The Importance of Meal Planning
The most asked question in any family is “What’s for Dinner?”. Yes, that is the dreaded question we all cringe when we hear it.
So many times I hear my friends complain about the worst part of their day is the question “what to make for dinner?”. That was a bit confusing to me, I think due to the family dynamics I grew up in, planning was embedded in me.
As the conversation continued, a light bulb came on, meal planning was not a tool they used in their home growing up. They were in a comfort zone and weren’t sure how to solve their frustrations.
They were used to the whole process of negotiations on what is actually going to be made and by whom can all be avoided. Don’t even get me started on how long the negotiations take each night and how those sweet little angels of children turn into hangry crying children.
Having tacos twice a week and having a stash of frozen pizzas works for some people, but you can be the envy of every soccer mom and be that person people want to be.
The meal plan or menu is out in the open for others to see and know what they will be having for their meal. Sure, there will be the opportunity for them to complain about what is on the menu, but really this is a great lesson for them to learn the reason why there is a menu.
Offer the options for that person to make something for themselves. A bowl of cereal, a quick sandwich or even skipping a meal are alternatives.
The Single Life
Sure I went through my early adult years not thinking about what I will make for dinner, after all there are about 10 fast food options on the way home from work.
Now that we have several apps that you can order a meal and have it delivered is also very tempting to save time, knowing a few taps of your phone you have a hot meal each night is super tempting to solve “what’s for dinner?”. Keep in mind this is a very expensive way to feed yourself and family.
However, during the process of trying to get my weight under control, that was no longer an option.
It should come as no surprise to anyone who is older than 16 that the importance of planning. Without a plan, a goal is just a dream. Or the saying goes.
I grew up with meal planning being part of the weekly process, it is something that I actually saw my parents work on together. My father would read the ads and my mother would sort through her recipe binder.
Though their process was important for feeding a family of nine and money management, going out to dinner was definitely a special treat and rare, it did teach me a great skill for being an adult.
As I began to be more responsible for ensure others had food on the table for meal times, I learned the importance of meal planning.
Focus on the Family
Once you get used to the process and actually doing the work it really can change how smooth your weeknight can flow after a long day of work. The most surprising part was how I could focus on my family members as soon as I walked through the door.
Another benefit, if you have another person in the house that is able to cook, you can call ahead and ask them to start the meal that was planned for that day. This is a great benefit when late in the day meetings go late.
Meal planning is important to a healthy lifestyle. It can be hard, though, to find the time in your busy schedule for grocery shopping and cooking every week. If you are looking for ways to make it easier on yourself while still staying within a budget, then check out these tips that will help simplify your task!
The most important part of meal planning is to keep us on track of eating foods that give us the fuel our body needs to achieve the important things we want each day to live our life to the fullest.
The Benefits of Meal Planning
Taking that 20–30 minutes a week to decide and plot out a meal plan helps solve the following issues:
- Improves the work to home transition time to be less stressful.
- Grocery shopping is easier with a list and assists on staying on budget.
- Time spent in the actual grocery store is decreased as you know exactly what you are looking for.
- Prevents the shopping cart being stuffed with non-meal foods that tend to be expensive and limit nutritional value.
- Less food waste each week
- Allows you to track foods for any diet plan you may follow. Or special dietary needs for a family member.
How to get started
Try to have a designated day of the week to plan out your menu and grocery list. Yes, it can rotate as needed but ensure that is accounted for in the meals already on the menu.
For example, if you spend Sunday morning planning, and next week, we have Grandma Betty’s birthday party at that time, you would look ahead and change your meal planning time to be either earlier or later. Ensure you have planned out a meal for Sunday evening as part of the week before, if you chose to plan later.
First, identify how many meals you will need to have to prepare for during the week. Include the weekends if there is breakfast, and lunch that needs to be added.
Secondly, for each meal needed, start with the protein. The protein typically drives how long the meal takes to prep and cook time. It also is easier to add the side dishes and work in that same time frame.
Third, it is time to choose the side dishes. We commonly will have a full head of cauliflower on the grocery list for a week. We use half for a single meal, and then the second half for another meal. This is a huge money saver.
Fourth, time to review the pantry. For each meal, do I have the spices needed to make the meal, or other ingredients? Add anything to the list that will need to be purchased.
Fifth, what other items need to be replenished in the house. Do you have enough tin foil, or how many cheese sticks are left for this new week?
Yes, it looks like there are a lot of steps that go much quicker in real life, and as you continue using this process, it becomes second nature and you don’t even have to stop and think about what is the next step.
How to format your list
At my best timing, it doesn’t take longer than 30 minutes to do the shopping for a full week, with less than 1 hour from start to finish and having all the groceries put away for the week. For a total time of 1.5 hours from list to pantry.
I write the list out in the same layout as the store floor plan. Group all the fresh veggies, protein and dairy together on your list. It prevents a lot of backtracking in the store, it also assists when the groceries go into the bags with items like.
The best benefit I noticed when I changed the list layout to match the story floor plan, I stopped forgetting to pick up an item that was needed. I typically forget a pen or pencil to scratch out the list as I place an item in the cart, but now I find, that step isn’t needed, because I can quickly scan the cart if I missed something.
Other Tips
Your list doesn’t need to be on fancy paper or in an app, my parents used a single lined piece of paper and folded in half the long way, inside was the meals laid out by days and the list was written on the folded sides. It was taken to the store and then unfolded and hung up for the family to see the menu for the week.
If you have an activity for a given night of the week, for example practice at 6:30pm, try to schedule a simple meal to prepare. Crock pot meals are great for these days or even a night of leftovers.
Keep your proteins frozen and take out of the freezer the night before and place in the fridge. This helps with less waste in case you have an emergency and need to adjust your plans at the last minute.
If you have space to store extras, this is a great time to buy in bulk, having ground hamburger in the freezer is one of the proteins we are never without. In a pinch, we can change the meal out to something that uses hamburger.
You might be surprised at how much more productive you feel when you have a menu plan and knowing what you will be making to cook and eat. If meal planning is new territory, there are plenty of resources available online with recipes that can help make the process easier. I am a huge fan of having Pintrest boards and also keeping a binder once you have a good amount of recipes that your family enjoyed and you will make again.
From making your own grocery list to keeping track of what’s in your pantry, we hope these ideas will inspire you to take control of your kitchen again. Before you know it, your friends will be asking for advice on how you manage to be so efficient.
We would love to hear if you have a tip we should have added or if this article assisted you in your life. You can find our newsletters sign up at www.sassythatsparkles.com. Each newsletter has exclusive content each month and free a printable as well.
