Does anyone else put in your meals a day in advance?

angelbabe218

So, I feel kind of guilty about this but I find it helps as a form of meal planning. I put it in the night before, same with my exercise and then I feel more obligated to do the workouts and eat what I planned. Anyone else think it's a good system? What are your meal planning ideas? TIA

TavistockToad

Why does it make you feel guilty?

cmtigger

I'm not sure why it would be an issue. Sometimes I put my lunch in when I'm packing it, but that's about it.

jessef593

Oya for sure. When you're eating almost 4000 calories a day you have to do anythin to make sure you got that number

Rowan09

I haven't done it a day in advance but I have logged all my meals I plan to eat for the day first thing in the morning.
For me it's the same thing- not worrying about straying from my plan!

Sukisumi

I often plan my food a day (or even two) in advance. As you say, it helps me stay on track and not be tempted by other things. Occasionally I might fancy something different (you know when you wake up and just fancy something?) but I'll make sure it stays within the calories/macros of what I'd planned.

It's nothing to feel guilty about!

__TMac__

Always. It helps me to know exactly how the day is going to play out, for both calories and macros. It's when I improvise that things go off the rails.

momtofour

Yes always so I know exactly what I'm cooking for tea and it definitely helps to keep on track...no quilt needed .....I'll actually put my menu for the week on a white board in the kitchen then do my grocery shop to accommodate the meals I'm gonna make so I know I have all the ingredients I need and don't then go off course.. if it helps do what ever suits you....

H_Ock12

My food is generally planned in my diary five days in advance and my exercise is currently planned through the end of February. If something has to change, I just delete it and don't get too bent out of shape over it, tho.

lks802

Yep. I do M-F bc I meal plan. I adjust anything I need to on the actual day.

I also pre-add my Friday and Saturday night wine. Lol

ThatUserNameIsAllReadyTaken

I have tried this pre-logging and for me it always fails. I find that I forget to eat some of what I logged in advance, or that the serving size I planned was no longer available, or some other reason. I would love to be able to log in advance but all this kind of thing just makes it too much trouble for me because I have to spend extra time correcting most of it.

CooCooPuff

I usually just do it the morning of but have a general idea the day before.

dutchandkiwi

I tend to do this too, without the guilt that is. Most certainly if I know in advance, so if it is a regular day- Immediately know then if and where there is room or not. Pre-logging has been a great source of sanity for me

dewd2

No, but that is a GREAT idea. When I get within a few weeks of my race I have to pay super close attention to my nutrition. I sometimes struggle to do this and I think you just gave me the idea I needed. I can use MFP to 'plan' my days so I know I will get enough protein and calories.

THANKS!

violetta5345

I pre-log every day. For one thing I cook a lot, so I always have leftovers for lunch that I can add for the next day. For another, even if tweak it a bit pre-logging helps be stay on goal. I don't log exercise in advance because I've been known to be lazy now and again.

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Troutrouter1968

I pre-log every Saturday for the entire upcoming week. Helps me considerably with shopping. If something changes, then I edit my diary.

kandisn7

I do this 50% of the time. I do better when I plan ahead!

Debmal77

If that works for you then it's great! Nothing wrong with that. I have never done that because you know a woman's prerogative is to change her mind!

dragon_girl26

Yep. For awhile I was even logging my entire week in advance. If I start with a plan at the beginning of the day, I have a much better shot of sticking with it. No need to feel guilty about that!

FeraFilia

I do it all the time.

Machka9

Quite often I'll put in my lunches and snacks. Those are my decision so ... why not log them in advance.

My dinners are my husband's decision so I don't know what we'll eat until he makes it.

But pre-logging means that I can drop or add things depending on what's for dinner. Big dinner = lighter evening snack. Light dinner = bigger evening snack.

angelbabe218

dewd2 wrote: »

No, but that is a GREAT idea. When I get within a few weeks of my race I have to pay super close attention to my nutrition. I sometimes struggle to do this and I think you just gave me the idea I needed. I can use MFP to 'plan' my days so I know I will get enough protein and calories.

THANKS!

You're welcome. I'm glad I could help.

dominique_paul

I stopped putting in meals before I had them because I end up not eating it. I'm very indecisive and change my mind about my food choices too often.
But it's not a bad thing if it help you! Logging workouts sounds smart if it forces you to do them.

estherdragonbat

For religious reasons I don't write or type from sundown Friday night to dark on Saturday. Since Sabbath meals tend to be bigger (and include delicious delicious bread...), in the past I've used 'I can't write anything down' as an excuse to go off the rails and then "forget" to journal accurately later. I started writing down my Sabbath meals in advance and it's been working great. I've realized that I AM going to treat myself to a piece of cake or cookie, but that by planning it ahead of time and scheduling in, I avoid all of the guilt/negative self-talk I used to have about 'blowing my diet', 'may as well just grab more food because today is a washout anyway'. Same thing with two slices of bread. I wrote it down. I calculated the calories, and goldarnit, I'm going to enjoy it!

I treat other social events the same way. If I see/know the calories I mean to consume, I'm a lot more relaxed and a treat doesn't become a cheat.

comptonelizabeth

I do it on the day,in the morning- I'm trying to gain weight and it helps me to see if I might be in a deficit and then I can tweak it. Don't feel guilty ,there are already enough things to feel guilty about !

livingleanlivingclean

I eat the same meals Monday - Friday. I find it helps with buying (cheaper in bulk, less waste etc) and prep, and I don't get bored. I'll probably eat the same meals for weeks.... So I might have entered my meals a month/6 weeks in advance.

I am doing comp prep at the moment, and macros changed last week, so I've done my "new" meal plan for the week today.

Weekends are more flexible - I have more time to get creative in the kitchen - these days are logged in the morning before I eat anything. I can't log as I go - I need to know what I'm eating and that I can get to dinner with food left to eat

leejoyce31

I pre-log weeks in advance. I sometimes tweak it a bit but at lost more than 90% is accurate. I enjoy pre-logging.

tinkerbellang83

I do a weekly food/exercise/goal planner on paper weds or thurs for the following week, I prep my workday lunches for the week on a Sunday and will add food into MFP 1-2 days ahead and then just tweak as necessary when I am weighing stuff out or if I swap snacks, the only thing I generally add in as it happens is exercise as I often do extra walking or switch my workouts around. It's helped me get 10lb off in 4 weeks so far, so I certainly don't feel guilty.

HMHolder001

I just got on here, and I've started to do this myself. I feel more in control and that I can manage my intake better. I also work around with what I put in to see what works and gets me closest to calorie needs. I feel like it motivates me to look forward to the day ahead and doing it well

zeke1111

Evening meals are out of my control, while weekday breakfasts, lunches and snacks are within my control. I record tonight's intake on tomorrow's diary; that allows me to adjust my daytime intake accordingly.