i ate kettlebell kitchen for three weeks and here's what i learned
If you are anything like me, you have grand aspirations to meal prep. You see these Instagram accounts of amazing meals laid out in neat little boxes in a clean refrigerator and you think to yourself, “This Sunday, it’s happening. Chicken. Veggies. Sweet potatoes. It’s all happening!” And then, sure enough, Sunday rolls around and you barely find time to make yourself meals to subsist that day, let alone an additional 12-15 meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the next week.
So what are we, the hopeless ones, supposed to do? Cling desperately to our New Years resolutions only to be tempted by a spicy chicken sando from Wendy’s, then turn it into a combo and then add a small frosty to cool the flames? I say unto you, nay!
Enter Kettlebell Kitchen, a delightful service that will ship freshly made, pre-proportioned and fully customized meals straight to your door. They have a variety of plans that you can choose from and allow room within those plans for specific dietary guidelines. But the best part is that they take all of the guesswork out of meal prep. No more scouring the dark web for recipes, weighing food on a scale like a crazy person, or chopping vegetables until your nail beds bleed. Kettlebell Kitchen was founded on the idea that food can be healthy, delicious and convenient.
Their website was super easy to navigate, offering a lot of different options for diets, allergies, sensitivities, etc. The best part is that you begin by choosing the plan that is centered on your goals and performance needs. It’s all well and good to say that you want to be plant-based, gluten-free, etc but, speaking from personal experience, if I am not getting enough calories everything falls apart. I am hangry, inconsistent with training, etc. I love that Kettlebell Kitchen seeks to understand your personal goals first before recommending any type of plan.
In full transparency, Kettlebell Kitchen hooked me up with three weeks of breakfast, lunch, and dinner on their perform plan which is focused on nutrient dense meals primed and timed to give you the best pre and post workout experience. But in fairness to you, our loyal readers, I will do my best to give an honest evaluation of my experience and refuse to leave anything out!
Let’s start with the good.
For one, the variety of meals was amazing. I never felt like two days in close succession featured the same meals, flavors or textures. In fact, I think in a three-week span there were only a few recipes that were repeated. This was a big plus, I will explain why later. Next, I found there to be some downright delicious meals in my meal plan. Stuff that I would gladly eat any day of the week, diet or no diet. We are talking about grass-fed steak with chimichurri sauce and roasted yucca, bison sliders with greens and sweet potatoes and my favorite, pancakes with blueberry topping and turkey bacon. Honestly, some real winners in this bunch. But best of all, I must say that not having to stress about what you were going to eat and when to eat it was incredible. I knew walking into work that I never had to stare down a menu and make a good choice, the choice was made for me and in some ways that was tops!
The Perform Package was, in a lot of ways, the ideal choice for me. If you know me, you know that I really love to train. It’s honestly one of the best parts of my day. I have RUINED training sessions with food choices, so, for the most part, I try to do them in a fasted state. This works, at least most of the time, but it can also lead to a really unbalanced and sluggish feeling during key moments. This meal plan kept me full, focused, and energized during my workouts without feeling weighed down.
Finally, the “prep” (if you can call it that) was easy. The packaging was made from mostly recycled materials, shipped in considerate sizes for those that share a freezer with you, and above all, they serve as a nice warming tray for your meals. The only thing you have to provide is silverware. If you have a problem with that, well my friend, you are even more hopeless than I.
What could have been better…
In a different world, where eggs magically maintained the proper texture and consistency, the breakfasts in this meal plan would have been incredible. And perhaps, it was my fault for freezing the meals but still, the eggs were pretty hard to eat. This was disappointing because I love eggs and I love breakfast foods and when the two combine, there are generally choruses of cherubic angels swinging from my tastebuds, but it was not so with these meals.
Also, let’s call it what it is: this is a healthy meal plan. That being said, there are going to be some meals that, in general, taste like healthy food. It was definitely the minority of the meals that weren’t my favorite, but be aware that they exist in a meal plan. Maybe order a few meals to find what you like and stick with that route.
Overall, my experience with Kettlebell Kitchen was really positive. I consider myself a busy person, and sometimes food prep just falls down the list of things that I absolutely have to do on a daily basis. Without that proper preparation, it gets difficult to stick to a plan and ultimately I end up making some bad food choices. With that in mind, I certainly think of this as a worthwhile investment as it cuts down on stress, for the most part, the meals taste incredible, and Kettlebell Kitchen offers enough customization to provide you with exactly what you are looking for in an easy, seamless experience.
Instagram: @kettlebellkitchen
Website: www.kettlebellkitchen.com
