How To Eat Well
How to Eat Well
“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”
This saying is so true with regards to most things, but especially true for your daily intake. The only way I manage to eat well during the week (and it is vital for me to practice what I preach!) is to plan what I am going to eat
Five to ten minutes is all it takes to plan your meals for the week, however it will end up saving you time during your time-poor week. It will also save you from unwanted calories, unwanted fats, possible weight gain (as you won’t be eating take away or pre-packaged convenience foods) and it will definitely help you save money
As I work full time from Monday through Friday, I plan and shop on a Saturday. I then cook ahead as much as I can either on Saturday or Sunday, portion it out and freeze meals (both lunches and dinners) for later in the week. It really doesn’t take that long and I have been doing it for so long that it is just part of my weekly routine
How to Meal Plan:
- Use a template like this one
- Mark what nights you’re home and mark off when out
- Determine who is home for dinner and multiply the menu out accordingly, using recipes you are familiar with
- Plan meals depending on time available to cook (need help? Check out some done-for-you meal plans here)
- For those nights with limited time, plan to cook meals on the weekend, portion control and freeze them. All you need to do on the night is heat up the meal and throw together a salad or quickly steam some vegetables to go with the meal
- If possible, when cooking, double or triple the recipe to freeze for other nights
What to do next:
- From the week’s plan, write your shopping list
- Shop once for non-perishables and enough perishables for the next 3-4 days. You may be able to quickly grab extra fresh fruit and vegies later in the week
- Prepare food before storing – wash and chop vegetables where possible; wash and dry lettuce/spinach leaves etc; wash and dry herbs ready to use
- Cook meals ahead of time and freeze if possible
Forgot to Plan?
The easiest shopping list on the run:
- Red meat (allow approx. 80-100g per person) for one meal a week
- Chicken (allow approx. 125g per person = approx 1/2 chicken breast) for 1-2 different meals
- Fish (allow 100-150g per person) for 2 meals
- Tinned or dry beans or lentils for a meat free meal once a week
- Salad ingredients for 3 meals
- Vegetable ingredients for 3 meals
Vegetarians or Vegans
- Tofu for one meal a week
- Ingredients for a legume-based burger
- Ingredients for a legume-based soup (winter) or salad (summer)
- Ingredients for a legume-based curry, chilli or casserole
- Salad ingredients for 3 meals
- Vegetable ingredients for 3 meals
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