When I suggest to clients that it’s easier to lose weight and get healthier when they have a meal plan, I can almost feel their disdain for the idea. However, meal planning and cooking the meals ahead on the weekend not only saves money and time, it makes it far easier to say no to take out and fast food. The meals are all ready to heat and eat, so the time spent during the week is less than it would take waiting at the drive through window.
Meal planning is a multi-step process.
One day is spent planning and creating a grocery list. One day is shopping for the food and a day or even two will be devoted to cooking the meals for a week or more. One of the biggest problems people face at the end of the day is that their brain is in no condition to decide what to eat. They just want something easy to get it done. Half of the battle is having all the ingredients on hand for a dinner. That’s why the planning and shopping phase is just as important, if not more important, as the preparation stage.
Cooking food on the weekend lets you rest after work during the week.
Whether your work is that of domestic genius, factory worker, office worker or multiple roles, at the end of the day, most people are exhausted. You can cook several meals at once, chopping and combining ingredients for one, while another one is in the oven. You can also double recipes, creating meals for a following week, cutting down preparation time later. If baked chicken is one meal, plan a salad using leftover chicken for another day.
Paying attention to serving size is important.
If you’re trying to lose weight, serving size is one of the most important factors. By planning ahead and using divided freezer containers to create your own microwave dinner, you’ll be able to have an accurate measurement of serving size. It also cuts the risk of leftovers and eliminates those questions about dishes tucked to the back of the refrigerator. “Is it brown vegetables or green meat?”
- It also is important to plan snacks, too. Don’t forget to make snacks that are easy to store, like veggies and dip or homemade trail mix.
- Planning meals ahead allows you to find ways to use all the leftover perishable food you buy for one meal for other meals, so nothing goes to waste.
- Planning meals lets you take advantage of sales and coupons. That provides one more savings, in addition to the savings on restaurant food and wasting food.
- When you plan meals and have a shopping list, you’re not only less likely to buy take-out or junk food, you’re less likely to impulse shop and bring home bags of sugary treats.
For more information, contact us today at Skin Sport Fitness