how to make meal planning work for you

I’m not an organized person. It just doesn’t come naturally. But I’ve learned that you don’t have to be an ‘organized person’ to have a plan. Inside this podcast, we dive into how to make meal planning work for you. 

There is a lot of preconceived notions around meal planning. You may have even tried it and decided it wasn’t for you. I did my fair share of that over the years starting, quitting and starting again only to get frustrated and stop again. 

But I knew, that meal planning was the secret to eating healthy. I mean you can talk about healthy eating all you want, but if you don’t have healthy food to eat, it’s just not going to happen. 

I knew meal planning was a ticket {at least one} to getting healthy and staying that way. 

So I picked it up again, only this time I questioned why it hadn’t been working and what I could do to get back on track. That’s when I realized that meal planning didn’t have to be some strict, rigid plan that stressed me out, but that you could form a method based on who you are. 

Inside today’s podcast, I share how to make meal planning work for you, and I even give the system that works for me. 

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it’s freedom

Inside the podcast, we talked about the mindset of meal planning. There is the thinking that I need to do this and if I don’t {fill in the blank}. But with this mindset often comes dread, frustration and the vicious cycle of starting and stopping.

Instead, I want to challenge you to something new. 

What if, instead of looking at meal planning as an obligation you viewed it as freedom? To channel the thought of the possibility of what meal planning opened up for you. Start thinking about meal planning that way — with a positive spin and who knows, maybe it’s just the freedom you’ve been looking for. 

my system 

My system is that I don’t use one method, but I’ve meshed together a few things that work well. Here’s the rundown. 

I only write full meals for suppers Monday – Friday. 

• Don’t plan for the weekend but plan for that when the weekend comes. 
• Don’t plan for five nights of meals but only 3-4 based on how busy our week is.
• Write out full meals but don’t necessarily prep them. 

example

For example this week my planning looked like this: 

• MONDAY: Grilled Hamburgers + Sweet Potato Fries + Chopped Salad
• TUESDAY: Rice Bowls with Grilled Fajita Chicken
• WEDNESDAY: Chopped Italian Salads {Rotisserie Chicken}
• THURSDAY: Music Concert – Pantry Meal {5- Ingredient Blender Pancakes}
• FRIDAY: Dinner Out

From this list, I make a grocery list and circle anything I can prep ahead without taking too much of my time. In this meal plan, I only prepped ahead rice – which I also used in my batch cooking for breakfast and lunch. 

breakfast + lunch plan

For breakfast and lunch, I use the Batch Cooking Basics system. It’s super easy and flexible. Instead of focusing on prepping meals – you put a focus on ingredients. 

GET THE BATCH COOKING GUIDE HERE

For the week I prep five ingredients and then use them to mix and match with other food products I’ve boughten or leftovers we have to make meals. 

The goal is to make one of each: 

• Protein
• Dressing
• Salad
• Grain
• Vegetables

Then you take these things and mix and match them to make meals. For breakfast, it could be a hash, toppings for avocado toast, a breakfast salad and lunch you could have salad bowls, lettuce wrap mixtures or rice bowls. 

There are endless combinations but rather than focusing on full meals you focus on ingredients taking prep time from hours down to minutes. 

partially-cooked foods

Of course, I still believe that some convenience food is worth it. Because it’s just one less thing, you have to do. However, when I have time, I will try to make ahead some grab-and-go foods that I can keep in the freezer for a quick breakfast. Things like: 

• No-Bake Granola Bars
• Healthy Packed Instant Oatmeal
• 10 Minute Peanut Butter Energy Bites
• One Bowl Blueberry Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
• No Bake Fat Bombs

But I still always have some convenience foods, partially-cooked foods or pantry staples to make sure we eat well all week long. 

Some of my favorite partially cooked foods include: 

• Rotisserie Chicken
• Chopped Salad Mixes
• Frozen Fruits
• Frozen Vegetables
• Trader Joes Cauliflower Gnocchi
• Coconut Milk Yogurt {or large plain yogurt tubs}
• Salad Dressings 
• Seasoning Packets {I like Simply Organic}
• Tortilla Shells {Like Siete for grain-free options}
• Gluten-Free Bread to keep in the freezer

pantry staples

Of course, having pantry staples never hurt and keeping a list of what you can make from them is even better. Here are my go-to pantry staple recipes: 

• Tacos {because I always have ground beef and taco seasoning on hand}
• 5-Ingredient Blender Protein Pancakes
• 6-Ingredient Blender Protein Waffles
• Cauliflower Gnocchi Pasta

make it work

I know it seems like a lot – but trust me when I say it’s not. Even if I don’t prep anything, I still know I have a plan, at least for dinner. But I can assure you, prepping food, just basic ingredients for an hour on the weekend can change your entire week. 

Health without meal planning is pretty non-existent. Well unless you have the means to hire a professional chef or can grab healthy restaurant fare daily. Outside of that,it’s one big and critical component to eating well. 

batch cooking guide

Don’t forget to head over here and grab your batch cooking basics guide. It will transform your meal prep – I know it has mine. Click here to get it now.

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