You probably keep a calendar for all your daily activities so you always know what event is on which day at what time. Have you ever tried planning your meals out that way? Maybe you should, especially if your calendar is pretty full with all those activities. Meal planning can be a great way to take the stress out of dinner (and lunch if there’s leftovers!), and reduce the amount of waste from uneating food that you purchased because you “might do something with that.”

Meal planning can be easy if you follow the steps laid out in this blog.

Large Picture: Time to Clean and Organize

1. Make a list of 10 or so of your favorite meals.
2. Gather all the recipes into one easy-to-locate spot (make copies, create a folder on your computer desktop, take photos and save them as favorites in your phone, etc.).
3. Clean out and organize your freezer (when was the last time you did that?).
4. Additionally, check expiration dates on all the products in your fridge. Start over if anything is super old, smells weird or looks bad.
5. While you’re at it, check the pantry and cupboards, too. Is that box of crackers in the back (one of the three open ones) still good or have they gone stale?
6. Purchase containers for leftovers or freezer meals.
7. Glass containers, such as pyrex, usually keep best and also freeze well.
8. Plastic containers are great for the fridge, but can crack in the freezer.
9. Freezer-safe plastic zipper bags or the use of a food-saver can be a great option too, although not necessarily very economical.
10. Designate an area in your kitchen to keep track of cooking supplies/foods that you run out of during the week.
11. Magnetized white board for the fridge.
12. Pen and paper inside the drawer next to the oven.
13. Decide how you want to keep track of what you plan to eat and when.
14. A calendar on the wall.
15. List in your phone.

Methods for Prepping

1. Cook in bulk.
2. If you’re preparing a meal that will freeze well, double or even triple the recipe, and save it for later!
3. This method works well for meatloaf, casseroles, sloppy joe mix, lasagna, tacos, soups, etc.
4. If you’re already cooking something with a veggies, chop and cook extra veggies to add to tomorrow’s meal 
5. For example: throw in some of last night’s sauteed tomatoes and asparagus with your morning eggs.
6. Double your main ingredient.
7. If baking a chicken breast for dinner, bake two and cut up the second to put in your salad for lunch for the next few days.
8. If cooking a turkey, save and freeze the extra meat to throw in with soup or other dishes later on (just don’t forget about it in your freezer!).
9. Does your recipe call for a cup of quinoa? Cook two and toss extra in with your morning eggs or tomorrow’s soup.
10. Designate a day for cooking.
11. If you have a crazy work week, you might take a few hours on the weekend to make several meals at once, save them in portion specific containers, and reheat them throughout the week or month as needed.
12. If cooking isn’t your favorite thing, invite some friends over and have them bring ingredients for freezer meals too. Then you can cook together and socialize at the same time.

Time to Take Action - Make a List and Go Shopping

1. Take a look at your calendar to see what days will be better suited for cooking, and which days should be leftover or freezer meal days.
2. Take out your list of recipes, and pick three or four for the whole week.
3. Write an organized list of ingredients you need for those recipes.
4. Try creating a chart with columns for produce, meat, grocery, dairy, frozen and other (i.e. toilet paper, paper towels, etc.).
5. Check out the list of items you ran out of during the week and add those to your chart.
6. Don’t forget about the staple items that won’t be ingredients in your main dishes (i.e. beverages, snacks, etc.),
7. Head to the store. Check out the following blogs for recommendations on specific types of the foods on your list to purchase:
8. Good, Better and Best: How to Navigate Your Grocery Store
9. The Dirty Dozen

Once you start cooking more meals at home, you might notice a change in how you feel physically, mentally and emotionally. The better food your put in your body, the more energy you will have, the clearer your mind, and the better you’ll sleep (which affects everything else). If you like the changes and want to see more, try signing up for my Masterclass and apply for EnergyRx. I will teach you how to navigate all of this and more in my program EnergyRx!

Source:

https://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/childrens-health/family-meal-planning-strategies/