Reddit mentions of Fitpacker DUO USA Quality Meal Prep Containers 16-Pack 2 Compartment Bento Lunch Boxes with Lids - Portion Control & Food Storage Containers

1. I'm all about DIY-ing my own "Lean Cuisines" and microwaveable meals, not just for the cost, but so I can control exactly what goes into every meal. If you can set aside one afternoon a week - like Sundays - to put together your lunches and dinners for the week, you can save yourself the cost of store-bought meals, add only the things you like to eat, and keep track of every single thing in each meal. There are a zillion Lean Cuisine-style recipes online (Pinterest!), and here's an example of one recipe you can make. Rather than make a whole bunch of different ones at a time, I make a huge batches of 1-2 different recipes, portion and freeze them (we have a deep freezer, specifically for freezing huge batches of stuff, that I found on Craigslist for $50), and over the next month or so, build up a reserve of a dozen or so different recipes. That way, it's easy to prepare because it's only one or two different recipes at one, but my husband isn't stuck eating the same thing every day. I use these reusable, freezer-safe, microwaveable containers - I bought both the individual portion and dual-portioned ones about two years ago, and so far my husband has only lost one and cracked one, and he's pretty rough on them.
   
   
2. I also aim for 1200/day and I strive for a minimum of 30 minutes/maximum of 90 minutes of cardio per day, plus strength training. I don't really rely on "calories burned" calculations from machines or MyFitnessPal, because they all seem to overestimate, but I'd guess I'm burning ~100-150 per 30 minutes. I don't usually eat back exercise calories and I haven't had any issues thus far, but the key point here is to a) go at your own pace and don't overwork yourself, and b) listen to your body. If you feel fatigued, overly hungry, or you're in pain beyond regular soreness, scale back your workouts as needed.
   
   
3. I'm not big on shakes, but if I'm not in the mood and/or don't have time to eat, I'll make a shake or a smoothie as a meal replacement. If Slimfast works for you, go for it! You can also DIY your own Slimfast (or any other protein/meal replacement) shakes as well, and in batches, just like with pre-made frozen meals - I use a bullet blender, homemade yogurt, fresh/frozen fruit, veggies, protein powder and/or milk for shakes and smoothies for my entire family. Since my husband gets up before I do, I make big batches of his morning smoothie, minus the ice, and leave a portion in a blender cup in the fridge - all he has to do is add ice and blend for 60 seconds, and instant breakfast! Blender bottles are also awesome for shakes, and for protein powder, instant breakfast powders and making chocolate milk :)
   
   
4. DIY Lunchables! We actually started making our own "Lunchables" three years ago, when my son started kindergarten. He loves the pizza and chicken nugget ones, but there's never enough food in them, what little food they do have is overly processed, and those suckers get expensive fast! I bought two sets (four containers each) of Easy Lunchboxes, which are portioned just like Lunchables containers, and a set of eight dip containers. I also bought a few of Rubbermaid's LunchBlox sets and my husband thought they were so awesome, I ordered a few more adult-sized ones for him :) The Easy Lunchboxes are microwave- and dishwasher-safe, although I've never used them in the freezer, and you can find literally every Lunchables recipe combination online (again, Pinterest!). I make huge batches of pizza sauce and freeze them in individually-portioned sandwich bags, then make mini pizza rounds and freeze those in sets of 3-4, and whenever he wants pizza Lunchables, I pull a sauce and a set of rounds out the night before to thaw - just add shredded cheese and whatever toppings you want, toss in some baby carrots, cut-up strawberries and whatever else you want. You can also do chicken nuggets (I make my own, but it's time- and labor-intensive, so store-bought might be a better option for you), wraps, literally anything else you want, and I guarantee there's a tutorial available with how to recreate it :)

I use these for meal prep and am perfectly happy with them. Never had any problem with them, don't crack, dishwasher safe, they stack nicely. They're NOT spill proof, IE if your food is real liquidy, just don't be an idiot. Pastas etc, no problem.

How long will frozen food last? Depends on the food.

Around 15 years ago I read about a study of men who ate TV Dinners (sorry, no reference handy) vs. men who "free ate" (i.e. ate their typical diet). At the end of 12 weeks the men who ate only the TV dinners had all lost weight compared to an average (if slight) gain in the men who free ate. I remember at the time the surprise the study elicited because people thought the high levels of sodium in TV Dinners would limit weight gain.

So, long story short... TV Dinners provide great, built-in portion control. If that helps you (and I know it helps me), go for it. Personally, I picked up a punch of Meal Prep Dishes and use them to make my own "TV Dinners" on Sunday. I freeze whatever I won't eat in the next 72 hours to avoid spoilage.

To add variety, I suggest making two or three different meals and portioning them out. I also do it for my kids' lunches... makes getting ready for work and school a five minute process in the morning of instead of a sixty minute one.

You're welcome and good luck, I totally empathize with your position so I just wrote what I'd write to my past self.

I'll add a couple more tips:

Google Sheets & Google Keep are your best friends. Make a sheet containing recipes you'd like to try, and as you cook them, fill in a column indicating when you last cooked it, and a column containing a ease-of-prep score, a column with a quality score, and a notes column. Then each week make a new sheet for the upcoming week with a section for each day's recipe and a section for ingredients you need to buy (I have two of those since I buy perishables twice a week). Once you have your week planned, copy that list of ingredients and paste it (control+shift+v to strip any formatting) into a new Google Keep list, click the "..." on the bottom of the list then "Show Checkboxes" to make a list you can easily check off at the store with the Google Keep phone app. I thought planning a week ahead would feel stifling or that I would change my mind midway through the week, but I actually really enjoy it. I generally cook three new recipes a week and three old ones.

Everything I cook I eat the next day for leftovers using some generic meal prep containers. Since I live alone cooking just wouldn't be worth it otherwise. Since most recipes make 3+ servings, I'll often freeze something since every two frozen meals is one less day I need to cook. Curries, chili, soups, and rice-based dishes all freeze great. Pour servings of soups, stews, and chili into quart-sized freezer bags then lay them flat in the freezer to save tons of room. Any additional leftovers I just throw in the work fridge and someone usually eats it.

Lastly, if you have time to lean, then you have time to clean. In other words, never ever spend a single idle second in your kitchen while cooking. Waiting 30 seconds for the garlic to saute? Dump your prep scrap bin in the trash. Got 5 minutes while the onions saute? Clean your cutting board and knife. Rice needs to rest for 10 minutes covered before you serve? Clean & reset/store your whole prep station. Here's a big one: Simmering a sauce for 20 minutes? Take a look at the recipe you're going to be cooking tomorrow. Peel your veggies, chop your onions, and peel your garlic then toss them in a Ziploc so they're ready to go tomorrow. The feeling of pulling pre-prepped stuff out of the fridge is amazing.