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These meal delivery services provide prepared meals that may suit bodybuilders trying to lose weight or build muscle.
A person might find it convenient to subscribe to a service that delivers a set number of meals each week. Companies offering these services often claim their meals provide a nutritious and easy alternative to cooking.
Below, we explore in detail some of the top meal delivery services for bodybuilders. We also look at alternatives and nutritional considerations for these athletes.
When choosing a meal delivery service, research is important. A person can consider the following factors:
- Are the meals fresh or frozen?
- How many meals can a customer order each week?
- Does the company rotate its menu regularly?
- Does the service offer meals for different diets and tastes?
- Is the service cost-effective? Are there additional costs for add-ons and delivery?
- Are reviews generally positive across various sites?
- How flexible is the subscription? Is it easy to cancel at any time?
Meal delivery services vary, and it is worth considering the benefits of different options. A person might prefer prepared meals or meal kits, which include recipes and ingredients to prepare and cook at home.
Below is a list of some of the best meal delivery services for bodybuilders.
Please note that the writer of this article has not tried these products. All information presented is purely research-based.
Trifecta
| Meals | people can pick from Clean Eating, Paleo, Keto, Vegan, or Vegetarian meal plans |
|---|---|
| Menu | changes weekly |
Trifecta says it offers macro-balanced meals that are all high in protein and low in calories.
The company’s five dietary plans are:
- Paleo
- Clean Eating
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
- Keto
Each plan includes options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and a person can add entrées if they require.
Trifecta’s menus change weekly, and some examples of its meals include:
- salmon and wild rice
- oatmeal walnut bake
- Korean beef bulgogi
- crispy tofu skillet
- turkey bacon cheddar frittata
Trifecta also offers an à la carte menu. A person can select pre-cooked ingredients and make a meal at home.
Trifecta’s meals are free from soy, gluten, dairy, and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The company’s meals are also low in sugar.
The following table describes the average nutritional information in Trifecta’s meal plans.
| Average calories | Average fat | Average carbs | Average protein | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean eating meal plan | 500 | 20 g | 42 g | 38 g |
| Paleo meal plan | 400 | 20 g | 23 g | 32 g |
| Keto meal plan | 500 | 35 g | 9 g | 35 g |
| Vegan meal plan | 435 | 16 g | 50 g | 20 g |
| Vegetarian meal plan | 425 | 16 g | 50 g | 20 g |
The company also says it uses sustainable ingredients and packaging to reduce food waste and its carbon footprint.
Pricing starts at around $108 for seven meals a week. Customers can cancel at any time, and there is a money-back guarantee.
Factor
| Meals | people can pick from high protein, paleo, keto, low calorie, or plant-based meals |
|---|---|
| Menu | changes weekly |
Factor rotates its menu options weekly, with meal plans to suit various diets.
Bodybuilders may prefer Factor’s high protein, paleo, keto, low calorie, or plant-based meals. A person can filter their search on the company’s website by these categories.
Some example meals include:
- sage chicken with butternut squash macaroni
- black bean and rice enchilada bowl
- cilantro-jalapeño pork chop
- Indian-style vegetable rice
- Peruvian shrimp bowl
The following table describes the nutritional information of the example meals.
| Calories | Fat | Saturated fat | Carbs | Sugar | Fiber | Protein | Sodium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sage chicken with butternut squash macaroni | 800 | 42 g | 15 g | 68 g | 18 g | 9 g | 42 g | 860 mg |
| Black bean and rice enchilada bowl | 480 | 23 g | 8 g | 54 g | 9 g | 8 g | 16 g | 830 mg |
| Cilantro- jalapeño pork chop | 710 | 52 g | 16 g | 11 g | 6 g | 3 g | 50 g | 810 mg |
| Indian- style vegetable rice | 440 | 23 g | 3.5 g | 52 g | 13 g | 8 g | 15 g | 840 mg |
| Peruvian shrimp bowl | 580 | 48 g | 13 g | 14 g | 5 g | 4 g | 28 g | 879 mg |
A person can choose to have 4–18 meals delivered per week, starting at around $11 per meal. The cost per meal reduces if people order in bulk, while shipping is free.
Factor also offers a 20-minute consultation with a registered dietician for all customers.
However, there is no full meal service for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, so a person may need to supplement Factor’s meals with other options.
Mighty Macros
| Meals | people can choose from Weight loss, Sculpt, Perform, or Gain meal plans |
|---|---|
| Menu | changes weekly |
Mighty Macros offers a variety of meals to suit a range of health and fitness goals. A person can choose from one of the following meal plans:
- Weight loss: Each of these meals is low in carbs and contains fewer than 350 calories.
- Sculpt: Mighty Macros recommends this plan for people working towards a lean and defined physique. It comprises meals that are high in protein and low in carbs.
- Perform: This plan may suit people who wish to maintain peak fitness levels. It features high protein meals with moderate amounts of carbs.
- Gain: Individuals looking to gain muscle mass might consider these meals, which usually comprise a dense combination of protein, carbs, and calories.
The company’s meals are organic and free from GMOs, added sugar, dairy, and monosodium glutamate, better known as MSG. However, Mighty Macros does not offer vegetarian or vegan meals.
Example meals include:
- Weight loss: jerk chicken with coconut rice
- Sculpt: teriyaki fish with udon
- Perform: fettuccine with garlic chili prawns
- Gain: steak with peppercorn and mushroom sauce
The following table describes the nutritional information of example meals from each Mighty Macros plan.
| Calories | Fat | Saturated fat | Carbs | Sugar | Fiber | Protein | Sodium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jerk chicken with coconut rice | 480 | 11 g | 4.5 g | 41 g | 7 g | 2 g | 50 g | 740 mg |
| Teriyaki fish with udon | 480 | 17 g | 2.5 g | 48 g | 5 g | 5 g | 34 g | 600 mg |
| Fettucine with garlic chili prawns | 410 | 14 g | 1.5 g | 42 g | 5 g | 4 g | 34 g | 510 mg |
| Steak with peppercorn and mushroom sauce | 580 | 23 g | 6 g | 38 g | 7 g | 6 g | 51 g | 540 mg |
Regardless of the plan, a person can choose 7–24 meals per week, with a single meal costing $8.70–11.50.
A person might instead prefer to have meal kits deliveries each week. These kits contain pre-proportioned ingredients and simple, quick recipes that they can modify.
Anyone with questions about what to include in their diet might benefit from consulting with a registered dietitian. These health professionals can help design a customized diet that may improve athletic performance and help with safe weight gain or loss.
A bodybuilder should find a registered dietitian who specializes in this area or is familiar with a bodybuilder’s daily dietary requirements.
Bodybuilding is a unique sport with its own set of challenges. Bodybuilders do not undergo assessment on their physical performance but on the symmetry, muscularity, and definition of their bodies.
The three phases of bodybuilding include:
- the muscle-gaining phase, or the “off-season”
- the phase of dieting and otherwise preparing for a competition
- the competition
When planning their diet, a bodybuilder should focus on macronutrients — carbohydrates, proteins, and fats — and calories.
- 55–60% carbohydrates
- 25–30% protein
- 15–20% fat
During the off-season, a bodybuilder should increase their caloric intake by about 15%.
A
- 15–30% of their calories from fats
- 2.3 to 3.1 grams of protein per kilogram of lean body mass per day
- their remaining calories from carbohydrates
Research from 2019 shows that bodybuilders should consume slightly more calories during the off-season and gain about
Because the dietary needs of bodybuilders change throughout the year, it is important for meal services to allow them to select different meal plans and skip deliveries accordingly. Additionally, other athletes may have different needs.
Various services deliver full meals or meal kits designed for bodybuilders and other athletes.
The best choices for bodybuilders offer a variety of high protein meals featuring high or low amounts of calories to accommodate a person’s bodybuilding phase.
Meal delivery services can be convenient, but they can also be expensive and unsuitable for certain individuals. Anyone looking to save time and money might also consider planning meals weekly to reduce trips to the store or cooking in big batches for easy-to-reheat meals.
Before choosing a meal delivery service, check for reviews on multiple websites. Online bodybuilding communities may also have recommendations and give honest reviews of these services.