Future You ADHD Meal Hacks: Easy Prep That Feels Like a Gift Later
- Tori Flores
- Sep 2
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 21
Meal prep sounds amazing in theory - those neat little rows of containers, the promise of “dinner done” all week - but let’s be honest: for a lot of us with ADHD brains, full-on meal prep is like running a marathon. I burn out halfway through, get cranky, and then power through just to avoid wasting food. Not fun.
But here’s the thing: Future Me LOVES when Past Me does even a little bit of prep. It doesn’t have to be Pinterest-perfect or involve 37 matching containers. Sometimes it’s the tiniest prep that feels like the biggest gift later.
The Small Meal-Prep Wins That Matter Most in My Home
Portioned freezer-ready meat 🥩 – Buying in bulk is great…until you forget about the giant pack of chicken or the family-sized steaks. Portioning meat into smaller bags and freezing right away saves me every time. ⭐ Bonus tip: Any meat that gets thrown into the fridge with the thought it will get eaten in the next couple of days should get the date it was thrown into the fridge written on it. This prevents the ADHD-forget-it’s-there disaster.
Grab 'n' go fruit bags 🍓 – Rinsing fruit and bagging it into snack portions means everyone can just grab and go. It feels magical on busy afternoons when everyone's crabby between lunch and dinner, and apparently nobody has eaten in 100 years.
The Great Steak Debacle
My husband has ADHD too, and he once decided he was only going to eat steak. Just steak. He bought huge portions and then, of course, forgot about them in the fridge. Several sad, wasted steaks later, I started dating each package and freezing them after two days if they weren’t cooked. Suddenly? No more wasted money. Future Us cheered.
Why Traditional Meal Prep Doesn’t Work (For Me)
The full “Sunday marathon” meal-prep session just doesn’t fit my brain. Cutting, cooking, and bagging all the things at once? Nope. I’m done halfway in! Instead, I focus on short prep bursts:
Wash and bag fruit.
Portion and freeze meat.
Double up on a meal (or two!) I’m already cooking.
It’s less overwhelming, and Future Me still gets the win.
My Go-To Future You ADHD Meal Prep Hacks
Here’s what I double-batch for the freezer:
Spaghetti sauce 🍝
Water-based soups 🍲
Cooked, crumbled hamburger meat (plain or taco-seasoned) 🌮
Snacks we keep on hand: Halo oranges, bananas, apples (depending on the mood of the year), pistachios, chips and dip, peanut butter, and sugar-free fruit cups.
Storage favorites:
Glass containers with 4-latch lids (stackable, freezer-safe, microwave-safe, dishwasher-safe).
Hefty Ziploc bags (sturdy enough for meat).
Vacuum-sealed bins for noodles/rice.
A heavy-duty mesh bin in the awkward middle cabinet (affordable and easier than wrestling with a lazy Susan).
A plastic lock box with a combo code for the sweets - because otherwise they’re gone in 24 hours.
What It Feels Like to Help Future Me
There’s nothing better than opening the fridge on a hard day and realizing dinner is already halfway done. Instead of panic-prepping, I can just grab, thaw, and finish the meal. I’m calmer, happier, and honestly? My family benefits more than they know - because I’m not snapping at everyone while trying to figure out dinner.
Final Thoughts
Your Future You ADHD meal prep hacks don’t have to be all-or-nothing. Even if you only prep one thing, it counts. A double batch of spaghetti sauce. Bagged fruit. Portioned and bagged hamburger and chicken.
It’s not about perfect prep. It’s about gentle wins that make Future You feel cared for.
✨ This idea of prepping for your “Future You” shows up a lot in my upcoming book Start Where You Are, Use What You Have, Forget the Fancy Planners (still in the works!). Because for those of us with ADHD brains, systems only work when they actually feel doable.
TL;DR (because hi, ADHD 👋):
Don’t try to meal prep your whole life. You’ll burn out.
Small hacks (like portioning meat + bagging fruit) = big wins.
Double what you’re already cooking and freeze half.
Future You will hug Past You every single time.
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