I am very much a planner and there’s nothing I love more than creating my weekly meal plan. Planning allows me to choose healthier options, make sure I have everything in my kitchen that I need to prepare my meals, and saves me the stress of having to figure out what to eat when I’m hungry. It also simply gets me excited about all of the food I get to eat throughout the week. I’ve been doing this for years and through lots of trial and error I’ve learned the most effective ways of creating a plan that’s easy to stick to.
Things You'll Need
- A Recipe Collection: Have a place where you save your favorite recipes or things you want to try. This could be a Pinterest board, a Google or Word doc, a bookmarks folder, or a good old fashioned recipe box. It's super helpful to have a collection of recipes to reference for ideas when planning out your week.
- A Weekly Planner: Have a place to write out your meal plans. It could be in a notebook, on your phone, on your computer - whatever works for you. I personally like using Google Docs so I can access it anywhere.
- 15-30 Minutes: Pick a day of the week where you can set aside 15-30 minutes to sit down and plan out your meals each week and write your grocery list. Trust me, it’s so much better to take the time to plan things out in advance so you’re not left trying to decide what to eat for dinner when you’re starving after a long day of work.
8 Tips for Making a Plan
- Take a look in your fridge and see what ingredients you have to use up. Try to plan meals that use these ingredients and prioritize those meals earlier in the week so you can be sure that you use them before they expire.
- Make sure to write down any social events you may have for the week so you know when you won’t be eating at home.
- Know your lifestyle. Are you short on time in the morning? Are you taking your lunch to work? Do you prefer to snack throughout the day rather than having three full meals? Keep these things in mind as you decide what your meals, snacks, and beverages are going to be.
- Consider which days of the week you may have a busier schedule so you can opt for meals that are quick and easy or simply schedule in ordering takeout those days.
- Be real with yourself. Can you eat the same thing several days in a row or will you get tired of it? How much time do you really want to spend cooking during the week? The more realistic you can be with your meal plan the easier it will be to follow.
- When trying new recipes, don’t be overly ambitious. Only try one or two new recipes in a week so you’re not overextending yourself.
- Consider what meals may result in leftovers and factor that into your plan. I find it useful to make a large batch recipe on a Sunday night and then eat the leftovers for lunch throughout the week. Think soups, curries, stir fries, enchiladas, baked pastas, etc.
- Remember, nothing is set in stone. If you need to make changes or rearrange your plan midweek, that’s ok. Maybe a last minute dinner invite means your plan gets pushed back a day. Or maybe you just had a really busy day and simply do not have the energy to cook. You can always swap your quickest, easiest meal of the week with whatever you originally had planned for the night. I also find it handy to keep leftovers or quick meals in the freezer for these moments.
I hope you found these tips helpful and relevant to your life. I am all about finding ways to feel my best and when I’m prepared, organized, and excited about food it’s so much easier for me to ensure that my body is getting everything it needs to feel good.
