Meal Preparation and Planning
I know the feeling when it’s 6:00 pm, you’re hungry and tired, and you have no idea what to eat for dinner. Add to this the thoughts that you probably shouldn’t go to a restaurant, get takeout or delivery, or pop yet another packaged meal into the microwave . . . again. And top both of those off with a dose of “but I really should have more protein and vegetables today,” and you have a perfect situation for dinner anxiety.
It’s easy to fall into a rut of eating the same not-so-healthy foods over and over. I used to default to that too. Sometimes I’d stand in front of my fridge, not knowing what to whip up, and just grab a pre-packaged microwavable meal and put it in the oven. The pressure is real!
As with so many things in life, having a plan increases your chance of success. Whether your success includes saving time and money, reducing food waste, managing an ongoing health concern, reaching a health goal, or maintaining a healthy weight, meal planning can help.
Meal planning is a simple concept that can help you effortlessly start eating healthier and losing weight. The easier your plan is, the more likely you will stick with it. So, being able to enjoy meals that are simple, healthful—and delicious—is a win-win-win!
Before discussing what meal plans are, let’s first see how they can help you realize success.
Meal planning can make your life easier while saving you time and money
Do you love creating menus, choosing recipes, and making grocery lists to plan your food in advance? Or are you part of the 40 percent of people who plan what you will eat that same day? I used to live in the 40 percent! How often do you struggle to come up with a healthy, quick meal with your last-minute rooting-through-the-fridge exercise to try to figure out how to use those leafy greens so you can enjoy them and not have to throw them away before they go bad?
Here are the first few ways meal planning can improve your life. For one thing, having a meal plan can save you time: the time it takes to decide on a meal or recipe and the time to run out to pick up an ingredient or two at the last minute. Meal plans also help you to save money by sticking with your plan so that you only buy what you need on your customized grocery list. Plus, you won’t have to throw out as much wasted food at the end of the week because all of it will be accounted for in your meals.
Imagine having a certified nutritionist find recipes you will love, create a grocery list for you, and advise which meals to make on which days so that your life is easier with fewer last-minute struggles with what to eat, fewer wasted trips to the store, and less wasted food (and therefore money).
Meal planning can help you reach your health goals and eat more nutritiously
What inspires you to eat more nutritious foods? Is it your personal recipe repertoire? The ingredients you happen to come across while grocery shopping? Or maybe a specially designed meal plan to help you eat more nutritious foods?
You already know that getting your vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients can help you reach your health goals. Maybe you also need a low-sodium diet to reduce your blood pressure. Perhaps you need gluten or allergen-free foods to reduce your reactions. Or maybe you need to focus on managing your blood sugar or heart health.
Whether you have a condition that you want to manage better with food or you have health goals you want to achieve, having a meal plan makes all of those more achievable.
Several studies have shown that people who use meal plans tend to cook their own meals and improve the nutritional quality of their diet. In fact, people who use meal plans tend to follow dietary guidelines more closely, eat a wider variety of foods, and consume more fruits and vegetables.
We know that pre-made, pre-packaged, processed foods are quick and easy, but they’re often low in fiber and nutrients and high in salt, sugars, and unhealthy fats. Here’s another prime example of how a well-crafted meal plan can help. When you have a meal plan based around more nutritious and less-processed foods, you can easily replace some of the not-so-healthy convenient options with those that are more healthful.
And there may even be more health waiting for you with a meal plan. Some professionally-made meal plans include healthy tips and information to make it the perfect opportunity to learn a few additional nutrition and lifestyle strategies that you can start incorporating into your routine more often and continue to improve your health.
Meal planning can help you maintain a healthy weight
It’s true! Meal planning is associated with a lower risk for obesity.
Studies show that people who use meal plans are less likely to experience obesity than those who don’t. This means that meal planning is one way to reduce your risk for obesity in the future. How? Because meal plans give you control of your ingredients, cooking methods, and portion sizes.
But what about the two out of every five adults in America who are currently experiencing obesity and related conditions (such as heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes, and some cancers)?
Meal planning is also associated with weight loss.
We all know that losing excess weight is hard! One of the factors that we can control—but is very difficult to sustain—when it comes to losing weight and keeping it off is consistently eating healthier over the months and years. And meal plans can certainly help here as well.
One recent study tried to help people lose weight by teaching them to plan their meals. The researchers found that people who planned their meals more often lost more weight than those who didn’t plan their meals as often.
Another study found that people who had personalized dietary recommendations, a meal plan, and a few other practical supports were able to successfully lose weight and keep it off for at least two years.
As you can see, meal planning can help:
- make your life easier
- save you time and money
- you reach your health goals
- lower your risk for obesity
- you lose weight.
So, what exactly is a high-quality meal plan?
Features of a high-quality meal plan
Now that you know that a meal plan has so many health benefits, here’s what you can expect from a professionally-created one.
A meal plan will consist of a few different parts:
- Health-promoting meals and snacks assigned to specific days so you don’t have to struggle to decide what to eat when
- Simple recipes so that you can prepare ingredients in advance (if you want to) and enjoy making the meals yourself
- Nutrition information that adjusts with your plan so you can be confident that you’re getting the nutrients you need
- A smart grocery list so that you know what foods you will need for that plan and will be prepared in advance
Meal plans are also printable and come with a smartphone app so you can take your meal plan, recipes, and grocery list with you wherever you go. This comes in handy when you’re at the grocery store because you can check off items from your list as you get them.
Bottom line
Deciding what to eat, which recipe to use, and what groceries you need are great features to have planned out in advance for your busy day-to-day life. Imagine having a meal plan that suits you and was professionally created by a certified nutritionist to make eating more nutritious food easier but also make eating the right nutrition so you can reach your health goals and sustain them.
Now that you know all of the benefits and features you can expect from a good meal plan, you may be wondering how to get started. Whether you want to reach a health goal, maintain a certain weight, or simply make your life easier, consult a certified nutritionist, like myself, who can help.
Looking for a way to take away the day-to-day stress of choosing what to eat three or four times each day? Want help to ensure your food choices are nutritious and reduce wasted food (and money)? Need support to reach your health and weight goals effectively? Book an appointment with me today to see if my programs and services can help you.
Author
Juliana Garcia Halloran, Nutritionist BSc.
Instagram: @juliana.nutrition.coach
References
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