I need some new fresh meal prep Ideas! My goal is to hit a minimum of 160g protein and 1700 calories.

Anyone have some good breakfast and lunch ideas for a gal who works in an office?

Hit me with some recipes!

Why on earth do you want to have 160 grams of protein? Are you trying to kill your kidneys? Too much protein isn't good for you, and your body only metabolizes 50 grams max at a time. What is your eating routine? Do you eat snacks too? Are you drinking protein shakes? What are your absolute yuck foods on your list so we can stay away from them? What do you like to eat?

In the summer, I'm a huge fan of "bowls" for lunch/dinner. Take a base of your choice like rice, brown rice, farro, quinoa, etc, add whatever veggies you like and then your protein of choice. If desired, you can also add some sort of sauce/dressing. The nice thing is you can easily meal-prep these and even vary the ingredients slightly in every single bowl just by having a few different base/veggie/protein choices available. It's also easy to adjust them to your tastes, as well as change the proportions to fit your macros. Also, for the most part you don't even need to heat these up. I eat them cold (or more often at room temp), all the time.

I'm also a big fan of soup (yes even in summer), because it helps me rehydrate (due to the salt and fluid), as well as get some food in me after my workouts. I totally realize that for many people, the thought of something warm post workout seems odd, but it works for me.

As to the amount of protein you're eating, I think that's okay (and not likely dangerous), but honestly is a bit higher than you actually need. I know in some gym circles, they push as much as 4 grams per kg of body weight, but there's not a lot of evidence that even strength athletes need more than about 1.6 to 2 grams per kg. Keep in mind that your body can't store excess protein, thus what it doesn't use for muscle repair just goes to waste or gets stored as fat if you're eating in a surplus.

Another consideration as @WendyJane mentions is that your ability to metabolize protein is limited. While I think the rate at which it can be metabolized is actually variable and likely somewhat dependent on overall bodyweight (some studies suggest it's around 0.3 to 0.4 g/kg/bw), the net effect is that it may actually be a lot less than 50 grams for most people. For this reason, it would be ideal to actually plan on eating about five meals a day, rather than the traditional three. Further, keep in mind that the ability to metabolize protein IS NOT the same as the rate at which your body can induce muscle protein synthesis (i.e. use protein to repair repair your muscles). That rate may be as low at just a few grams per hour!

That said, there's not a lot of evidence that high amounts of protein hurt the kidneys in healthy people. Yes, certainly if you have kidney disease, you should follow your doctor’s advice and limit your protein intake. For everyone else, the danger is pretty limited (or even nonexistent). I would say that if your higher protein intake is coming exclusively, or almost exclusively from meat (especially red meat), this is a lot more likely to potentially cause renal problems.

Now keep in mind that when we look at whether or not a high protein diet can cause kidney issues, scientists always look at EXCESS protein. In other words, it's not the total protein intake that matters. It's the amount in excess of your needs. As someone involved in strength training, you do need additional protein to repair your muscles. As I pointed out, your actual needs may be less than you think. Like a lot of things, it's best to not assume that more is always better. Obviously some protein is essential, additional amounts can be beneficial for some people, but there are potential downsides to eating more than you actually need.

Certainly your call, but you might try dropping that down to ~125 to 140 grams. This will open up some options to get some additional veggies or whole grains in you that will help with athletic performance, while still supporting your goals regarding body recomposition.

FYI, my statements about protein needs for athletes is based on the latest Nutrition and Athletic Performance position statement from the American College of Sports Medicine.

Sorry for yet another long post. I geek out on this stuff and just wanted to share.

As far as breakfast is concerned, it's hard to go wrong with Greek Yogurt.

You can add additional flavors to it if you like, throw some fruit on it, and maybe some granola (I add protein boosted granola), and you have a solid breakfast with 25-35 grams of protein depending on serving sizes. It's super portable if you need to eat at your desk (just keep the granola separate from the yogurt until ready to eat).

Another option would be overnight oats. There are lots of recipes online, including some that have additional protein added to them. The nice thing about this is it's also easy to customize based on your needs and literally all you need to do in the morning is grab and go. It's great if you workout in the morning before work and don't have a ton of time to prep something.

My final suggestion may honestly be a little weird, at least to many Americans. In a lot of cultures, they don't actually eat what we in the US think of as traditional breakfast foods. Breakfast is often simple and last night's leftovers many times make an appearance. In some Mediterranean cultures, one of my favorites is just an assortment of things like a slice of leftover bread, some olives and/or fruit and a slice of cheese. You can add in a boiled egg or two and get a simple and healthy breakfast that's easy to take on the go.

Edited June 27, 20251 yr by SpartanMaker

@WendyJane Thank you for your comment. I strength train quite a bit and I have been playing with the amount of protein that is suitable for my body. I noticed that If I drop lower on protein my body cannot handle my workouts and I am not building muscle. I tinker between 170-177lbs so this is actually okay. I do follow a whole foods diet. Lots of veggies, fruit, eggs, avocado ect...heck I even eat a piece of sourdough bread that I make with some kerrygold butter as my pre-workout meal. I have spoken to my primary doc, nutritionist and my surgeon and they are not concerned with the amount of protein that I am eating.

My typical day is: pre-workout is sourdough bread and butter, after workout I make my profee, breakfast a few hours later is 1 egg, 1/2C egg whites, Turkey breakfast patty and cheese. Lunch is always a lean meat and lots of veggies, dinner is some sort of meat, veggie and carb like air fried potatoes, something like that. Snacks typically range from jerky, Greek yogurt with berries, string cheese, sometimes chips if I am feeling sassy lol

My only thing I cannot eat is shellfish because I am allergic otherwise I am open to anything!

@SpartanMaker I rarely eat red meat, my protein mostly comes from lean meats, eggs, protein powder in my iced coffee things like that. I will say I like eating this way, I feel good, my recovery is easier, and it helps with the cravings. When I don't eat enough of the good stuff (i.e weekends are a struggle for me) I get off course and not just a little but a lot.

I was looking at overnight oats for my weekends! I haven't had them in a long time and I figured it would be good after my long runs. So I will definitely give those a go! I like the simplicity of that breakfast! Soups after a workout probably are great for you since you run long distances- what kind of soups do you eat? Love Greek Yogurt with berries and granola. I just found this granola from Magic Spoon and its delish!

2 minutes ago, AmberFL said:

what kind of soups do you eat?

Lately it's been a lot of a cajun influenced chicken & rice soup I made. I have TONS of smoked chicken I made on Memorial Day and have been adding that to everything I can think of, hence the inspo for this particular soup! Plus, I do love cajun flavors and smoked chicken works really well with that.

Really as long as good and brothy, it works for my needs. I already have some chicken vegetable in the freezer and will probably start on that one next. I have also done chicken noodle, minestrone, as well as a simple asian inspired soup that I make with dumplings.

I do love good thick creamy soups as well, just not for post workout where they feel too heavy?

15 minutes ago, AmberFL said:

@SpartanMaker I rarely eat red meat, my protein mostly comes from lean meats, eggs, Protein Powder in my iced coffee things like that. I will say I like eating this way, I feel good, my recovery is easier, and it helps with the cravings. When I don't eat enough of the good stuff (i.e weekends are a struggle for me) I get off course and not just a little but a lot.

Yea, if 160 grams works for you, it's not high enough that I think it will be problematic at all, I only shared all that for awareness. I personally think you'd also be fine at 125 to 140 as well, but you know your body best. If you feel better at 160, do 160.

The biggest potential issue for most people eating higher amounts of protein is an increased risk of kidney stones. I doubt you're eating enough excess for that to become an issue at all, but If you've ever had one, then you know it's something to be avoided at all costs! If you haven't ever had one, imagine a grown man (with a pretty high pain tolerance), rolling around on the floor crying for his mommy. That was me back when I did Atkins and had kidney stones ~twice a year. Ah, the good old days! ?

@SpartanMaker I have never personally experienced one but a male friend had one due to the amounts of the mountain dew he consumed and omgsh- A big burley man crying was tough. Now I drink water like a fish! haha!

There are days where I eat the 130-140g in protein i.e the weekends when I indulge on not so great stuff lol Speaking of Atkins, I have friends that do strict carnivore and they tried to give me the benefits of it, but the kidney stones and not being able to have bowel movement did not sound appealing!

14 hours ago, SpartanMaker said:

I'm also a big fan of Soup (yes even in summer), because it helps me rehydrate (due to the salt and fluid), as well as get some food in me after my workouts. I totally realize that for many people, the thought of something warm post workout seems odd, but it works for me.

Yes I love soup too! Easier to cook as well because I can just throw it all in the slow cooker.

I'm going to make a big pot of white chicken chili this weekend too

My new favorite summer breakfast is Full fat cottage cheese with seedless black grapes sliced in. Everyone I have told says yuck no, but I love it. You could add extra protein powder to it.

Have you tried any of the Ricotta Bake recipes out there?? They are so yummy. I make mine with Pizza sauce and it adds all the flavors I like.

@summerseeker that sounds so good! I love both foods!

@WendyJane I haven't made those in a long time, I forget about them. I will have to give that one a go with a piece of homemade sourdough bread on the side yummo!