A Guide To: Meal Planning

Whether you're trying to eat healthier, get more organized, or just make better use of your time, meal planning can help get you there. Making a meal plan can be broken down into 5 simple steps:

1. Review Your Schedule

2. Choose Your Recipes

3. Plug The Recipes Into Your Schedule

4. Make A Grocery List

5. Shop, Cook, Eat & Repeat!

Review Your Schedule

Before you plan your recipes, you need to figure out when you're going to cook. Take a good look at your schedule and figure out not only when you'll have the time to cook, but the energy! Whether you only have one day per week or every night, you can make a meal plan that fits your lifestyle. Find an opening in your schedule, block off those times, and make an appointment with yourself to get it done.

Choose Your Recipes

There are millions of recipes to choose from, so it can be overwhelming trying to find a starting point. Here are some factors that can help you choose which recipes to include in your meal plan:

• Time & Style: Based on your schedule, do you need a quick dinner? Maybe a slower cook recipe that allows you to focus on completing other tasks? Or something that makes great leftovers that you can eat all week?

• What's In Your Pantry: Do you have ingredients in your refrigerator, freezer, or pantry that you can use? Browse recipes by ingredients in order to reduce waste!

Of course, make note of the meals that you enjoy and integrate them into the meal plan.

Plug & Play

Now that you have a list of recipes, start plugging them into your schedule! If you are cooking a different meal for each night, creating themes can help add variety. An example of what this could look like is below.

• Meatless Monday

• Taco Tuesday

• Fish Wednesday's

• Teriyaki Chicken Thursday's

• Pizza Friday's

• Slow Cooker Saturday

• Spaghetti Sunday's

Make Your Grocery List

Go through each recipe and write down every ingredient and the quantity needed. Take the list and cross check it with what you have in your pantry and fridge. Go through every item and cross out what you already have to prevent you from making any unnecessary purchases. Everything that remains unchecked is your final grocery list!

Shop, Cook, Eat & Repeat!

You did it, your meal plan is complete! The little bit of time you put in to prepare your meals will pay off big.

If you're looking for some fun, easy & healthy recipes to enjoy, you're in luck! Here are some tasty meals:

Breakfast

• Toasted bread (any choice), avocado mashed, and 1-2 sunny side up eggs

• Egg white omelette, spinach, cheese, and chopped veggies

• DIY Greek yogurt bowl, granola, chia seeds, honey or almond butter, and any choice of fruit

Lunch/Dinner

• 3-6oz Grilled chicken, 1 cup white/brown rice, 1.5 cup choice of vegetable

• Chicken sausage, 1 baked potato, roasted zucchini/squash

• Grilled chicken BLT Salad

• 3-6oz of steak, roasted cauliflower and broccoli, and mashed potatoes