9 Struggles of a Meal Planning Addict

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Meal prepping is a way of life. Like all lifestyles, it has some pros and cons. The pros are major (healthy meals, control, and less stress in the long run), and the cons are mildly irritating. All meal prep addicts know the struggles of meal planning all too well.

1. There’s never enough Tupperware.

Every meal prep day feels like a real life version of Tetris. You have to choose your Tupperware carefully because one poorly fitting meal can throw off your entire process (and refrigerator organization).

2. Your dishwasher is always full of Tupperware.

So there’s barely any room for actual dishes. Every meal results in a dishwasher shuffle to see if you can possibly finagle everything into fitting. You can’t, and it’s disappointing each time you have to admit defeat.

3. You have to wash 70% of it by hand though.

Then there’s the moment when you realize there is absolutely no way you can make it through the whole week without needing that Tupperware. You’ll inevitably pull them out one piece at a time to quickly wash them in the sink.

4. You use all of your pots and pans at once.

In your best attempt to multitask, you’ll pull out every pan and pot you own so several things can cook simultaneously. This always seems like the most efficient method, but usually it just ends with you standing in front of your stove, confused.

5. It takes intense planning.

Wouldn’t it be nice if meal prep was something you could just jump into? Unfortunately, it takes oodles of forethought and pre-preparation to execute it all. You’re exhausted simply by deciding what you’ll buy and how you can maximize your ingredients.

6. It takes over.

Both your day and your kitchen become servants of the meal prep. It’s power touches everything. Even your roommates and pets know they don’t stand a chance against it.

7. You chop so many veggies that your hand cramps.

When you’ve got several dishes for seven days to cook, you’re chopping a whole lot of vegetables (if you’re meal planning the healthy way, that is). The first few veggies are no biggie, but by the time you’ve gone through the whole list, you’re in need of physical therapy.

8. Meal prep day looks like a war zone.

Tomato sludge, chopped veggie remnants, and seasoning litter every kitchen surface (and most of the floor). Meal prepping is intense work so the goods go flying. Half the time you don’t even notice the mess until you’ve stored the last container in the fridge and finally come out of the meal prep tunnel vision.

9. Wasted food hurts you to the core.

Nothing irks you more than reaching the end of the week only to realize a dish in the fridge has gone south before you could eat. It’s a cruel, cruel world for the preppers.

But no matter how irritating it can be, you know you’ll be right back in the kitchen again on Sunday because meal prepping makes you happy.

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