One of the best ways to be consistent when it comes to healthy eating is to take a few minutes to make a plan. Without a plan, you’ll likely get frustrated, overwhelmed, and fall back on convenience foods that may not offer much nourishment.
I know you know this already, and I know not everyone is a planner-aheader. As a matter of fact, I’m not always good at planning ahead either. But if I can at least plan a little bit. If I can at least have some ideas in mind of healthy foods I can make from the ingredients I have on hand. If I can at least have a few healthy foods prepared and in the freezer. Well, it sure does save my brain, my budget, and my having to resort to not-so-healthy foods in a pinch.
Here are some of my best planning-ahead tips:
Get into the habit of taking time to plan.
Sure enough, it does take time to make a meal plan. It takes effort to sit down and get myself organized when it comes to what we’ll be eating each day. There is no magic formula or magic wand to wave to put real food on the table without effort. But the time I save later after having spent time planning our meals for the week? Wow is it worth it!
Don’t make it difficult. Simply pick a main dish and a vegetable/fruit or two for sides. Don’t feel locked into your plan. Use it as a guide and be flexible. I switch our planned menu around all week long based on what sounds good each day. But since I’ve got a plan, I know I’ve got the food, so I can roll with it!
Always try to keep basic staple ingredients on hand.
Here’s a list of ingredients I try to always have available. If I have basics on hand, there’s no end to what I can make at a moment’s notice! At the very least, I believe it’s a good idea to keep a package of pasta and a jar of sauce on hand at all time to fall back on.
Always have frozen vegetables in your freezer.
That way, no matter what main dish you end up serving, you’ve got a vegetable in the freezer to pull out and steam to go with your meal.
Take advantage of resources available to help.
If planning meals isn’t your thing, there are plenty of ways to make it easier for you. You can always take a look at the menu plans I post each week to give you ideas. Better yet, there are services like Plan to Eat that practically do the work of meal planning for you. You can drag and drop your meal ideas into an online calendar, and Plan to Eat will even create a grocery list for you. It doesn’t get any easier! Their goal is to help make it possible for families eat together in their home. What a great service they provide! (You can sign up for a free 30 day trial here.)
What do you do in an effort to plan ahead for healthy eating?
This post was sponsored by Plan to Eat. I can’t say enough good about all they offer!
