How to Meal Plan: Meal Planning Basics

Meal planning will save you time and help minimize food waste, but even more than that, it’s the first small step you can take to alter your food journey and change your life for the better. If you’ve been wanting to change your eating habits, to eat real, whole food, to have the greatest health possible and give your body the best chance possible to heal or just feel good, this is where to start!

I’m going to break down the powerful impact that small, consistent daily disciplines can have on your overall physical health and mental wellbeing. But before I launch into the details, I want to take a moment to encourage you - you have what it takes to do this no matter where you are now.

The small disciplines and actionable steps below may seem insignificant on their own, but when you apply them consistently over time and celebrate the “small wins” of making each choice, they’ll compound over time to transform your body and your mind. You can achieve real, wholistic health that makes you feel good, energetic, and free of foggy brain and daily exhaustion. And the empowerment that comes from making these choices transforms every aspect of our lives, contributing to harmony and balance in life.

You can do this, and as you start to make these small changes, you too will feel the missing pieces of your health start to fall into place in the most natural of ways.

DINNER

When I start planning, I like to start with dinners and fill in the rest of the week’s meals around those.

Choose 3-4 dinners for the week. Start with your protein, or entrée, and build sides around it. Sometimes, I build my sides based on the specific plants I want to work into our diet that week.

I recommend starting with just 1 new entrée a week and keep building on that. Trying to cook something different every night while you’re overhauling your diet and learning to cook with new ingredients can quickly cause burnout.

Refine 2-3 sauces/dressings. Start with one recipe a week and then try different versions of the same thing (pesto, green goddess dressing, cilantro lime, barbeque sauce, etc) until you land on the perfect version. I store mine in mason jars and label them with the name and “made on” date. Since the labels change constantly, I prefer these easily removable adhesive rolls. Many dressings will last 7-10 days in the refrigerator.

*Tip - If you make a sauce for a particular recipe, double the sauce and save the extra for the rest of the week. That sauce can transform bland vegetables into a delicious side dish or dipping sauce for your kids’ lunch.

Take into account leftovers. Think ahead about the viability of working the leftovers for a particular meal into your breakfast or lunch for the next day. For example, an egg over easy on top of leftover roasted pumpkin or butternut squash with vegetables is delicious, nutritious, and gives you steady, slow-burning energy until lunchtime.

BREAKFAST

When you’re thinking about how to meal plan for your family, it’s all about finding ways to save time and minimize waste, and finding creative ways to use leftovers throughout the week is one of my favorite ways to do just that! So once I’ve decided what’s for dinner, I plan breakfast for the week based on the leftovers I know I’m going to have.

Making breakfast from leftovers makes our mornings run more smoothly – and it can do the same for you!

No prep work. You don’t have to think about what to make every morning or worry about whether it’s a balanced, healthy meal because you’ve already put the time into planning for it ahead of time.

*Tip - enlist the help of your kids! My daughter loves to be a part of our meal planning. It’s amazing how much more cooperative kids are when they get to be involved! Here’s an example of a list she’s made:

Monday – oatmeal (soaked overnight)

Tuesday – hash (with leftover veggies and bacon, sausage, or a leftover dinner protein)

Wednesday – cereal (there are one or two brands I buy with only 4-8 grams of unrefined sugar that are organic and made with only 5 ingredients – to be eaten in moderation)

Thursday – omelette

Friday – porridge

My daughter knows I have the final stamp of approval, but when she’s been part of the decision-making process, then it’s her list. She can look at it throughout the week and not be surprised or disappointed, which has cut down our morning arguments about what’s for breakfast to almost none.

Mix it up and plan for variety. If she had her way, my daughter would have toast for breakfast every morning! By creating a plan and allowing her to help, I can make sure we aren’t eating the same thing every day. When we eat the same thing every day, our bodies start to develop food sensitivities, and we minimize and narrow down the amount of nutrients we take in.

LUNCH

The last step in my meal planning process is lunch. I used to plan the whole week in detail but, because I’ve been doing this for a while and can throw my daughter’s lunch together with “nothing” now, I don’t plan it out at all.

However, if you’re just getting started, planning out every meal for the week is the best way to go. It’ll be helpful in letting you know what to fill in from the grocery store.

When I shop, I usually hit the farmer’s market and place a small Instacart order on Sunday, and then one more small Instacart order later in the week.

As for my lunches, I often make salad out of the remaining dinner leftovers, so no additional planning is required.

Keep it Simple

This sounds like a lot when you’re first learning how to meal plan, and it may seem overwhelming or time-consuming. It is more work up front, but that time is concentrated – as you go through the rest of your week, you’ll find that you’re saving a lot more time overall.

And, as with anything, the more you meal plan, the better and more efficient you’ll get at it! I used to spend a lot more time planning out detailed weekly menus. Now, I spend about 10 minutes between breakfast and leaving for the farmer’s market on Sunday morning writing our weekly meal plan on a large yellow sticky note.

It doesn’t have to be pretty, and it’s okay to make mistakes! Learning how to meal plan doesn’t have to be complicated or perfect. Stick to the principle of simplicity, remember the power of making small, consistent changes, and you will be amazed at how something as simple as meal planning can start to change everything.

With Love,
PrimaFoodie