The Benefits of Meal Planning
Creating a Healthy Meal Plan for a Balanced Lifestyle and Budget

Creating a healthy meal plan has been key to my health, savings and low stress. Sounds like it is too good to be true, but when I have my meals planned it is so good and so true. I never worry about what I will make for dinner in the evening, I never feel guilt about shouldn’t I find something healthier and I rarely have to do much to prepare dinner at dinner time. Planning can be flexible and is a great way to work on a healthier lifestyle and a simpler one with less stress and financial burden.

Meal planning is a great way to focus on nutrition and your health. Eating healthy will help you to lose, or maintain your weight. I know that if I eat pasta or bread every day, I will gain weight. I also know that if I never have it, I will crave it. I focus on breaking up carbs, so that I still get to enjoy them, but they are not a staple of my week. I also know that if I snack too much on chips, pretzels or crackers (which I love), I will lose energy and get weighed down through the week. I make larger meals for dinner, then eat smaller portions for lunch or snacks. This helps me to stay focused on the weight loss I’m working towards without just giving in to the mac and cheese because it is easier. Prepping items also helps because the carrots and celery that are cut and ready to go in a jar of water give me the crunch I crave without all the salt and other negative factors. I feel less guilty and the craving I have is gone.

Meal planning will also help you with overall wellness. I often feel stressed putting dinner on the table for my husband. I know he doesn’t think any less of me if I ask him to cook or if I just say leftovers it is, but I much prefer being able to sit at the table to a dinner I prepared for us. Being able to take care of my family is something that brings me pride and this is the way I show that I care. When I plan meals out it is easier to know what I have to do to prepare the meal and have it ready for dinner time.

Note: I usually prep meals in the morning when I’m more motivated and focused. I am less driven in the late afternoon and rarely feel like making a meal. Find what works for you and make it happen.

Financial benefits can be huge when meal planning. I have learned to scout circulars, and visit different stores to get the best deals on quality products. I miss my local butcher shop in Pennsylvania that had amazing quality on red meat and low prices because the meat was raised locally. I’m learning a new way to get this done in Hawaii now. I moved from a country setting near the mountains of Pennsylvania to a very populated city/island and still have been able to save money shopping. Hawaii is known for their high prices, but with a little work I’ve been able to find the lowest prices and ways to get our normal shopping done with only a few minor differences. The financial part of meal planning takes a little extra time, but worth every second and penny.

Note: An easy way to start is to shop sales first. See a cut of meat you love on sale? Pick up a family pack and freeze in portions. I am quick to pick up different cuts of chicken when they are on sale, as well as ground beef and steak. I portion them out and freeze. Remember to mark your items with the date and type of product. It all looks the same after awhile and labeling just takes away the guesswork. Plan your next week’s meals based on what you have in the freezer. I usually take out tomorrow’s meal (from my planner) the night before so it can defrost in the fridge overnight and be ready to prep in the morning.

Another note: I make a lot of freezer meals too. If you are going to make meals to freeze, I suggest doing that when you purchase your cut of meat, not later. It is not good to purchase and freeze, then defrost to make and freeze again. Make your freezer meal kits from the original purchase. (I hope that made sense!)

Finally, meal planning saves you time. We are all busy and sitting down to plan out your meals may sound daunting, but in the end it will save you so so much time. If you know that you are eating 3 meals with diced onions this week in the ingredient list, you can dice enough for the whole week in one sitting. You can prepare a casserole for Wednesday on Monday when you are getting that dinner ready too. When you know what is coming, prepping or working on two meals at the same time will help you to save time preparing later. It will also save you the time staring in the fridge or pantry to figure out what to prepare. Save yourself the time and stress and just plan the week ahead.

Should you plan for the week or the month? I usually just do the week, but have done the month several times. It really depends on what works for you. If you have a busy month coming up, or there is a major holiday coming, a monthly meal plan may have more benefits than a week by week plan would have. When life is just your regularly scheduled program, a weekly plan might be better and more flexible to help with what is to come. When my husband is home we tend to stick to a theme as well. Mondays are salad, Tuesdays are “taco Tuesdays” and we eat Mexican, Wednesdays are red meat nights, Thursday is for Pasta, Fridays are for fish, Saturdays are Jorge’s Dinner which is usually pizza and Sundays are family dinner. Family dinners are usually a nicer sit down dinner like roast chicken or a ham. We have leftovers often and use them through the week for lunch and even breakfast. When it’s just me, I usually prepare two or three dinners in one day and eat them through the week. It doesn’t bother me to eat the same meal a lot because it is just one week. The holidays are right around the corner, so I will most likely switch from my weekly plan to a monthly plan to keep things in order. A monthly plan is great for planning as well. You know that you have chicken thighs on the menu for later that month, but they are on sale now. Pick them up and then you will have them in the freezer for when you need them, but didn’t pay for them at a higher price.

Want to pick up some examples of printable meal plans? Check out our Etsy Page!

We have touched on meal planning from a health & wellness standpoint in this post and you read about how it can alleviate stress, save you money and help you to achieve your nutrition goals. It will hopefully help to bring you some peace and calm and hopefully a full stomach! As always, thank you for reading and joining us on this journey. Let us know your favorite tip in the comments for meal planning. Simply, Beth