Meal planning can be SUPER scary, and often times, overwhelming! It's like a puzzle, and once you get into the groove it just becomes second nature!
Here's how I plan out my meals each week when gearing up for another round of of the 21 Day Fix:
First, I print out 3 Weekly planners that I've created in an excel doc, and at the top of each page I label them - Week 1, Week 2,
Week 3. Then, I date each day from the
date that I plan to start the 21 Day Fix Round.
Next, I write along the top or bottom of the page how many
containers of each color I need each day for reference.
When planning, I try to evenly divide my larger
containers across my main meals (Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner), and then fill in
the rest where they fit.
- I drink Shakeology every morning for breakfast. So, I write ‘Shakeology’ in my chart under Breakfast for every single day (all three weeks).
- Under where I wrote Shakeology, in the same box, I add
in Kale, Frozen Strawberries, 1-2 tsp
coconut oil, and 1/2 a banana. So, right off the bat I've knocked out 1 Green,
2 Purples, 1 Red, and 1-2 tsp.
NOTE: For those of you who have a hard time getting in your veggies and fruit,
this is a good approach - get it out of the way!
- Next, I plan my dinners for ALL THREE WEEKS! This is where I
switch things up a bit. I choose a different cuisine with a different protein
each night. We typically choose from Mexican, Italian, BBQ/Grill, Breakfast for
Dinner, Fish, etc. As I choose the
dinners, I note which containers I've used.
- Once Dinners are chosen, I tackle lunches. Lunch (for me) is super easy because I use
leftovers from the night before!! Monday night’s dinner becomes Tuesday’s lunch;
Tuesday’s dinner becomes Wednesday’s and so on and so forth. Once again, I note
which containers I've used.
NOTE: I ALWAYS make sure I have some pre-cooked chicken or
Turkey Meatballs in the freezer, portioned out and ready to be thrown over a
salad in case of a lunch emergency! (They have happened!) One trick
to this is, if there is ever a night where you have a TON of meat leftover,
portion out what’s left and put them into small freezer bags. I do this with chicken, turkey meatballs,
black beans, quinoa and brown rice. Why
waste it, right? And, it can be a MAJOR lifesaver when you perhaps don’t have
leftovers for lunch the next day, or you don’t have time to prep ahead.
- After I've filled in all of my lunches, I move onto
snacks. I start with the first snack of
the day, and typically go for a yellow (like oatmeal) and a fruit (Like frozen
berries). That’s perfect for after a
workout (if you're an early exerciser like I am), and you've knocked out a Yellow, and a Purple!
- For the 2nd snack, take a look at which
containers you have left over, and build your snack based upon that. I tend to
always have 1 Red left, and sometimes a Green.
So, I’ll have 2 Hard Boiled eggs, and Red Pepper strips.
Once you've planned, make your grocery lists!
- I make three different lists (one for each week - I like to plan ahead)
- I ONLY list the foods that I need, and that I've planned for.
So that's that! It's SO much easier than you might think. The first couple of times planning might be a bit overwhelming, but DON'T give up on it! Just keep trying different methods, and tossing the ones that don't work.
If you have any questions about planning your meals, email me at: alison.blaisdell@gmail.com!
No comments:
Post a Comment