Grocery Shopping & Food Prep for The Busy Woman

Here's a little insight on what I do to stay fueled and fit. Check out this list and the activities that follow the grocery store trip to get tips and tricks that you can use as a part of your own fitness lifestyle!

A typical post client activity for me is to go to the market. Today, I visited my local produce and health foods market (Sprouts.. are you surprised?) and here's what I bought...

*1 container of firm tofu (for a stir fry)
*4 containers of Greek Yogurt (fat free)
*2 large containers of fat free regular yogurt (think smoothies and bedtime treats)
*1 medium head of cabbage
*1 red onion
*handful of mushrooms
*a boat load of loose spinach leaves (enough for salads and cooked dishes)
* 1 pound of baby carrots
*2 oranges
*a bunch of bananas
*4 apples
*1 cantaloupe
*2 lemons
*2 pounds of grapes
*avocado
*frozen blueberries
* 1 package of Low Carb Garden Veggie Wraps (these have a whopping 8 grams of fiber, 7 grams of protein and only 100 calories per tortilla. They taste great and they are not small!)
*2 Peanut butter filled Malt Balls (come on even a trainer has to have her treats- that's 2 from the bulk food section not 2 packs--- ha ha!)


So obviously there's plenty of stuff missing. I shopped at the end of the week too so my other things were covered... things like:

* chicken breast
*frozen vegetables
*Cereal (Kashi- no hi sugar processed stuff)
*tilapia
*93% fat free ground turkey
* Decaf Hazelnut Coffee
*Tons of bottled water
*veggie sausage
*veggie burger
*frozen waffles (Kashi again- hi fiber low sugar is the name of the game)
*frozen strawberries
*frozen peaches
*canned pineapples (in their own juice of course)
*lite whipped cream
*whole wheat, low sugar, organic bread
In the cupboards I already had plenty of:
*Spices (all kinds from American, Italian, Mediterranean, Asian, Indian, Peruvian, and more)
*Salsa
*Mustard & Ketchup
*Soy sauce and stir fry sauce
*Oatmeal (loads of the old fashion kind)
*Quick Oats (to use when I bake muffins- that's right MUFFINS!)
*Nuts (cashews, walnuts, and more)
*Flaxseed
*Oils (olive oil (for salads and light sautees) and coconut oil (for high heat cooking))

That's a lot of stuff isn't it? Well there's your proof that being fit and healthy doesn't require repeatedly eating the same old, bland stuff day in and day out. I think I have more variety in my list than many people who don't follow the fitness lifestyle because "they just couldn't eat the same thing day in and day out". This lifestyle can be tasty and fun (not to mention the benefits of being healthy, having energy, and fitting your skinny jeans)!

So here's what I do when I get home to make sure I actually eat all of this healthy stuff before it rots! I'm a busy woman just like you and staying fit requires planning. So here's my fast fix solution to get lunch cooked and my food prepped for the week.

1. Place 2 frozen tilapia filets in cold water (this will be lunch).
2. Put 1.5 tablespoons of light ranch dressing in a little cup and take out a handful of baby carrots. (This is to cure the munchies while I put away the food before lunch- much better choice than to start tearing into the cereal I have- no matter how low sugar it is!)
2. Wash all of my fruits and vegetables.
3. Put 1/2 of the whole fruit in the fruit bowl and the other half in the fridge.
4. Chop up fruits that need to be chopped (like cantaloupe) and veggies and put them in tupperware in the fridge... There's no way I want to chop before every meal.
5. "Fry" my tilapia (which was thawed by the time I was done putting away the food. I highly recommend the frozen, individually wrapped filets for quick use like this. I get mine from Walmart.) in a skillet using Pam (about 3 minutes on both sides) and place it on 1 of my low carb tortillas with a squirt of the Ranch dressing again and a few tomato slices.
6. Back to the office for work.

See how easy that was? It just takes POSITIVE INTENT and A PLAN! My grocery trip took all of 12 MINUTES from entering to putting the stuff in my car- seriously... no browsing and staring at the chips and wondering if I should (ha ha). Now how did I get done so quickly? SHOP THE PERIMETER! All of your produce, dairy, and meat will be on the perimeter. You should only need to go into the aisles about 3 times- for frozen foods, bread, and cereal. The entire process after the grocery store including making and eating lunch took a whopping 30 minutes. So my question to you is... Do you have 42 minutes to invest in your health? I bet you do so take some of these tips and tricks and use them to make a healthier you!