3 Great Reasons to Plan a Weekly Menu

3 Great Reasons Why to Plan a Weekly Menu!

Contributor Nan Allison, MS, RD, LDN

1. Saves money: You shop based on what you already know you are cooking. Less produce goes to waste, because you buy mainly what you know you will use.  
2. Saves time: We are always more efficient when we shop from a list. Plus, you shop less, opting for larger, less frequent grocery runs where you have bought the ingredients needed based on your weekly menu plan. No more having to run to the grocery store every night, or just eat cereal.
3. You and your family eat healthier meals: When you plan ahead (and not on a hungry stomach) you will make better, more satisfying, choices than when you are running into the store on the way home from work. This of course assumes that you are cooking and preparing meals at home in lieu of eating out or doing a take-out/delivery.

How to do it: On occasion, I sit down and preplan my whole month’s meals. However, mostly I just plan a week, or 3-4 days in advance. It is much less work than you would think. Because people eat in routine patterns, we often choose to plan meals consisting of out favorite foods, especially if they are easy to prepare! Keep a printout of your meal ideas posted on the refrigerator, so at a glance you can see what you have planned.

TIPS:

• Keep planning simple. Do not get overwhelmed trying to plan a whole week if that seems hard. Start with planning one meal instead.
• Start with what you like– sometimes that might be a frozen meal or entrée. Add a salad or vegetable (fresh, frozen, canned).   
• Start with a meal idea – then round it out to make it a complete meal. There are many websites with basic menu ideas.  Find one or two ideas that appeal to you. 
• Keep in mind what will be simplest and that you have time for. For example – if you like lasagna, but do not have time to prepare it, buy a frozen lasagna, and then spend time preparing a salad or other vegetables – or buy a pre-prepared salad or frozen vegetables, or add more tomatoes on top of the lasagna.

Note- A complete meal has a good source of Protein, Carbohydrate, and Vegetable and/or Fruit and is served in amounts best suited to the individuals, who are eating the meal. Some balanced meal plan ideas are:

• Salads can be complete meals and include Vegetables, Proteins like chicken/nuts/beef strips/grilled tofu/black beans/chick peas/green peas, and  Carbohydrates like pasta, chips, cold potatoes
• Soups and stews can be complete meals
• Stir fries can be complete meals and include tofu/chicken/beef/seafood + vegetables + rice/noodles 
• Breakfast can be dinner with scrambled eggs with chopped ham, cheese, lean sausage – optional, chopped sautéed vegetables/tomatoes in the eggs, or Toast/waffles/potatoes.

A complete meal can look like a snack. For example:  

•  Tuna/chicken salad, raw vegetables, dip, whole grain crackers or tortilla wrap
•  Cottage cheese or Greek Yogurt + fruit or tomatoes + whole grain muffin or granola bar/cereal
•  Cheese and or nuts + crackers + fruit and/vegetables

Bon Appetite!