Meal Planning
Monday, February 06, 2017
I'm so excited to be back to blogging again, and participating in a blog hop with The Blended Blog ladies again!
Big shout out to Deena & Shaunacey for helping me get back it. Deena kept me posted with all the going's on and also kept touching base when she thought a topic might interested me and the next few are RIGHT up my alley! Shaun - sorry for all the questions yesterday!!
Also you are probably here from Shauancey's site, and welcome!
Today's topic of Meal Planning is perfect because yesterday that's all I did - Sundays are my meal prep days! I'm sure the other bloggers have fantastic, perfectly cooked and creative meals , something from a Tasty video that pops up on my facebook feed or something.
Mine are healthy and boring. But it does the trick and keeps me on track!
A year ago my eating/shopping habits were as follows:
- Grocery shop with NO list, while hungry
- I woudln't eat breakfast most days, but if I did it was a breakfast sandwhich from Tim hortons.
- Drank 6 cups of coffee per day - at least.
- Drank a slush every day.
- Bought lunch at work every day (think pizza/sub/burger and fries)
- Order in food at least 3 nights a week. If I 'cooked' dinner it was something pre-made frozen I could throw in the oven.
Sounds healthy and cost effective right? wrong.
Here's how I plan my week. On Saturday nights (not on a full stomach) I write out my plan for dinners for the weekdays. And build my grocery list based on this. My lunches are mostly always the same, as are my breakfasts and snacks. Sunday Morning I go to costco (with a list!!!) and mostly stick to it. Sometimes I find random items I must have and my bill is probably around $300 per week. I have 4 kids so this is a decent bill.
This is a peek at my cart today.
Breakfast every single day is a Protein Shake (I choose Shakeology) with fruit & Spinach ( or kale, what ever I have on hand). I pre-cut my fruit and put in freezer bags for the week so it's grab and go. They look like this:
My first snack every single day is Hummus and some sort of green veggie. I CANNOT be trusted with large hummus containers. I lie to myself and say one container is one serving. not the 15 servings it really is so I have to buy the little guys like a child. But they do the trick. Plus it's easy to grab and go pre-cut veggie and one those bad boys and throw in my lunch container. I used to do Greek Yogurt, but I've cut back on dairy so I try and keep the yogurt to right before bed only and only have it once a day instead of twice - because my poor face can't handle it.
I pre-make 3 of my lunches on Sundays. The rest I do Wednesday night. I make a Salad right now (sometimes I do Quinoa salad but this week is normal Spinach Salad) and then 2 days/week I add Tuna to it. These bad boy salads are very filling. Having the prepped a head of time keeps me from going to the pizza place at lunch. I portion out my food with the Portion fix containers from 21 day fix, because they keep me accountable. But trust me when I saw I cram as MUCH as I can carb wise into the little yellow containers!
2nd snack (after the gym at lunch) is a pre-made shake. It's easy and I don't have to think about it. Plus they taste like chocolate milk.
I don't really "Prep" dinners because I'm too lazy to be honest. But I have a "plan" of what they will be , with a note on my phone of what we're eating each night so I can text my husband and tell him what to cook. Cause I'm the worst cook ever in life. And because I had this plan, it made grocery shopping that much easier. And because it's written out, I'm way less likely to come home and go 'Ummmm eff it, lets order pizza". And this works for us.
This week looks like:
Monday - Tilapia & Brussel Sprouts (I know you're jealous right now)
Tuesday - Slow Cooker Roast - Potatoes & Broccoli
Wednesday - Chicken Fajitia Rice Bake (my current fave dinner...here's a link)
Thursday - Garlic Shrimp & Asparagus (and more than likely a salad)
Friday - Jerk Chicken, Rice & Beans, Coleslaw.
I feel like that was long winded. Sorry about that. I know this is probably common place for most adult humans, but for me, it took me 36 years to get to this point. And now I feel like I'm properly adulting. I'm excited to see how others meal plan, and possibly stealing their ideas!
If you haven't already head back to the Blended Blog and follow the hop! (and also make sure to check the dates below for other cool topics coming up!)
10 comments
I don't think it's common place... or maybe I'm just bad too. Fast food is so convenient... but F it havoc on my body. I'm starting to get better with meal planning and food prep and it's a game changer. Plus, I feel way less stressed.
ReplyDeleteAlso, those tasty videos are the BEST!!! I need to make that chicken bake - sooo good!
Glad you're back!
I am like you, can't be trusted with a full thing of hummus. I usually spoon it into a smaller bowl for portion control. I should try the minis so I can easily bring to work. Great tips!
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness! I need those tiny hummuses (what is the plural of hummus??) I will also eat a whole container in one sitting if left to my own devices.
ReplyDeleteThey are from Costco !!! Lol
ReplyDeleteYou're back! Yay! So happy to see what you've been doing. I've been thinking of buying those shakes from Costco...but wondering is it an acquired taste? Or actually pretty good?
ReplyDeleteHigh fives to properly adulting! Loved seeing your take on prepping!
ReplyDeleteOh man. I should be a boss at this being at home but I'm not. This was such a reminder that meal planning makes my whole life easier and then I don't eat all the things. I'm 34 and feel like I'm only just figuring it out.
ReplyDeleteI really need to do more food prep. I would eat a salad everyday if it was already made. I had no idea I could buy hummus in smaller containers. So glad to see you back!
ReplyDeleteYour salads look super pretty! It's all about making healthy food easy. I love the idea of the prepackaged protein shake add ins. Do you freeze or just refrigerate?
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I am 58 and still trying to figure out the meal prep deal. Like everyone else, I had never seen the tiny hummus containers before. Terrific find. My daughter just told me about tiny brown rice containers and that blew my mind last week. Whatever you are doing, you sure are doing it right...you look amazing.
ReplyDelete