There are so many benefits to planning your meals ahead of time. They range from financial to psychological to physical to environmental. So, let's dig into the many ways meal planning can improve your life. I'm also sharing my FREE PRINTABLE MEAL PLANNING GUIDE, so don't forget to grab that while you're here!
MEAL PLANNING SAVES YOU TIME
Let's face it. Life can get really busy sometimes. There are jobs to be done, children to be raised, homes to be cleaned, e-mails to be read, texts to be answered, bills to be paid, etc. If you are constantly scrounging for something to cook or sitting in a long drive thru line, much of your valuable time is being wasted on unnecessary tasks. Planning your meals in advance reduces the time spent thinking about what you and your family are going to eat each day. Taking a few minutes to plan one day a week can greatly reduce the time you spend worrying about food. Simply having a rough idea of what you are going to cook during the week alleviates the question of, "What am I going to cook for dinner tonight?" If you are extremely busy during the week, you may even want to cook foods ahead of time. No matter how you meal plan, you'll be surprised at just how much time you save from the process.
2. MEAL PLANNING SAVES YOU MONEY
Considering the current state of the economy, I think most of us are looking to save a dollar any where we can. Food is one category where you can greatly reduce the amount of money you spend just by creating a plan. It doesn't have to be extravagant or detailed. Even a simple plan will provide you with a specific list of items you need. Knowing what you are going to cook will also make it easier to prepare food at home, so you're less likely to pay for expensive takeout or even more expensive food delivery. When you know what you're going to cook each day, you are less likely to let food go to waste. Planning helps you know exactly what you need and when you need it. You can even base your meal plan around the current sale items. Doing this can create even more savings for your wallet.
3. MEAL PLANNING CREATES LESS WASTE
When I fail to plan, we almost always have fresh fruits and/or vegetables that go bad and get thrown out. I feel so guilty when this happens. I know I should have eaten it, I probably spent money on unnecessary takeout, and I am wasting food for no good reason. When we go to the grocery store without a plan, we grab whatever looks good, whatever fits the budget, or whatever our kids ask for. When we get home, we may have a bunch of random foods that don't really go together or don't create a balanced meal. Then we either get take out or buy more groceries, and much of that food goes to waste. Let's be more mindful of how we approach purchases, so we can be less wasteful in our eating habits.
4. MEAL PLANNING REDUCES STRESS
It's really stressful to have the kids fussing that they're hungry while you're rummaging through kitchen cabinets and refrigerator drawers just hoping some magical meal will appear. I have done this many times and can safely say that magical meal has never simply appeared. Ha ha! Stress seemingly comes at us from all corners of the earth, so we should do our best to minimize it as much as possible. Planning meals reduces the anxiety of trying to cook something last minute while a toddler screams she's going to starve, or maybe your kids are angels. Either way, I highly recommend planning. You don't even have to choose a specific night for each meal. Just make a list of 6 or 7 meals you want to have next week. You can then choose what you're in the mood for each day. Just make sure to complete any prep work before the children start moaning that they're going to die of starvation.
5. MEAL PLANNING PROMOTES INTENTIONAL EATING
I can't even begin to count the number of times I've been trying to lose weight only to skip meal planning and end up in another drive thru or grabbing a frozen pizza. It takes such little time to plan your meals, but it leads to much more intentional eating. Now, I try to plan my meals for the week, as well as any snacks I want to have on hand. When I plan, I am much more likely to eat healthy foods and don't feel as overwhelmed with the process. This leads to having healthier meals for my family as well. It's so important to teach our kids to be healthy, and what better way than letting them help you plan meals? I like to ask my kids what they want for dinner and let them help me choose what we eat. That gives them some responsibility in the decision-making process and makes them less likely to complain about the meals I cook.
6. MEAL PLANNING REDUCES EATING OUT
As I've already stated, planning meals reduces the urge to eat out. Why grab a burger or another takeout Caesar salad when you've got a delicious homemade vegetable soup in the crockpot? Why stop for an overpriced frappe when you have the ingredients to make your own healthier version at home? If you haven't tried meal planning, give it a try for a couple of weeks and see if you aren't more excited to eat at home and less likely to stop for another takeout meal on the way home from work.
Click the image below to get your FREE PRINTABLE MEAL PLANNING GUIDE
This guide includes tips for meal rotations, blank planners for both daily and weekly meal planning, as well as sample menu plans. I hope this guide helps you plan budget-friendly, healthy meals for your family and create a less stressful and more enjoyable life for you as well.
Do you have any tips for meal planning? Be sure to let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading!
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