Red Potatoes, Bread, Waffles, Pasta, Granola, Quinoa, Rice Cakes, Oatmeal, Jam/Jelly, Tortillas, Fruit, Cereal...

Some fat examples: Avocados, Guac, Olive/Coconut Oil, Chia Seeds, Flax Seeds, Nut Butters, Cashews, Dressings, Coconut/Almond Milk, Almonds...

Some veggie examples: Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Zucchini, Squash, Spinach, Kale, Tomatoes, Carrots, Cucumbers, Asparagus, Bell Peppers, Snow Peas, Mushrooms, Cauliflower, Green Beans and Cabbage.

Cook it! For veggies, you can eat them raw, sauté them, grill them or roast at 415 for 20 min. For protein, you can grill, sauté, bake, crockpot or air fry. For carbs, you can pre-make things like potatoes and rice or make them daily while you're preparing your meal.

One simple meal I like to make often is Fajita Bowls. We can mix and match them to what we want in them, and they're really easy to prep for the week. I cook a batch of brown rice, put it in a container and have that ready to go in the fridge. I use a frozen bag of peppers and onions and sauté them with fajita seasoning. I use a can of refried beans or black beans. If you want to add meat to it, throw some chicken into the crockpot with some fajita seasoning and then shred it so it's ready to mix with your fajita bowl. You could make all of these things separately and eat it differently all week. Have a fajita bowl, put it in a taco, make burritos, mix it with eggs for breakfast....the possibilities are endless! Don't forget to mix it up with toppings! Guac, avocado, pico de gallo, limes, salsa, cheese...

You could do this with other bases and veggies too! Something like the Buddha bowls in the newsletter last week. Cook quinoa and roast a bunch of veggies. Then just mix and match however you want to eat it! Add some hummus, add some beans...throw it in a wrap or eat it in a bowl! Lastly (I know there was a LOT of words here, so hopefully you stayed with me to this point!). I suggest keeping some quick foods on hand. Here are some of my go-to's: -Single Serving Hummus packs and baby carrots (you can grab these and go, no cutting/measuring needed) -Single Serving Nut packs (great source of healthy fat, can grab and go) -Beef Jerky (great source of protein and easy to eat on the go, or while making dinner...) -Apples/Bananas/Oranges (another healthy and convenient on the go snack) -Hard Boiled Eggs (takes minimal prep time, but you can make a whole bunch for the week) -Protein Bars/Shakes (I always have a bar in my bag in case I'm out and start getting hangry) I know this was a lot of into, but I hope this was helpful to understand why preparing is so important for success!