Do you plan ahead meals?

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Replies

  • Sprmc47
    Sprmc47 Posts: 82 Member
    Definitely have to plan ahead or I will probably fail miserably. I try and plan it out in my head, then really after making sure I have everything in the house I need, I just plan it out a day in advance :-)
  • BelindaDuvessa
    BelindaDuvessa Posts: 1,014 Member
    I plan a Menu for 2 weeks, but only for Dinner. Breakfast is usually the same if I'm working, and I don't eat Breakfast generally on my days off. Lunches are left overs from the previous night's dinner or something simple like a sandwich. I don't always go exactly by the Menu. For instance, if I find I am in the mood for chicken, but we have planned beef, I'll make a chicken dinner that I have planned for another time in the week.
  • sweetkeys
    sweetkeys Posts: 81 Member
    yep - I plan - I put together a menu for the week and do my shopping based on that menu - it's better to have a plan than go crazy eating things you shouldn't when you're really hungry
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I take my lunch and most snacks to work, so those are always planned.

    My evening meal is unplanned most of the time. Usually only if I have something in the fridge that needs to be eaten today to prevent spoilage do I know for sure what I'll have for dinner before I leave work in the evening.
  • firelle
    firelle Posts: 118 Member
    I try to plan the day ahead. But sometimes there are blanks or things go unexpected. No biggie. Sometimes I'll have it set up as a meal so I delete it to make room for the unexpected one and move my planned one to the NEXT day so I have no excuse. And oh when it is unplanned I still don't go nuts. =)

    Like today I'm planned but tonight is a potluck thanksgiving dinner so I'm leaving it blank... I'm at 13/4/48 already for carbs/fat/protein, but I'm working out so it's no big to me. I'm happy I still planned everything else.
  • rubyautumn4
    rubyautumn4 Posts: 818 Member
    Yes, I try to plan two days ahead - then I know what I need to get at the market and makes dinners/lunches easier too. I know what's in the fridge or what I will make for dinner when I am leaving work so that we don't go out to eat as much just because we're hungry. Cooking at home is healthier than eating out. I like to make enough at dinner so that we have leftovers for lunch the next day as well. Better on the wallet too!
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
    I don't plan ahead but my options are so restricted -- fat, meat, vegetables and a little fruit -- I can't mess that up.
  • californiagirl2012
    californiagirl2012 Posts: 2,625 Member
    I thought about how I lost weight in the past and that included planning ahead what I'd eat for the day. Do you?

    YES! And sometimes I enter my food in MFP a day ahead. It is a great tool for that and keeping within your calorie budget or figuring out what to pack for the day the next morning. You can delete and add and adjust amounts, it's so COOL! :)
  • AllonsYtotheTardis
    AllonsYtotheTardis Posts: 16,947 Member
    I typically plan a day or two in advance, because I need to make sure I have the ingredients for whatever I'm planning to make for supper. Leaving it until that afternoon is counter-productive - I maker poorer choices if I'm shopping when I'm hungry.
  • plumsparkle
    plumsparkle Posts: 203 Member
    I have just started planning out my meals for the whole week, literally, my breakfast, lunch and dinner, and any snacks i think I'll want, and writing a shopping list so I only buy what i need. So far, i've noticed it saves me money and i'm not throwing as much food away which has to be good. I do fill in my food diary in advance, but then i tweak it if i do change anyything. It seems to be working ok so far!!
    :happy:
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    YES! My motto is if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail!

    Oh, I thank God that is not true for everyone. I may be the world's worst planner!
  • barb1241
    barb1241 Posts: 324 Member
    I usually plan for a week ahead and also keep a generl idea for the following week. We get a co-op producebasket twice a week, so it helps me to know when I need to cook the veg or fruits so they don't go to waste. Right after we get the basket home, I make a menu based on what's in it, then go to the store for the rest of what I need for the week. We have just a few things we do for lunches, so I buy that stuff then, too. My breakfast is almost always just a cuppa and I have breakfast food for lunch, then a bit of protein for a snack, then a bigger dinner. And an evening snack as well.

    Dinner is the most planned and the other meals/snacks are moderately flexible, and subject to chnge based on exercise-if I canmove more, i can eat more!

    It helps me to know when my next meal is gonna happen and when I'm aware of what it is, it's much easier NOT to drive through for fast food on the way home from hiking, etc.

    Barb
  • krystal_black
    krystal_black Posts: 86
    I prepare and freeze my meals in seperate containers for the week that way after work i can hit the gym get a good workout in and then go home and just have to heat up dinner, this helps too with making sure i eat the right portions etc.
  • shrinkingislander
    shrinkingislander Posts: 315 Member
    I make a giant pot of soup and a huge grain and vegetable sald (bulgar, quinoa, millet, kasha etc) on the weekend and it helps cover our weekday lunches and the occasional dinner when I do not feel like cooking. This has saved us so much money in our food budget; we have less food waste; we don't eat out (healthier and cheaper) and it provides a wholesome low stress meal alternative. Yesterday I made a jumbo pot of vegan curry split pea soup and a mexican bulgar salad.
  • Klopford
    Klopford Posts: 129
    I try to. I now have some food in the house that I bought myself and know how to prepare to use in place of going out with my parents if I wasn't careful during the workday and they decide we should go out for dinner.

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