How do you plan your meals in advance....

m0nsterdad
m0nsterdad Posts: 37 Member
in Food and Nutrition
...when you don't know what you will be hungry for?

Replies

  • MamaRiss
    MamaRiss Posts: 481 Member
    I'm generally hungry for a meat, a veggie, and a starch. And I generally keep the same basic stuff on hand. So I decide what sounds good together and go with that. It's not that difficult. If I'm going out, I peruse menus online and find the yummiest item that fits my needs for the day.

    And usually I will start craving whatever I've come up with, and am actually disappointed if I have to change plans
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    I'm hungry for meat, veg, and something sweet. So I pre-plan for that every day. I like all the foods I buy, and feel like I could eat most of them any time.
  • debubbie
    debubbie Posts: 767 Member
    I typically write out dinner plan for the month on a dry erase board that is stuck to my fridge. If I come home and I am not feeling the day's meal, I may switch it to one I want better for that night. Sometimes, I have had to switch meals because I had overeaten at lunch and needed a lighter dinner. I am more likely to stick to eating healthier if I follow my meal plan than when I don't have some idea of what my game plan is for the night.
  • m0nsterdad
    m0nsterdad Posts: 37 Member
    Great advise....I don't know, it just seems like I spend more time wondering what to eat than I do actually eating....
    Thinking about dusting off the crock pot and giving freezer meals a shot.
  • AzWifenMom
    AzWifenMom Posts: 26 Member
    I am kind of like you. I can't plan a week worth of meals, but I do a couple of days. I also have on hand items to create some of my favorite meals. I use the same items to make several different meals. Once a week, mostly Mondays, I make sure I have all my basics on hand and then decide usually the morning of. That way I have a way to take care of my food cravings in a proper way. Hope this helps.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    Oh, yeah...I don't plan the whole week, I just plan a bit the night before or when I'm on the train-just for the next day. I do plan my calories out for the week though, as I don't eat the same amount every day.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    I have a meal plan for weekdays. I stick to it... Sometimes I wish I had something else, eat my meal anyway and feel satisfied - I'm used to eating for fuel rather than pleasure at some times (comp prep) so don't really mind so much. It's find its also time and cost saving, so I benefit that way.

    Weekends are more flexible :)
  • ForeverSunshine09
    ForeverSunshine09 Posts: 966 Member
    I plan weeks in advance helps with budget and calorie wise. If something needs moved around oh well. It can be moved. I eat about 4 different meals for breakfast pancakes, french toast, eggs and toast with hashbrown and sausage patty, or bagel thin with cream cheese. Basically for lunch it is a simple turkey sandwich, tortilla pizza, chicken breast with corn or aspargus or some leftovers. We plan nights out or new recipes for dinner along with about 30 different recipes we rotate through.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,570 Member
    My mother used to do up a monthly calendar with meals written into each day (lunch and dinner). Then she would do up a grocery list from that information, go shopping, and get precisely those items.

    It didn't matter what we were hungry for. If roast beef, boiled potatoes, and green beans were on the calendar for this coming Wednesday, that's what we got.

    My whole family remained slender the whole time I was growing up. Maybe there was something to her monthly calendars.

    For me, however, my planning ahead usually consists of me deciding what I want to eat an hour or two before I eat it, and doing a test entry just to see how many calories it will be and to see whether or not I'll have to adjust something.

    It might also include looking up a restaurant or cafe a day or two before we go to see what the low-cal choices might be.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    I just planned tomorrow and I can't stop looking at it. It's so beautiful. And I even got to add in dark chocolate to get me closer to my fat macro. Ahhh. I never thought I'd like pre-logging this much.
  • m0nsterdad
    m0nsterdad Posts: 37 Member
    I like having options, but it seems like there are just so many great recipes out there on the interwebs that I want to try that it makes it tough to decide, unless I plan them out, then rotate in the ones that I like best....
    I like the freezer meal idea but they really aren't practical for just one person.
    Does anyone just spend an afternoon cooking for the week?
    Are there some foods better suited for precooking than others?

  • MakePeasNotWar
    MakePeasNotWar Posts: 1,329 Member
    I tend to plan only about 24 hours in advance. I've tried the week at a time method, but inevitably ended up changing half the meals anyway. I often pre-cook one meal in a very large batch (chill, soup, lasagna) at the beginning of the week and put all but one or two servings in the freezer. After a few weeks, I'll have 2-3 frozen meals to choose from, and I didn't have to spend an entire day cooking. For me, more than 3 different things is usually a waste, as I end up ignoring the one I like least until it is freezer burned.

    I bet a quick google search for "freezer meals" will give you a bunch of information on what foods are better to freeze than others.
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    m0nsterdad wrote: »
    I like having options, but it seems like there are just so many great recipes out there on the interwebs that I want to try that it makes it tough to decide, unless I plan them out, then rotate in the ones that I like best....
    I like the freezer meal idea but they really aren't practical for just one person.
    Does anyone just spend an afternoon cooking for the week?
    Are there some foods better suited for precooking than others?

    My husband and I spend a few hours one day a week preparing bulk food (fresh and freezable). Frozen meals are perfect for one as you can have things you'd normally make in bulk - just portion the meal out in to individual serves. We use various sized snap lock bags and containers for freezing.

    We like stuff fresh, so still cook a little during the week, but the majority of prep and as much cooking as we can do is done on the weekend.

    I refuse to reheat meat, so we don't cook proteins we'd have hot during the week - unless in something like curry/casserole.
  • lilRicki
    lilRicki Posts: 4,555 Member
    I just pull out the meat to thaw before I go to work, and then figure it out and log it during the day so I can see how my macros look. I usually have veggies and a starch to go with it. My breakfast is high protein, lunch is low calories, and then I figure out what I want for supper. If I have to boost my calories, or I have to tweek my macros, that's where my snacks come in. Pinterest is great in figuring out what I want to do with the meat.
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
    I keep some basic things on hand

    Breakfast
    Cereal
    Whole milk
    Bananas or other fruit
    Slivered almonds
    Eggs
    Pancake mix
    Sausage(sometimes)

    Dinners and work lunches
    Chicken
    Pork chops or pork steaks
    93% lean ground beef
    Frozen brocoli and California blend veggies
    Brown rice
    Lentils
    pearl barley
    Whole wheat pasta
    Butter

    A variety of spices and seasoning and three kinds of soup base.

    Out of that I can make a pretty wide assortment of things.

    I don't usually decide what I a going to cook until I am on the bus ride home from work. Then it depends on whether or not I need to have leftovers for lunch to take to work.

    For instance today I made a pot of spaghetti. That provided tonight's dinner plus lunch for work for 4 days. So tomorrow I won't need leftovers. I have some skillet steak and fajita vegetables that will be the base of tomorrow's meal.

    I go to the grocery store about once a week when I need to replace staples or when I feel like I want something special.


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