Efficient Meal Planning for Healthier Options and Reduced Decision Fatigue

Efficient meal planning not only reduces overall stress but it is a form of living intentionally. By planning your meals, you are thinking ahead about what you will have time to prep and cook, how you will pair the meals with your schedule, what ingredients you already have on hand, and what ingredients need to be used before expiring.

What is Meal Planning?

Meal planning is a process that includes deciding what to eat and when during your week, buying the grocery items for those meals, and sometimes prepping those meals in advance. I see meal planning and meal preparation as two different tasks, although it is common to see them paired together.

How to Start Meal Planning

Get Set Up

Everyone will have their own system for meal planning; however, I’ll share mine with you below.

I grab my coupons, pen, and paper and get ready to get down to business. After doing a quick scan of my fridge and pantry, I note if there are any ingredients I need to use up before they go bad and I prioritize those items to be scheduled earlier in the week. The older the item, the sooner it needs eaten! I then take my coupons, notepad, and pen to the table, along with my cup of coffee and review my weekly planner to see if I need super easy meals on certain days depending on how busy we are.

I look through my coupons to see if any are expiring soon that I will use and set them aside. (I do want to note that when I get coupons, I go through them immediately and get rid of the ones I know I won’t use. This helps keep my meal planning time to the minimum by not being distracted by a ton of coupons I’m not even interested in using.)

I return to the table, pull out my phone, and look at digital ads and coupons from the grocery stores I shop at. I keep note of sales and sometimes that impacts what I plan for the week, but it’s typically based off of what I already have in stock.

After my list is written, I ask my husband if he wants anything else added.

Select Your Meals

It’s important to remember that meal planning doesn’t have to be fancy or complicated. Selecting the meals that fit your family is as simple as that. If your husband loves tacos, pick a variation of tacos every week (chicken, beef, pork, or fish). If your kid loves mac-n-cheese, can you plan that as a side for a meal or two? Keeping our meals simple and logical can help reduce stress when it comes to meal planning.

Release the pressure to be making new meals from Pinterest all the time. Let that expectation go and feel the weight lift off your shoulders. Keep it simple.

When planning your meals, consider your schedule, family preferences, and what you already have in your fridge or pantry. If you know you will be extremely busy on Tuesday, plan a simple meal to prepare. If you have leftover chicken, plan around that and make something with the chicken (like a stir fry or chicken noodle soup).

Create a Shopping List

As previously mentioned, I use coupons (paper and digital) and weekly ads from the grocery store to help me plan what I’ll be buying.

I’m sure by now you have your own way of making a shopping list, but I’ll share my way with you here.

I separate my items by section in the grocery store; produce, dairy, meat, pantry, and frozen. They’re typically in the order of the grocery store (if you do the primary grocery shopping for your family, I’m sure you know the layout of your favorite grocery store too). This helps when I physically go in to shop for the items. It reduces the amount of back and forth between the aisles.

Basically, find a system that works for you and keep it simple while creating your shopping list.

Preparing Meals

I typically separate preparing meals with meal planning, but it is extremely common to pair these items together. I try to do both, but even if I don’t get to prepare the meals, I still try to plan them in advance.

Preparing meals is its’ own process and if it doesn’t fit your lifestyle, that’s okay. I have found that by preparing meals in advance, it actually alleviates a lot of the stress around mealtimes that we all face. We’ve all been there; trying to set aside the time to make a full meal when you’re in the middle of doing ten other things. This habit has been fluid in our household for several months now and comes and goes based on our schedules.

When I meal prep, I typically spend a few hours doing so on the same day. However, I have also found that some weeks it works better for me to approach it differently. Sometimes, I’ll prepare all the proteins on one day and then all of grains on another day. It is important for you to find what flow works for you if you try to prepare your meals. Remember, it won’t always look the same week to week because our lives are always changing.

The Benefits of Meal Planning

Meal planning comes with many benefits. It can help you choose healthier options, increase efficiency in the kitchen, reduce waste, reduce decision fatigue, and save you money in the long run.

These are all wins in my book.

Healthier Options

You typically choose healthier options when meal planning. I know when I set the intention to plan my meals, I opt for healthier sides. It also helps with portion control if that’s something that interests you. If I don’t have fresh vegetables as a side for meals, I often naturally gravitate toward grabbing carbs! A girl’s best friend (at least mine).

* I want to note that I am NOT knocking carbs. Carbs have become a controversial topic in our ever-changing diet culture. I believe they provide necessary energy for our bodies. However, if I don’t meal plan this can become dangerous territory for me.

Increased Efficiency in Your Kitchen

Decluttering has been a part of my lifestyle for several years now and I’m hoping it will become a part of yours too. By meal planning, you will be increasing the efficiency of your kitchen. Say goodbye to all the expired pantry items that you have to declutter at the end of the year. You won’t be throwing them away though, you’ll be using them up!

Equally important to this, if you have items in your fridge or pantry that no one in your home is eating, do yourself a favor and toss it now. If you have extended family that may be interested in the item, you can ask if they want it. This is something I often do if we try a new food and aren’t satisfied with it. I have a small list of people I ask if they are interested before I simply throw it away. Just another idea if this suits you. 😊

Reduced Waste

As noted above, when meal planning you can plan around ingredients you already have or that need to be eaten. By doing so, you are reducing the waste from your kitchen. This can also reduce waste by encouraging leftovers to be eaten and not simply shoved in the back and forgotten. (RIP)🪦

And speaking of leftovers, I absolutely love them. They’re my favorite. I know they get bad-mouthed a lot, but who doesn’t enjoy just grabbing a home-cooked meal and warming it up in literal seconds? Call me crazy if you want.

Reduced Decision Fatigue

The always present question of “what’s for dinner” that most of us just find absolutely appalling. Now imagine if you didn’t have to think about what’s for dinner because you already had it planned.

Decision fatigue is so prevalent among women especially if you’re wearing multiple hats. You have decisions to make in regard to your children, their schedules, your schedule, your husbands schedule, the household management, cooking the meals, taking care of yourself, and so forth and so on… Take one thing off your plate by meal planning. When you meal plan, you are no longer making the decision in the moment or on that specific day and it reduces overall decision fatigue.

Money Saved

You will save money. I obviously have no legal standing to GUARANTEE this, but I strongly believe it. With reducing food waste and using items you already have in your fridge and pantry; money will be saved.

Meal planning helps you shop intentionally and when you shop intentionally, you buy less. And when you buy less, you spend less money.

Conclusion

The benefits of meal planning far outweigh the cons. Personally, I think the singular con may be dedicating the time to doing the planning.

Living intentionally by meal planning can benefit you tremendously and reduce your overall stress. As mentioned previously, it can help you achieve nutrition or health related goals by providing you healthier meals throughout the week. It can also increase the efficiency of your kitchen, reduce waste, reduce decision fatigue and therefore stress, and save you money.

It really doesn’t have to be extremely time-consuming or stressful. Take the complexity out of the task and keep it simple. Stick to meals you know how to make and that you know you and your family enjoy.

Are you going to try meal planning or do you already? Let me know below!