Planning Meals Ahead

I am a person who likes to plan.  I like to know what is going on in my life.  My calendar is written on regularly and is quite full.  Without it I am lost.  I don't have a smartphone so keep my calendar the old fashioned way - paper and pen hanging on my wall in my kitchen.  If you are too young to understand this concept, Google it;)

In addition to my calendar hanging in my kitchen I have a magnetic pad of paper on my refrigerator.  That pad has my meals for the week listed on it.  This may sound incredibly anal but I can assure you that it is quite handy and doesn't take nearly as much time as you would think.

In my years on Weight Watchers I have found meal planning to be a key to my success.  If I don't plan my meals ahead of time I don't eat as healthy. I also find myself eating out too often that way.  That is not an option in my house because not only is it less healthy but it is really expensive for a family of 7 on a tight budget.  Therefore it has become my habit to make a list that keeps my mind at ease.

This is my process.  Each week when I go grocery shopping I make a list.  I start with my menu list from my refrigerator.  I look through my cookbooks and find recipes I would like to make that week.  It doesn't take long.  I don't stress over it or look too hard because there is always next week to make that other recipe that sounded good.  I then write on my menu list which recipes I am making with page numbers, cookbook name and recipe name.  As I write each recipe on my menu I check the ingredients  list and make my grocery list.  This is done easiest while in my kitchen so I can check the cupboards and refrigerator but occasionally I am in a hurry running errands and just take a few cookbooks and my lists with me and do this in the parking lot of the grocery store.  I have a pretty good idea of what I have in my kitchen so this works in a pinch.  So by the time I have my menu planned I also have my grocery list.  I never shop without a grocery list, I would spend way too much money and forget to get way to many things.

I typically eat the recipes in the order that I write them down on my menu but have no problem changing it around it if I find myself wanting to make something else one night.  This is helpful because when it gets to be 3 o'clock and I need to start thinking about dinner, I don't have to think that hard. I just have to look at my menu and make what's on it. I've already done the planning.  I only do this for dinners.  We eat lunch and breakfast with whatever I have in the house that day.  Those meals are not as tricky for me so I don't feel the need to plan them most days.

Not only does this meal planning help keep me on track for my dinners but it helps us eat all of the food in the house instead of throwing it away or keeping it in the cupboard for months.  I shop for what is on my list. We eat what is on my list.  So when the list is all crossed off, I look to see if there is one or two last meals that I can throw together from the food that is left.  If not, I go shopping.  If so, I make what I can with what we have and go shopping when it's gone.  I can't stand grocery shopping.  I don't know why.  It's just not my idea of a good time so the easier I can make it the better.  Also, the fewer times I have to do it the better.

If you are not a planner, try this.  You will find that it helps you in more ways than just your body's health.  It helps your mind's health too because you don't have to stress about what to make the dinner.

Have a great day,
Corinna

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." -Philippians 4:4-7