planning meals for the week. anyone doing that?

balloongirlagain

hi there. i was wondering if anyone plans their meals for the week and would you say that makes things easier/more manageable for you? it's a big deal for me as i'm a working mum and end up eating all sorts of rubbish because i'm constantly running around. so was thinking perhaps planning would make all the difference as i would know exactly what i'm eating and when. is that doable do you think? thanks

maureenec

I'm a working mom also, and I've found meal planning to be a big help. Here's what I do:
On Saturday morning, I look at the Skinnytaste blog to get some ideas for meals for the week. I write down everything I'll need from the grocery store and I shop on Saturday afternoon. I will freeze foods if I'm not sure which day they'll work into the menu. Every three or four weeks, I'll hit Trader Joes to stock up on frozen "emergency" meals and side dishes, so that even if my plan doesn't work out, I don't have to scramble and I never, ever have the need to just grab something yucky.

I also post the plan on the fridge so I'm accountable. Last week was (Edited to add that I tried to just remember which is stupid cause I have my diary & discovered I mixed up days and meals, but you get the idea):
Monday - grilled chicken breast, roasted potatoes, veg
Tuesday - Greek style turkey meatballs on flat out bread with skinny tzatziki sauce & basmati rice with edamame
Wednesday - I had a meeting so we all ate leftovers or something frozen
Thursday - chicken sausage with low fat pesto on penne and a salad
Friday - buffalo chicken lettuce wraps with garlic and parmesan potatoes
Saturday - tonight- we're making chili
Sunday - tomorrow- lots of dips and junk for a football party (oh well, so much for my good week)

Hope that helps! I've found meal planning to be a major bonus for my family's health.

Nina2503

Definatley! I work a rough 7 day plan and make sure I have the food in. i may need to nip out and to top up in the week on real fresh sutff that doesnt keep but I believe if you fail to plan you plan to fail. I am not rigid as in I will eat this on Monday etc but I know from experience how many times I didnt have breakfast to find myself runnig to the vending machines to get something and our vding machines at work are full of chocolae bars and crisps)

Planning seems like a hard chore but really 20 or 30 mins once a week is a lot less stressful than spending time kicking myself for eating rubbish when I failed to plan. I think of it as 'investing' in myself!

NyimaR

I do! It makes the shopping easier as I don't have to keep popping out for things mid-week and I'm not throwing as much away that I haven't used.

CyeRyn

The only reason I don't plan my meals is because it gives me an excuse to walk to the grocery store (40min of cardio) so for me it encourages me to get out more. Sad but true.. especially true in winter. I do however try to plan a couple nights in a row if that counts.

TonyStark30

I make a rough plan of what I'm going to have so know shat I have to buy or prepare. As I've been doing it so long its good because I can plan my bad stuff in too, so I don't really NEED to have cheat days I eat cake most days lol

charl2712

I've actually been doing this for the last 2 weeks and I have dropped alot more weight in these 2 weeks, then I did when I wasn't. It really helps me to stay focussed by planning my meals and stop me from being tempted by that "bit of chocolate" that I'm being offered when at work, as I know that I don't have enough calories. So it definitely works for me!

jaimeteague

I always plan, put the plan on the fridge and pretty much stick to it. It takes me about 30 minutes, but then I'm never thinking "what shall I cook tonight" which can be an advantage with 3 kids saying "mum, mum, mum" lol

HelenDootson

As a working mum of two, planning meals is the only way I don't stray - Don't throw food away either so saves my waistline and my purse

love4fitnesslove4food_wechange

Totally doable! Microsoft word has a "menu planner" in their templates (2008 version for MAC) but I'm sure you can find one online.

Graceious1

I'm a working mum too and I tend to plan for a couple of days in advance. I always have nutritious food in the house that I can fling together in an instant. My son is 7 and he is an influence when it comes to meal planning because he tends to eat lots of veg and likes fish.

GeekyGoddess

I always plan out my week and shop on Sunday. I try and cook something on Sunday night that will feed us (there are only 2 of us) for a few nights during the week also. I also live by the motto if you fail to plan you plan to fail. I'm trying to save money for a new car, so doing this is helping a lot. Also, with planning and shopping I have stared using these things called coupons and guess what, they save you even more money lol! (sarcasm in case someone actually thinks I don't know what coupons are).

januadiaboli

I plan out most of our meals well in advance, although I don't always make them on the day I had them scheduled for ... depends on what's happening and how much time I have. I buy most of my groceries for the week on the weekend (just came back from the city where we hit the farmers' market, organic food store, and our favourite butcher), but do leave highly perishable items to be picked up on the way home.

I also tend to cook ahead a bit ... I know that Wednesday is going to be crazy, so I put together homemade soup this morning, then will freeze it and defrost it Wednesday morning. With two small boys, two jobs, and my husband out of town a lot for work, I find we need a bit of structure or we'd end up eating macaroni and hot dogs way too often.

mamagooskie

I used to plan for the week. I didn't have a set meals for each day but I'd make sure to have a variety of dinners planned to make and all the groceries to make each one. Then each night I'd plan for the next day, most often lunch was leftovers and breakfasts are just cereal etc so really I needed to buy stuff for 7 dinners and stick to the plan.

It was easier to stay on track with eating and on budget. I kinda fell off track with this but slowly I am starting to do it again. I can usually shave 200$ a month off my grocery bill by doing the meal plans.

marysue1965

good for you, i also plan my meals & snacks, usually by the day, but for the week would probably save me some time, i beleive its very doable if we discipline ourselves. Keep up the good work.

tvanhooser

Yes, I do make a list of what to have for dinner, as well as flexible quick breakfast and lunch options. I use that to make my shopping list. That way if I am trying any new recipes, I can enter them into the recipe calculator for quick calculations on how it will affect my numbers for the day or make any adjustments to the original recipe to make it healthier for my purposes such as use fat-free sour cream, low-fat milk, lite mayo or unsalted butter or remove any unnecessary added salt, use whole wheat breads and flours and so on. So I can make classic family faves without completely blowing my diet plan. Then I have the recipes saved for future reference for quick adds to any meal. At this point 3 1/2 months into MFP, I have enough of our common recipes saved that it saves time in planning meals for the family that will also fit my diet plan because I don't have time to cook twice and if it's good for me, then it's good for them too even if they aren't needing to watch their calories as closely as I am. The whole family benefits from the healthier choices that come from meal planning.

davidjohnb17

I tried it but it just didn't work for me. I found myself wanting things that weren't allocated for that day so gave up. Unless you are severely pushed for time everyday or are just a super organised person I don't see how planning meals in advance will help. You can't know what you feel like eating a week in advance. I had a friend that did it aswel and stuck with it and she became super annoying and wouldn't come out for meals with us incase she couldn't order what she had planned for that day and it's like your bodies not gonna punish you by going "NO! That soup was for friday you B!tch! Right i'm adding a pound on"

rose313

I plan my day, but not my week. It's just me and my bf, no kids. I add everything to my diary in the morning, and if I don't eat something I've added, I just delete it.

CindyLHare66

I have been a working mom my whole life so I know what the struggles are. I recently opted to stay home and raise my second family of which are only 16 months apart, the oldest are in college.

Soooooo I dont have alot of time to think about meals with two little ones hanging on me needing my time. Feels like I had more time when I worked...LOL. Anyway, what I have found works is buying in bulk the frozen items that are so time consuming to add to your meal but make it REALLY good. Love the 3 pepper and onion frozen veggies, also broccoli and cauliflower, asparagus. I have a steamer or I roast them in the oven and I always make extra and store in the fridge.

I buy individually frozen chicken breast and fish fillets to keep things easy. I keep things on hand that are fast. For example Jennie-o lean trukey pastrami, also fully cooked jennie-o sausage patties which I grind up in my food prcessor, throw in the pepper and onion mix and viola, omelette filling in a flash. I have individually frozen 4-5 oz steaks as well.I buy all that in bulk from a wholesale restaurant food service supply. Therefore the only things I need to shop for on a regular basis are the perishables. I plan each day ahead, cause I find it hard to plan the whole week. But with everything I keep on hand, theres enough to get thru each week and then some.
Planning has been key for me. I recenly started planning all three meals for the next day and that has helped me not go over my goal. Also been implementing a 1200-1500 rotation plan concentration on 40 30 30. It has been a huge eye opener!
Good luck!

Leeannboswell

Hey that's a great idea! I'm going to check out the online versions of menu planner! Thanks

JlenniferL

Plan out meals ahead of time. My hubby & I are using this app and have been successful losing weight. Shop on Saturday for what meals we are eating during the week. 2 days a week (work days) we have a salad in our lunch. Have eaten far more fruit & veggies since using this diet. I have cut back on the sugar and eliminated soft drinks all together. So planning is a good idea.

balloongirlagain

This is amazing and very helpful. Thank you!

SnugsNinja

I don't plan by week I usually do day by day or two days. For instance I'll go to the shops and buy soup,veg,fruit some chicken/beef and cereal and that will be my food for the next day or two. I find it easy to manage that way instead of what I'll be eating 4-5 days in advance, and it gets me out the house.

tigerlinly

mom and i tried that but it only lasted about 3 weeks (mom always starts things like that but never follows through and then wonders why i never follow through on my weight loss

HisShadow

hi there. i was wondering if anyone plans their meals for the week and would you say that makes things easier/more manageable for you? it's a big deal for me as i'm a working mum and end up eating all sorts of rubbish because i'm constantly running around. so was thinking perhaps planning would make all the difference as i would know exactly what i'm eating and when. is that doable do you think? thanks

Yep, it works very very well.

Masterdo

No other way to go for me It's FAR too easy to just eat out if there is nothing that will go bad at home if I do. Plus I usually plan my workouts, so it helps to have the extra calorie intake planned in advance as well, makes the whole thing easier to manage!

TAMMYCLARK62

I don't do this but I am going to use it as one of my goals to start doing.....sounds so organized.....I am terrible for forgetting to take something out of the freezer and then making something quick

thatlisagirl

I have a very rough plan for my upcoming week, but I tend to only buy the things that I know I can have and then add it to the diary as I go...it has been helping. What really helped me is learning the mechanics of weight loss as a trial and error process ....I am great at maintaining, it was the losing that was difficult for me and my metabolism. But, with the bumps, I am on track :-) I have tried to wing it when I first started, without a trip to the store before the week and it did not turn out well at all, and gained. Just know your limits :-)

makemewannadie

I try to do this on paper (not on mfp), planning out the meals for each week just because my boyfriend are on a really tight budget and it helps us figure everything out (: Every morning I prelog what i'll eat for the day, then make adjustments at the end of the day if I need to.

JenniferNoll

My family menu is planned two weeks in advance, because I do the major shopping every two weeks. I return to the store every few days to get fresh items. I keep a fully stocked freezer and pantry for the sake of variety. If chicken is on sale, I buy a crapload of chicken, or fish, or turkey, or whatever else is on sale. Cheese freezes well, so I buy that on sale too. I keep a spreadsheet of the menu on the fridge, and it helps me to remember to defrost the right food for that day. Sometimes, meals get switched around for one reason or another, but I find that it's not a problem.

I just find that I spend a lot less on groceries this way, and meal planning is a whole lot less stressful if planned ahead. We don't eat out much, so I just find it easier to plan ahead.

Valleydachs

I actually LIKE to cook so I find it enjoyable to look at recipes and make a menu for the week. I do NOT like to grocery shop but if I have a list made for my menu items, it's a lot easier and faster to get that chore done. Also it helps me to plan my calories better. I have about 4 GOOD Weight Watcher recipes books that I use a lot and I just installed a recipe toolbar for even more ideas. Keep bein' a LOSER!