Affordable Meal Prep: Budget-Friendly Protein Sources for Fitness Goals (Full Transcript)

Speaker 1: When people think of eating healthy and meal prep, generally they think it's expensive. Is this because the healthy meals at a restaurant are way more expensive than the ones that aren't good for you? Or is it because we see other influences on social media using expensive items like salmon, quinoa, asparagus to prep their meals? Well, I'm going to show you today that that is a misconception and that meal prep is not expensive. In the recent TikTok that we did about prepping meals, a lot of people came back with the response that it's expensive. So I'm going to show you that that is a misconception. So here's how to meal prep as a student or a broke adult. So if you want to see the results in the gym, work on your diet. Diet is essential to achieving your fitness goals. Meal prepping is a way to ensure that you follow an appropriate diet because if your meals are prepped and in the containers and ready to be consumed, it's more likely you're going to follow some sort of structured diet plan. And just because you're on a diet and you're following a meal plan doesn't mean your meals have to be bland and tasteless. So calculate your macros, find what works for you and adapt these meals to your macros. So let's head over to the kitchen and get into it. I've compiled some of the best budget-friendly protein sources I could find. Lentils. My vegan sister would appreciate these. Lentils are seriously underrated. These grains are full of protein. Lentils are super cheap at almost under $1 a bag. You don't want to eat these all day, so I'd recommend only having them for one meal. Chicken breast. The holy grail. Bodybuilders love chicken breast. It's affordable, a solid source of protein and low in fat. Eggs. These have a great amino acid profile. They're also super cheap. Eggs are a must for anyone in fitness or bodybuilding. And lastly, whey protein. The price of whey protein may be a little bit overwhelming if you're looking at the cost per tub, but at the cost per serving, it actually makes it super affordable. So for our first meal, we're going to do a tasty breakfast shake. This shouldn't take more than five minutes to make. Throw the ingredients in a blender and you're ready to go. Meal two is our lentil meal. I like to cook this as close to mince as possible. So start off with rinsing your lentils and put them in a pot with boiling water. Let's make a sauce for that. So we're going to chop up some tomatoes, add that to the blender, throw in some spices, give it a good blend. So once those lentils are close to finished, add the sauce, add some green beans, and let it cook to finish. Meal three is our chicken potato and mixed veg. So I like to cut the chicken into little cubelets. That makes it a little bit more juicy and easier to eat. Personally, I like to add some garlic and paprika, but if you want, try some turmeric. It's a nice natural anti-inflammatory. For your potatoes, you can either steam them or boil them, whichever is more convenient for you. Same thing goes for our carrots and broccoli. And for our last meal, meal four, we're going to do a nice egg and rice stir fry. So start off by cooking those eggs in a pan, and then add into the mix some pre-boiled rice and cabbage. Add some seasoning of your choice. I like to keep it low-calorie, so I went with some soy sauce for this one. So now there's no excuses, and nothing should stop you from reaching your fitness goals. Pretty much for the price of one Big Mac meal, you can have four meals. So if you decide to make any of these meals, or even a variation of the same, tag me on Instagram and let's try and inspire other people to reach their fitness goals. And there you have it. So thanks for watching. I hope you found this useful. Don't forget to subscribe. We're going to be doing a lot more similar meals like this to help you along your fitness journey. Share with your gym buddy, and make sure you achieve those fitness goals.