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You are here: Home / Household / How to Start Meal Planning

How to Start Meal Planning

January 3, 2017 By Stefanie

This post contains affiliate links.

Start-Meal-Planning
Why should you start planning your meals? A few reasons are that it’s healthier, it’s easier, and it’s cheaper. Rather than asking everyone what they want each night and trying to figure out what you have and don’t have, simply plan your meals for the week or month. No more debating. Planning meals allows for less takeout food and more fruits and veggies. If you plan your meals you will know exactly what is needed at the grocery store each week so that you do not over buy or under buy and end up having to go back to the store three times. Here are a few simple steps to start planning your meals.

    • Sit down and write a list of the foods that you know you and your family enjoy eating.
    • Select a plan of action as to how you’d like to organize your weekly menu;
      • White Board: Create a weekly calendar on a small 8×10 white board to hang on the fridge. (Use sharpie for the marks that you do not want to erase.)
      • Calendar: You can use a simple calendar to plan meals. Small desktop calendars work the best.
      • Homemade menu planner’s are a fun way to keep track of meals. You can check out my free printable meal planner, or get this cute one from The Executive Mom.
    • Be sure to select a day that you will sit down and plan your meals each week (or every two weeks or month, whichever you choose to do.) The same day each week tends to work the best for shopping.
    • Prepack any foods that can be used as snacks such as fruits, vegetables, crackers, and cheese cubes.
    • Freeze your meats in servings so that you can take them out the morning that you plan to eat them.
    • Make freezer meals for those days that are just too busy.
    • Plan your shopping trips in detail. Often for the best prices a trip to two or three stores works the best. Plan a route, list, and a budget to shop efficiently.
    • Want to skip the planning step and just HAVE the plan? Join eMeals. With several meal plans to choose from you can get exactly what you want, in the portions you need. eMeals can even plan you breakfast, lunch, dinner or desserts!

 

Filed Under: Household, Organization Tagged With: eMeals, free printables, meal planning

Comments

  1. Rose @ Walnut Acre says

    January 12, 2015 at 1:39 PM

    I love having a meal plan and usually plan at least weekly, sometimes for longer than a week. 🙂

  2. Lux G. says

    January 5, 2017 at 7:34 PM

    Perfect to start the new year.

  3. Yvonne Woodstock says

    January 9, 2017 at 5:53 AM

    Wow,-I-have-never-heard-of-E-meals-before-now…that-sure-would-save-me-HOURS-each-week-just-figuring-out-what-recipes-I-want-to-make-that-fit-our-needs-but-aren’t-the-same-thing-all-the-time..we-like-a-lot-of-variety…I’m-already-browsing-through-their-website-because-of-your-blog-article.
    Thanks-for-sharing.

  4. jeani b says

    January 13, 2017 at 7:38 AM

    thank you! i have been considering this for some time. i think it would really maximize our budget!

  5. Angela Ingles says

    March 5, 2017 at 9:42 PM

    I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time. Thanks for the tips!

  6. Diana @ NannyToMommy says

    April 12, 2017 at 8:18 AM

    I love meal planning! Definitely the way to go when you are on a budget.

  7. Edye says

    June 24, 2017 at 8:59 PM

    All great tips! I am thinking about staring this 🙂

  8. Shakeia Rieux says

    August 6, 2017 at 11:00 PM

    This is something I need to start doing. I never think about meal planning, this would save time

  9. Angel Arzadon says

    November 6, 2017 at 2:21 AM

    Thank you for the tips! I would probably need to do this when I start living by myself. Would save a lot of time!

  10. Elena says

    January 8, 2018 at 9:57 AM

    Great tips! I would like to start meal planning

  11. Linda J Madden says

    January 6, 2019 at 12:38 PM

    I love the idea of meal planning! It would make life so much more unchaotic during the week.

  12. Janet Boyanton says

    June 10, 2021 at 10:30 PM

    Meal planning has so many benefits. It encourages healthy eating (or it can if you want it to), allows the family to try new foods and recipes, and saves a lot of money. We are a three generational family ranging from 66 to 4. Meal planning can be a challenge, but it makes meal times run smoother.

Trackbacks

  1. New Year- New Meal Planning Printable! | Making of a Mom says:
    January 12, 2015 at 1:20 PM

    […] Lets be honest- we all need a little help planning out meals and making sure we get everything we need when we go to the store.  Well here it is!  Your printable weekly meal plan with a cut off grocery list (nicely organized- I need that!) included!  Start the year off right with a little more organization and a lot less stress! I can help you get started with your meal plan with my new meal planning series! […]

  2. Creating a Healthy Meal Plan | Making of a Mom says:
    January 19, 2015 at 8:21 AM

    […] have previously talked about how to start meal planning. Now let’s talk about making those meals […]

  3. Rosemary-Kale Meatloaf | Making of a Mom says:
    January 23, 2015 at 8:07 AM

    […] you’ve been reading my How to Start Meal Planning series, you know that in there I recommend using eMeals. It’s so simple, they do everything […]

  4. Meal Planning Shopping Tips | Making of a Mom says:
    January 26, 2015 at 8:31 AM

    […] post is the 3rd in my meal planning series. If interested you can also read How to Start Meal Planning and Create a Healthy Meal […]

  5. Quick and Easy Recipes & Freezer Meals | Making of a Mom says:
    February 2, 2015 at 8:15 AM

    […] that you have learned How to Start a Meal Plan, Creating a Healthy Meal Plan and received Meal Planning Shopping tips, here are some recipes to […]

  6. Mustard Glazed Salmon | Making of a Mom says:
    February 19, 2015 at 10:32 AM

    […] you want to get started meal planning, check out my How To Start Meal Planning blog […]

  7. FREE Printable Meal Planner says:
    December 4, 2024 at 3:49 PM

    […] How to Start Meal Planning […]

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Spending time with my family is my favorite thing to do. Together we love to travel, make crafts and bake. I love milk chocolate and cruise vacations. Email me at: makingofamom@gmail.com

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