Contrary to what many people think, eating healthfully doesn't have to be expensive. Loading up your cart with such staples as beans, rice and frozen veggies won't cost much. By planning your meals in advance, you will know exactly what you need to buy, instead of going to the store a few times each week to pick up last minute ingredients. But the biggest savings will come from regularly bringing a packed lunch rather than buying it out each day. Or having a dinner ready to go in the refrigerator instead of having to order Thai food and meet the $20 delivery minimum.

While there's an initial time investment upfront, you still end up saving time overall when you prepare your meals in advance. You only have one or two sessions of chopping, cooking and cleaning. And you won't waste time standing in front of the refrigerator, trying to figure out what to cook. Once your meals are prepared ahead of time, you simply take them out of the fridge and heat them up.

A great benefit to meal prepping is the ability to create a balanced diet and meal plan. For one, you know exactly what you are putting into your body, and how much. You're able to make good choices and control how many calories you're taking in each day. Your portions will be consistent and if you're following most meal prep guidelines, you'll have a good balance of protein and vegetables.

Perhaps you're already a smart shopper. But if you're the type that wanders aimlessly around the aisles, trying to figure out what you need or what you want to cook, you'll benefit from meal prep. When you plan out the meals you'll be preparing, you know exactly what you need and often you're buying staples like rice or frozen vegetables in larger quantities, but less frequently.

Have you ever bought ingredients to make a meal, but never got around to making it so you had to throw the stuff out? Tossing produce or meat you haven't even cooked yet because it's gone bad is throwing away money. When you meal prep, you utilize all of your ingredients for the week, and it is very unlikely that you will have any left over.

Prepping your food makes for an easy routine to keep and prevents you from giving into temptation. You've already made the right choices when making the meal. Now, instead of picking up take-out or grabbing a fast food lunch, you've got a pre-portioned meal ready to go. Packing your meals in containers prevents you from being able to reach for more.

Roast, bake or poach poultry, meat or fish.

Steam or roast vegetables in a large batch. Bake potatoes or sweet potatoes wrapped individually in foil. Chop raw fruits and vegetables for salads and snacks.

Use a rice cooker or simmer a large batch of rice, quinoa or farro that will keep all week.