Meal Planning

evan_326

Hello everyone! I am starting my weight loss journey tomorrow.

I am just curious how often and how far out does everyone plan their meals. I am the type of person that will wake up in the morning and pack a quick lunch.

I have seen posts on here that people plan their meals 2 weeks in advance! Yipes! I don't even know what I want for lunch today lol

Plus, if anyone has any advice/tricks to drink as much water as I can (well, more than what I currently do), please share. I do the Crystal Light or off brand shakers in my water but, didn't know if there was something else that is just as as sweet. I have to have sugar-free though. I had gastric bypass almost 6 years ago and sugar makes me sooooo sick!

Thanks guys

coffee4me57

When I am doing this "right" I plan my dinners a week in advance before i go grocery shopping. I log breakfast and lunch the night before.

Comonemo

I usually hit the grocery store once a week and see what is on sale for meat/veg, etc. On a budget, I usually plan my meals around that and most often eat the same thing twice that week (i.e. make dinner Monday night, stick half in the fridge and eat the other half Wed lunch or dinner). I have found keeping chopped veggies and grilled cooked chicken or ground cooked meat in the fridge is a HUGE help- its a quick grab for a taco salad, grilled chicken salad, etc. As I am making dinner, I am also usually making my lunch for the next day (or as I am packing my kids' lunches, I make my own)...

Like you, I HATE water. I know, I know. I just don't enjoy drinking it, and usually have to force it down. (I used to be lucky to get one glass down a day and wondered why I had headaches, dry patchy skin, and over ate).... I finally set a goal, went out and bought a few refillable thermos/water bottles and now carry one with me at all times. Its amazing how just carrying one around will encourage consumption. As part of my diet regiment, I drink a glass of water (chug it really) a few minutes before I eat a meal- extra water and it helps with curbing the overeating. I keep a pitcher of water in the fridge and switch it up between adding a sliced up lemon or a sliced up cucumber in it (cucumber water is my new favorite!) I have also tried lime and strawberries, although the lime was definitely overpowering. It's taken a little while for my body to acclimate but I now actually crave water! Happy hydrating!

GingerLolita

I plan my meals weekly before going food shopping. I plan everything in advance, 3 meals and 3 snacks. If I already have a plan and have the ingredients waiting in the fridge, I'll be less tempted to make bad decisions.

shapefitter

:indifferent:

shapefitter

I am going to keep this short. I always start the day, with a pint of hot water, with a bit of lemon. My porridge, takes two cups, and if I have soup, that's another two cups. I drink mainly hot drinks, such as green tea, black tea, and herbal tea. As a general rule, I always drink something before eating.

beaches222

I plan on Sunday for the week and get everything together set my new goals for the week.

QueenBishOTUniverse

Here's what I do, keeps it simple, healthy and FAST. I love cooking, but during the school year I just don't have time to plan out and cook a special meal every night:

Breakfast:
Greek yogurt with mixings (change mixings as you like)
Apple
2 hard boiled eggs
Coffee with LOTS of cream and sugar (my weakness)

Lunch:
4 oz sliced turkey split in to two turkey "tacos"
Spread with 2 tbs. reduced fat cream cheese
Filled with thin slices of cucumber
These "tacos" are awesome and hit all my tasty food requirements
Mini bag of butter popcorn (sometimes)

Dinner:
Choice of Chicken Breast, Salmon, or Pork Chop
Rotate through 4 or 5 different marinade options
1/2 cup Risotto, also 5 different flavor options
3 cups mixed baby green salad, choice of 3 different dressings

It seems very repetative, but honestly, I've been eating this for almost three months now and it works REALLY well for me. I don't have any cravings for all the different types of food I used to eat at all, and I'm pleasantly full all day long.

I highly suggest just finding some of those simple basics that you really like and then just work on how you can rotate through them over the course of a week so you aren't spending all of your time trying to figure out how to make everything fit in to your calorie allowances. Just one less headache. Good luck!

MikaMojito

I do plan a little because I only shop once a week. So I think about how often I want fish or meat, I buy that and then I get veg/fruit according to offer and season. If necessary, I freeze some ingredients. However, I only plan my dinners and have easy things for breakfast/lunch, so cereal, fruit, raw veg or sandwiches.

I tend to buy 1.5l bottles of water and I get 0.5l coke zero as my treat. In winter I drink vast amounts of tea but in summer I never seem to drink enough.

GardenGirlie

I keep a lot of the same basics in the house as far as my salad fixins, veggies and meats. Every morning, including work days, I have my cup of coffee and computer time on MFP and that is when I decide what I want for lunch and dinner. I enter everything and see where the numbers land. I can then tweak so that I come up at the end of the day where I should be. From that point on, unless there is a very rare and unusual circumstance, that is the menu for the day and I do not deviate from it. Once I know what I am having I am in the kitchen packing my lunch for work during the week and that day is decided and done.

As far as water I am to the point that I hardly drink anything else. Many days I will log that I am going to have crystal light with a meal but in the end I just wind up having plain water. I am not a water lover and just started drinking it in any quanity at all in July of this year. I do not believe in drinking my calories and since I have to have a beverage when I eat lunch and dinner....that right there helps me get two 20 oz cups in in a day.

missdibs1

I find it is best to plan breakfast/lunch ahead. log them (honestly) and choose dinner based on calories left, exercise completed and family happenings.

themommie

I plan the meals for the week before doing the grocery shopping, then decide that morning which meals I will have that day, hope that made sense. Just do what works for you. Planning is the key, if you wait until you are hungry to decide what to make it is harder to make good decisions. Good luck

morticia16

Hi. I shop once per week, Sundays, in the grocery store and the farmers market; I see what is fresh and available and take it from there as far as my meal planning is concerned. However, I more or less only plan to the extent that I stock enough for a week, meals often get decided on the same day when I step into the kitchen; I have a hectic life and couldn't manage detailed planning for meals days ahead.

For water, I carry water around all the time. It helps to remind you that you should drink.

evan_326

Awesome replies and MUCH appreciated. I, like some of you, shop once a week. I think that what I need to do, is give my eating more thought. Instead of going "Oh crap! It's lunchtime! Quick, what do I eat!?". I did go to Aldi to get the cheaper veggies and fruit this morning and going to a bigger chain store for my meat and cheese.

The only way I like water is if it is SUPER ice cold (with ice cubes small enough I can eat) or SUPER sweet from Crystal Light but, going to try for the lemon, lime, cucumber water and try some new teas. Because coffee with LOTS of SF creamer and Splenda is my weakness

Thank you for the tips and ideas. I am going to use immediately!!!

QueenBishOTUniverse

Just so you know, that coffee I have in the morning has a 1/2 cup of half and half and 2 full tbs. of sugar, but I have roughly 1900 calories for the day so I make it fit.

I feel you on the water too, I've been using mio in my water, no calories, and if you get the the mio sport you get a good dose of electrolytes, potassium etc that you will probably want for your work outs anyways.

Also, maybe consider getting something like a bobble bottle or a brita water filter bottle to carry around with you. That way you can refill it where ever you go, sometimes you just have to force the water down until you get used to drinking more of it. I HATE water, but once I start getting heavy in to the work outs for a few months I find suddenly my tastebuds have changed and that water starts tasting much better.

harleygroomer

it really will help you to at least plan your week ahead. You will soon find the gaps in your "lifestyle change" where you have extra calories that need to be modified. Is not hard to do and be on the safe side and keep handy GO-TO snacks in the Frig.

tedens711

Bump

thistimewillbedifferent

I have found meal planning to be crucial to my success. Once a week I sit down and pull out my calendar for the coming week, noting which meals I'll be having out, which times I have other obligations that will interfere with my ability to cook, etc. I also take a quick peek in my fridge to see what items I need to use up. I then try to "fill in the blanks" and plan what I'll have for bfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner. I then make a grocery list based on that menu, although I do give myself freedom to switch things out at the grocery store if something looks particularly good or is on sale. For example, I might have planned salmon with broccoli, but then end up switching it to tilapia with asparagus when I'm at the grocery -- same concept, just a slight variation. When I get home from the grocery store, I go one step further (a recent addition to my routine) and do as much advance food prep for the week as possible: hard cook some eggs, make some beans, cook some chicken, make some quinoa, cut up some fruit and veg, pre-portion some almonds, etc. -- whatever my menu plan calls for. I freeze or store things in individual portions so that each morning I can just pull out whatever I need and so that each evening I can toss dinner together in an instant. It has helped me so much -- hope you find a system that works for you, too.

sunsetzen

I shop once a week so I plan a week's worth of dinners. My family is easy for lunch: they all eat sandwiches, so it's either sandwiches or leftovers. Breakfast is always a hot grain cereal with some milk, honey and coffee (I do love it!).

I also keep a list of recipes that we like, and that makes it easier when planning so I'm not constantly having to go out of my way to make things up.