Have you tried to lose weight and failed? Maybe you’re exercising but not getting the results you desire. It doesn’t matter what the goal is, your diet can help you achieve it or make it impossible to reach. A healthy body starts in the kitchen. When people try to stick with a nutritious diet, all types of things get in the way. Even thinking of what to cook for meals turns into a cumbersome task. Having a meal plan can make a difference.
You meal plan throughout the week.
One day each week, plan the meals. You may use a program designed for you or create your weekly menu using local sales as a guide. You’ll use the food you buy in several ways. If you purchase a whole chicken, one main dish may be chicken breasts, another chicken salad, and a third may be chicken soup or a chicken casserole. On the next day, shop for food, and on the third, cook everything and pack up meals for the week, so all you have to do is heat and serve.
You’ll save time and money.
When you plan meals, you create a shopping list. You can easily check to see if you already have those ingredients rather than purchase duplicates. That saves money since you don’t have something sitting on the shelf about to expire. You can plan around sale items that week, too. There are fewer leftovers and less waste. You’ll know the exact calorie count since you pack your food in single portions. Best of all, making supper becomes so easy that you won’t be tempted to stop at a quickie burger that costs as much as three meals.
Meal plan around your fitness and health goals.
You package meals in single serving sizes so you always know the calorie count. You even plan for healthy snacks to remove the temptation of unhealthy, high-calorie foods. You already made the meal, so you never fear hearing, “What’s for supper?” If your goal is building muscle, you have the best meals and snacks to create muscle without adding extra calories to add extra pounds of fat.
- To save time later, double the recipe and freeze the extra for emergencies or times you can’t meal plan for the week. Eventually, you’ll have a store of prepared meals.
- In the first few weeks, meal planning may feel overwhelming. The longer you do it, the easier it is to do. You’ll still have to cook, but find ways to streamline it, like cooking two dishes in the oven at once.
- You’ll spend far less time in the kitchen than you would otherwise. If you spent 30 minutes cooking each meal daily, that’s 3 ½ hours. If you spend an hour cooking and packing the week’s meals, you’ve saved 2 ½ hours.
- Eat before you shop for the food that week. You’ll be less likely to make impulse purchases or add donuts, cake, or chips to your shopping list.
For more information, contact us today at Travel Trim