Healthy Food Menu Planning

@bouncyMusic133

Hi Bouncy…. 

Sounds like you could be referring to good old fashion “Food Prepping”.

While Meal planning and food prepping may not be the easiest of things if you are looking beyond the week at an entire month, especially if you are just starting out… however perhaps starting small and looking at a few days ahead (like 3-4), then stepping things up to a full week might help at first. Then buy what you may need ahead of time to be prepared. 

*First, Start with some basics and then build around that. 

*What do you like? Are you Vegan/Vegetarian? Etc…. 

*Start with your building blocks such as your “Proteins”. (Meats, Fish, Chicken or whatever that be for you)…. Then decide what you’d like to build upon that for the week. (Baked Chicken?, Grilled Chicken?, Spicy Chicken?, Chicken soup)?? 

*Or Ground Beef or Ground Turkey? And the dishes that you might like with that in it? Etc…. 

*Keep in mind Beef tends to last longer than Chicken. And both last longer than fish. 

*Then build your meals around those for up to 3-4 days By adding your favorite vegetables etc…. 

*If you want to keep it simple, you can make grilled chicken salads; Or Beef & Broccoli; or Ground Turkey burgers; or Salmon w/veggies and rice etc… All are healthy & quick options.

*Also with things like soup or meats, you can freeze them and thaw out as needed. 

*You can even make breakfast burritos ahead of time (with eggs or liquid eggs, veggies, Turkey bacon or whatever you like in your eggs). And wrap them & freeze them for the week ahead and just grab & go & microwave if you’re short on time. 

*Even incorporating Smoothies by slicing & bagging your favorite fruits, freezing ahead of time, and make when ready by adding water, or whatever preference of liquid choice is, maybe some spinach etc… and blend. Or you can use Frozen veggies from the freezer aisle. 

*Also, another quick note is to make sure if you are using fresh fruits and veggies is to clean them ahead of time. And store properly in containers so that they will also be ready to go when needed. 

There are also many other things you can look up on Pinterest, YouTube, Google, etc… to help you along the way. 

Good luck to you. We are here to support you. 

I eat 2 main meals a day between 11am and 7pm (intermittent fasting). I have a rotating menu of easy to make dishes for breakfast, with enough variety that I rarwly get bored. Then, I try to eat simply for any snacks and the second meal. Still important to leave room for “cheat” meals! I like to center the meals around a protein, then add in veggies, lentils (more protein), or a grain along with it.

In general, eat Whole Foods, healthy fats, high quality proteins, and food with high water content. Drink plenty of water during the day as well.

important to build a system that is flexible but based on good decisions for you and your body. (And I mean YOUR body, because everyone’s is different).

I like to write things down in my notes when a craving/strong idea hits. I’ll also look at grocery sales but these days I usually go with simple stuff. I like to make sure I have easy items. Cheese sticks, pickles, cottage cheese, cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, salsa & chips, canned tuna, frozen fruit, bread and pb&j, etc. Then I’ll put the proteins in the freezer till I’m ready to actually cook. 💚

A lot of times these days I will just bake some chicken or potatoes. Very fuss free and delicious. Chicken thighs are sooo good. My desire to cook has been a little nonexistent lately.

One thing I do is buy meat or fish for example, and put it in portion sizes in zip lock freezer bags in the freezer (raw). Make your freezer labelled and organised so you can find things quickly and see what meat/fish/veg etc you have available. So then when I want to cook it I take one out, and some frozen veg or fresh veg, and if I'm in a hurry then just put them in a ceramic bowl, rinse them, put an identical bowl upside down on top for a lid, and put in the microwave for 10 mins - meal done! You can also add salad veggies, lemon/pepper/spices and/or carbs or anything else you like if you want. 

I know it's not really meal planning, but  for me it works- buy a variety of different meat veggies healthy snacks and toppings, have them organised in your kitchen, change it up when you want. Might not be what you're after but I thought I'd suggest it :)

Best of luck