Happy Friday (or Thursday if you’re reading this super promptly)! Remember that Mar, Cynthia and I have switched up our Friday Five topic format – check it out here. This week is the second week and so we’re talking food and drink. I thought I’d share my super easy, semi effective method of meal planning. Okay, so that doesn’t sound promising but the only reason it’s semi-effective is because I semi follow it. BUT one of my January goals is to be consistent with it so I’ve been working on it! Read on for my five tips for meal planning – I hope a few of these will help you! Just a quick reminder of our Friday Five rules: please reference the linkup and link to each of the hosts in your post. Happy Friday and have a great weekend!
- Keep your kitchen stocked with basics. I actually really enjoy grocery shopping but I often don’t have to time to do one big shop. So I’m regularly just picking up a few things here and there, but that’s not a problem because when I do have time to do that one big shop every month or so, I make sure to stock up on the basics that I’ll need to make an easy meal. For us, that’s things like almond milk, eggs, chicken, pasta and frozen veggies. If you have the basics in your kitchen, you can always pull something together at the last minute if need be.
- When you do go grocery shopping, have a plan. I don’t like to plan meals to the exact day, because that just doesn’t seem to work for me, but I do like to have a few recipes in my mind when I hit the store. This helps keep me from buying ALL THE THINGS (I really could spend hours in the grocery store, y’all. I love it).
- Don’t be afraid to grocery shop more than once in a week. Like I said, I don’t often have time to do a big shop, so I will pop into the store on my way home sometimes and pick up something I’ll need for that night’s meal. And that’s okay. I used to hate having to go to the store more than once a week or so, but if it ends up saving my sanity, it’s worth it.
- Make one or two big meals to keep you going during the week. I usually make a big bowl of whole wheat pasta or a soup or stew. It’s pretty simple, doesn’t take too much time and we can eat it for a few different meals. It can also be used to for lunch, which is immensely helpful!
- If you have time (I do not do this every weekend – probably only two weekends out of the month), prep your veggies and such for the week. I will boil potatoes so they are ready to be mashed, I’ll cook up my kale or spinach and I’ll boil my pasta. Those things make it infinitely more easy to pull together a quick meal during the week. I’ll also chop up sweet potatoes or squash or anything else that needs to be chopped. If I get this done twice a month, it really makes a difference!
Do you meal plan? What works for you?
I’ve realized that I do more meal planning and prep than I thought because I approach like you – I have an idea of several meals to fix depending on what happens, and I prepare some basic things – like a batch of baked oatmeal.
Great tips, Courtney! I am horrible about prepping in advance, but at least having grown up out in the country, I have a well stocked pantry. My mom only shopped once a week, and it was too far to drive if she ran out of something, so her pantry has always been well stocked and I just learned from her. My friends and neighbors know who to call if they’re out of something and don’t want to run to the store. 🙂
Love your new linkup button! Thanks for the linkup – I’m hoping to link up tomorrow.
Haha, being well stocked has its advantages 🙂 And Mar is to thank for our new button! She did a great job!
I always plan two main meals each week that we eat as leftovers the second night. The other three nights are either leftovers from the freezer, simple meals like stuffed pasta or sausages with a carb and a veggie, or out to dinner. (Admittedly, with Shoo’s soccer schedule, occasionally I’ve had cereal for dinner…)
I do pretty much do one shop a week and one HUGE Costco shop every couple of months, but I’ll pop in for an item or two if I have to.
Nice tips! It really helps to make two big meals and then be able to eat the leftovers for different meals.
Sherry recently posted…Five Fitness Goals for 2016
I do meal plan: I usually go grocery shopping on Wednesday as Sprouts has double ads where you can get everything on sale from the week before and the week ahead-you can get some great deals!
Baby steps with meal planning…I’ve started making scrambled egg muffins on Sundays – half a dozen – freeze them and then put one in the fridge each night so I can take it to work the next morning. Awesome mid-morning snack! Not a complete meal plan, but it’s a start! Thanks for the tips!
Bradley on the Run recently posted…Friday Five: Japanese Food
Great tips! I wrote about meal planning today too…although not in Friday Five format:) Have a great weekend!
Lisa @ RUnning Out Of Wine recently posted…Meal Planning and Prep {Week of 1/2-1/8}
These are great tips. It’s funny because my husband absolutely hates to grocery shop more than once per week but I don’t mind going (as long as it’s not a Sunday).
I’m loving your new take on themes this year for the Friday Five! Thanks for keeping it fresh. 😉 I totally agree with you on the success of meal prepping is to have a plan! I’m lucky because my husband goes grocery shopping on Friday for the week while I’m still at work. So then I have the whole weekend to get my butt in gear and to get my prepping done!
I have started meal planning/prepping and it has made my life easier and has also helped reduce my grocery bill! I love knowing exactly what I am eating all week and never being like “What am I having tonight…meh, let’s just go to Chipotle.”
I’m a meal planner. I plan the whole week every Sunday and then go shopping. It has worked well for us, since both my husband and I work.
Love the new link up button! Truth be told, i’ve never meal planned. I say I want to but never do. However, I DO meal plan for my labrador. She is on a special diet so I have to boil chicken and chop up fruit and veggies for her. I make several containers at a time because it is so time consuming.
Great post!
Ahhh never thought about making a big pot of pasta….totally!
I grill my meats on Saturday. I put together the veggies and carbs during the week.
Thanks for these tips, I am going to move to also:
-boil eggs
-cook pasta
-roast sweet potato
-cook veggies
For me the prepping on Sundays is key. If I don’t do that then my eating for the week tends to be very random!
I love meal prepping! It makes me feel ready to take on the week without having to stress over making dinners. I like to make soups and stews too. Anything that can go in the crockpot makes me a really happy girl!
Alaina @ The Simple Peach recently posted…Friday Five: Reasons to runDisney
I plan meals for the week, but not which day to make them. It depends on how I feel and how much time I have after my workouts. The crockpot is used a lot, both summer and winter, because I can make a big meal both days on the weekend and work on the leftovers during the week.
haha, I thought I was the only one who made a big batch of pasta at the beginning of the week! I love it because I scoop out a cup here or there to make a quick meal. Great tips. I don’t meal plan as much as I used to when I worked outside the home but it definitely helps.
Mar @ Mar on the Run recently posted…Friday Five: Why a Detox is Not For Me
I think I’ve got to start doing more veggie prep on the weekend; I thought I did quite a bit last Sunday, but I left a few things for the weeknights and that is NOT a good plan for me. I seem to get lazier and lazier in the kitchen as the week goes on; I’m going to try to adjust my planning for that this week! Thanks so much for sharing these ideas, Courtney; hope you have a great weekend!
I am book marking this! I need to improve my meal planning and cooking. I wind up eating the same dish all the time or going for convenience. Thanks for the great ideas!
I have yet to completely nail in my meal planning. I’m much like you, have meals in mind, the problem is I’m forever forgetting where the recipe I wanted to make is & I like to follow a recipe!
I did buy a EC planner with a meal planner insert — we’ll see if that helps. I’ve done paper, I’ve done digital . . . so far nothing quite seems to work!
Always have a shopping list, of course; that’s the biggest tip. I just hate it when something we need doesn’t make it to the list!
Great tips Courtney! I too love grocery shopping–Brandon hates it, so I’m able to go to the store alone and peruse for as long as I want! I typically only go once a week and stock up because it’s difficult for me to go after work, but I always have frozen veggies, chicken broth, a variety of proteins (salmon, chicken, ground turkey) and things like quinoa and canned tomatoes on hand. The one area I could improve is chopping stuff ahead of time–but I just want to relax!! I do enjoy meal prepping though, and I’m all about making a big pot of chili to last a few days.
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It can be hard to figure out a meal planning/prep routine that works for you but these are some great tips to figure that out. I am not a huge fan of grocery shopping but its a necessity so I just accept it and get it done. Its always best when I go into the store with a well planned list for what I need for meals I’m making that week. I also make a bigger meal (usually on Sundays) and have it for lunch or dinner throughout the week. Hope you have a great weekend!
Good tips. I have to have a meal plan and go to the grocery store with a list because otherwise I’ll just wander around aimlessly. It really helps me to have things planned out. But I still struggle with preparing all the veggies, etc. in advance. I know the week would be easier if I do that but it’s hard to find time for it.
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Great tips! Meal planning is something that I’ve been working on for the past few months, so I love your ideas 🙂 Happy Friday!
Gretchen | Gretchruns recently posted…Top Five Friday #38
I am a huge fan of meal planning. It took awhile for me to get there, but it is worth it! I plan out recipes for each day of the week as that seems to work a bit better for me. I do try to take into account our schedules and plan easier meals on busier nights.
I would definitely like to start making more time for food prep on the weekend!
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Great idea for Friday Fives this year. Thanks for the meal planning tips…right now the most planning I do decide what we’re having for dinner in the morning–so not last minute but also not really planning (hence we have the same stuff all the time!
meal prep is essential for me! I’m also trying to keep remembering that I have homemade meals in the freezer that I can always thaw out if I’m in need of something!
Love getting salads, veggies, proteins set aside for an entire week of meals. Makes me feel so prepared.
Definitely go to the grocery with a plan. If you don’t, you never know what you’re gonna come home with. Haha. Could be oreos, could be pickles. Anybody’s guess. 🙂
I love that you say it’s okay to go to the store more than once in a week. So many posts about meal prepping make it seem like you have to be perfect and “save time” by getting everything in one go, and sometimes that’s just not reasonable.
Great tips ! I prep a ton on weekends because I have absolutely no energy to do it during the week!.
I plan my meals in the same way! Keeping the pantry stocked with the essentials means I can cook as the day or mood strikes. I do a big shop for produce and proteins to use in the week, and sometimes cook a bunch of the veggies in advance (roasting brussel sprouts or beets). I usually put the proteins I’m going to use for the week in the fridge on Sunday.
ha, we’re thinking along the same lines – I wrote about why meal planning works for me. I definitely agree with at least one of the meals being a big meal that you can eat for several days. we made chili last week, and ate it for dinner a few days, and lunch today to finish it off.
I really try to stick to my list when I go grocery shopping, but there are often good sales that will catch my eye while I’m at the store. When I see them, it gets me thinking about how the deals would make great back up plans for meals during the week.
I try to do one big shop but I had to make an extra stop there on Wednesday this week! I try to plan one meal that will last all week (since I’m only cooking for one) and then just stock up on all the basics so I can mix and match the other meals. I also LOVE the grocery store and could spend hours there. I actually shop at a different one every week just to mix it up hahaha!
Great idea for the veggie prep. I’m terrible at meal planning. I’ll be really good about it for a while and then I’ll totally fall off the wagon. It totally makes it so much easier and I need to start doing it more, especially with the boys!
These are great tips! I actually have a post for this week on mistakes you’re making when meal planning! My biggest one is not utilizing leftovers and always just cooking for 1!
I try my best to meal prep with the time that I have. I do have some semi-healthy back up options that I am okay with if I don’t have the time – but my goal is to make the time. I try to prep egg muffins for breakfast, chicken with rice and veggies for lunch, and dinner varies but it’s healthy. I like that you are trying to stay with it. Thanks for sharing!