Questions about planning

maiomaio71

Do you plan your meals each day and know exactly what you will eat each meal? Or do you see what you have left at the end of the day and eat dinner according to that and have an extra treat (or not) according to your target?
If you plan, do you pre-log or do you just allocate calories and eat that number?

Jackie9003

Where possible I log everything I know about in the morning, I've just done my breakfast, lunch and snacks so what's left will be dinner and I'll have a think about what will fit.
Other days I will log the whole day but try to leave about 100-150cals for a random treat if I fancy one.

tinkerbellang83

I loosely plan in advance (around a week). I don't always rigidly stick to the plan, sometimes I'm just not as hungry, other times I can be ravenous, as long as my calories are ok over the week that's what I am most concerned about.

88olds

Maintaining now and run mostly on habit.

But when in losing mode, I used to storyboard my week. I’d look at each day and walk myself through each meal and snack. Initially my storyboards were in writing. Some meals were set. Breakfast was nearly always the same. Lunch option A or B. Maybe the choice of lunch locked in my choice for dinner. I also planned snacks and always included some kind of treat.

I thought a useful aspect of the storyboard project was that each day and the week in total included a “what could go wrong?’ section. Always looking ahead.

And this- a lot of the time knowing what was coming next helped keep me on track. If we plan meals that are actually appealing to us, sticking to plan when not feeling it is just a matter of delay. Delay is a lot more manageable than “just say no.” Example- I had get past the office vending machines to leave work. If my planned snack at home is worth waiting for it makes it a lot easier.

merph518

Not a bit. Though I do tend to stick to staples for lunch, so I guess knowing I'll have the same thing most of the time is kind of like planning...

kosseychick

I prelog at home however when I'm away working in camp I cant... because I'm stuck with what they serve which makes trying to lose up here very challenging... cafeteria meals basically for 2 weeks at a time..

NovusDies

I started by pre-logging everything but usually no more than 2 days in advance. I then moved to log as I eat. Now I know my food well enough to log afterwards.

I will still pre-log food I am not accustomed to eating like restaurant food just to see how it fits.

There is really no right or wrong as long as you find what works best for you. For instance I rarely eat what I call remnant calories. I will just bank them. While some people get excited to have an extra 100 calories left to have a snack I actually hate it. I have to manage myself on a weekly basis not a daily because daily just does not work for me. I tried an experiment for a week to see if I could do daily and it was a big fail.

maybe1pe

I will pre log my work lunches and snacks because they're pretty consistent and then loosely log something for dinner based on what I think I'll have but that's open to changing based on plans and level of motivation for cooking vs what's leftover from the last few days.

So yes, but I'm open the changing any or all of it based on the days actual events...

ConfidentRaven

I pre log for a week every Thursday. I will then adjust as I make changes. If I’m not hungry I might eat a little less or shift calories from a meal I’m low to a different one the same day, have a treat, or just not worry about it. My breakfast and lunch tend to be the same meal/calorie intake and all my dinners are close to the same calorie intake so it’s really easy for me to change things around if I want. I’m a firm believer in keeping it simple.

maiomaio71

This is so interesting. I have the same breakfast every day so that's easy. Our school provides lunch and I stick to the salads only. Occasionally I will have a protein bar. So dinners are my own cooking and usually my largest calorie intake. Sometimes I'll have 200 or 300 left over and bank them for a day when I'm hungry at work and eat the food provided...which I haven't cooked so I have to guess the calories for. Weekends are a bit different.

jjlewey

I have much more success when I prelog/preplan. Usually I do this in the morning when logging or making breakfast. I rarely plan further ahead than my current day. If I am diligent and plan it out I almost always stick to the plan. If I dont plan it out I tend to add snacks, extras that I should not.

papayahed

Lol. I loosely know what I'm going to have for the day. I make my lunch but breakfast and dinner vary slightly depending on what I have on hand.

I find that every time I prelog a meal something comes up and I dont end up eating that meal. Every time! Lol.

michne16

Planning really helps me. I batch cook meals on Sundays so I have a good idea of what I will be eating. Sometimes I pre-log it, but not always. I can deviate if I get a lunch or dinner invite and have managed to do that without issue. I just check the menu before and decide before I get there about what I am going to eat.

cheryldumais

I don't plan the week ahead but daily I have a pretty good idea of what I'll be having. Like many said on here I eat the same basic things for lunch and breakfast so dinner is the larger and more variable meal each day. My breakfast is usually on of three items and lunch is one of two items that I have either cooked or bought. I use lean cuisine or I make homemade soup. I am flexible should something come up but I prefer to stay in that groove. I've been maintaining for a couple years. My routine has not changed.