Do you Plan Ahead?

princessputz

Do you plan your meals ahead of time, I'm talking about 1+ weeks ahead, not just a few days.

If so, how do you decide what to make?

genxrider

For breakfast, lunch and snacks I pretty much eat the same thing every day during the week. I keep a limited amount of fresh food at the house in general - but have a lot of Trader Joe's meal components in the freezer so I usually end up having a variation of the same thing for dinner all the time too.

It just makes life easier. I get variety when we eat out.

bcattoes

No. It's almost 2 p.m. and I have no idea what I'm having for dinner. I'm not even entirely sure about my afternoon snack. The only thing I plan ahead is breakfast and that's because I don't really eat breakfast, but do have a glass of chocolate soy milk just about every day.

litlpineapple

If I'm "behaving" I usually plan for the entire week and then go shopping - working off of what is on sale, what is in season, and or what my fiancee or I have been craving. Certain meals can also be re-worked for left-overs to give them a twist and I keep those in mind for days that I don't have the time to prep/cook to my hearts content.

Amber393

I've tried planning for an entire month before but I couldn't do it. It was overwhelming. The only planning I do now is just for two weeks at a time.

dsjohndrow

I try to do a month. I don't like to have the same thing every day; especially for dinner. I made a 4 week calendar and keep a list of my Top 14 favorite recipes. I set up a spreadsheet for shopping (2 weeks) and have app on my phone for the list. I put in all my recipes in MFP so it is pretty quick to keep a diary. If I find something I like, I add it to the Top14. I may have a Top 28 at some point, but for now, a 2 week cycle works.

Let me know if you need some help.

Benji49

I've tried the planning a month ahead and doing the shopping list up at the same time. It's really time consuming and I don't just cook for myself so I get a lot of "but I don't want to eat that can we do something else" at the last minute.

mamashatzie

Every Friday I use a spreadsheet to plan lunch and dinner for the next 7 days. (I could plan 2+ weeks ahead, but I prefer to do it on a weekly basis.) Then on Saturday morning I grocery shop and stock up on everything I'll need. Every night I look at my spreadsheet and see what I'm making the next day, and do any prep that can be done in advance (chopping veggies, thawing frozen beans, etc.)

ckdub428

When I am doing good then I make a menu on Sunday at includes 6 dinners. I don't decide which dinner is on what day though. That way if I get home on a Tuesday and choice A doesn't sound good, I have no problems switching it up to choice B.
As far as what to make I have a photo album that I have filled with recipes and menu ideas on index cards and I just sit down and pick out 6 things that sound like they might sound good that week, and I try not to make the same the same thing too often or I will not want to cook, but go out to eat instead.
Hope that helps!!

Emellon

Heck yes I do, otherwise I'd just slack off and not follow a nutritious meal plan. I make a plan I can follow for 2 weeks, then switch it up to keep from getting bored. I make up my own meals and plan to have any starchy items at lunch only, not dinner. I also make a list of healthy snacks I can have and make sure I buy enough to last me the 2 weeks. The kicker is, you'll have to buy more fresh food and limit the processed stuff to as little as possible. I also cut up all my veggies and store them in Ziploc containers so they'll always be ready for me to cook up my meals. Planning can be a pain in the butt but it's totally worth it! Not to mention it's easier to track here on MFP, once you create your meals and save them here on the site, you'll be on your way to success. :happy:

tmiqueen

I don't, but my meals are pretty much the same.
Breakfast is cereal in skim milk. Occasionally I change it up with toast and milk, or fruit and yogurt (and milk).
Lunch is usually leftovers from dinner. Occasionally a salad or a wrap sandwich.
Dinner is usually meat and veggie with either pasta/rice/potato as a side.
I just grab whatever meat is on top that day in the freezer and thaw it....and work my way down until everything is used up. I grab the first vegetable in the drawer and work my way back. I rotate the pasta/rice/potato side.

ennaejay

I like to plan out about 2 weeks at a time. I have young kids in the house so it helps with not being pressured at dinnertime.

Planning ahead will help with your budget (you buy what you need for that week), and it will help with your day (ooooh look we have leftover baked potato soup tonight! etc). It will also ensure you can eat balanced instead of just reaching for a frozen pizza.

I tear out pages from Cooking Light mags, I look through old cookbooks I find at yard sales or somebody gives to me, until I have a small pile of things I want to try or new ingredients that sound cool to incorporate into our diet. I like to rotate what we eat so we get a variety. I use a calendar in Excel and pop ideas into the cells, I rearrange as needed, and can add a note for what "special" ingredients needed at the store (above and beyond the staples I keep at home).

Keep a pantry if you have space for storage.

Use a calendar or put it on paper, make notes, and if you plan ahead I think you'll recognize how it eases your life a bit if you keep up with it. You can also make double-batches and freeze portions to pull out on the nights where your life is CRAZY and you can't imagine thinking of what to make.

bcattoes

OMG!! People actual plan meals a month in advance?? I feel like such a slacker! I just go to the store or farmer's market once a week and buy whatever looks fresh or is on sale. When we get home form work my husband I decided what we want to cook for dinner. Sometimes we go crazy and decide to stop and pick up something specific on the way home, but that's pretty rare.

Dtrmnd86

We try to. I made a list of all the meals I want to make for September and the ingredients we need to buy in order to make them. I won't go to crazy and assign them to certain days though. I'll look at the list in the morning and decide which one I want to cook that night.

Grokette

I plan each week out by going through cookbooks for at least 1 new recipe to try and ask my husband what I have made that sounds good to him

I have to shop every week because I eat no processed foods and fresh food, particularly fruits and vegetables will go bad.

Tonight I am having fresh made italian sausage (yes I ground and seasoned the meat last Sunday), spaghetti squash and caesar salad for supper tonight.

jbootman

YES YES AND YES

I try to have on hand and eat the same foods for breakfast and lunch, boring perhaps but it gives me more freedom with dinner which I do not necessarily plan,

going into dinner with a set number of calories available has really helped, and eating wisely for my generous breakfast and lunch helps, by generous I mean that I am for now a volume eater and so I have a master list of those foods that give me real chewing value

Emi_Pie

I plan the entire week ahead every Sunday.

I make it easy on myself by choosing one vegetarian, one poultry, one seafood, one pork and one beef dish for each night's dinner.

Then, I go to the grocery store and get all the things I need, including my snacks (apples, canned veggies and soups) and breakfast needs (I keep slim fast shakes and ingredients for egg white english muffins on hand).

I make my lunches easy by making enough of each dinner to have leftovers to bring as lunch.