You Don't Need a Meal Plan... but you Need to Meal Plan!
Yes, you read that correctly, You Don’t need a meal plan… but you do need to meal plan! Why knowing a noun from a verb is so important!
Getting right to the point here, you do NOT need to purchase a “meal plan” from a trainer online to reach your fitness goals. Often I see this advertised as a “custom monthly meal plan” and it really isn’t. More than likely, it includes a list of foods you need to buy and when you need to eat them during the week. If I had to guess, we would see chicken breast, sweet potatoes, brown rice, and a bunch of green veggies, and very few fruits on the menu. There is nothing wrong with these items, however, many of these plans push ridiculous ideas such as bananas are too high in sugar to eat, or you can only have brown rice, not white rice. There is limited variety, lots of restriction, and unrealistic expectations. Let’s not start on the qualifications of these people to give out this kind of detailed dietary plans!
When I think of these offerings, I have few questions:
Does this “meal plan” include foods you like?
Does this “meal plan” consider your family?
Does this “meal plan” work with your schedule?
Does this “meal plan” fit your budget?
What does following a meal plan someone else created actually teach you?
What is the likelihood that you will be able to follow this kind of meal plan based on your current lifestyle habits?
Lots of questions and the answers all bring bright caution flashing lights to mind! I am not throwing this idea completely to the wind, but for the majority of what is out there….walk away!
So how do you know what we should be eating…. You need a meal plan, as in Plan Your Meals!
The meal plan you DO need is the one where you look in your kitchen to see what you currently have for food and you figure you what you are going to eat. It really doesn’t have to be so difficult or dramatic! Plan what you are going to have for your main meals and a few snacks throughout the day for at least a few days.
This may mean you need to go shopping, so pull out that sale flyer if saving is important to you.
Pull out your calendar to make sure you are planning around activities.
Have the list of things you like and favorite recipes so you know what you need to get on hand.
If you don’t plan for lunch on Tuesday, you can’t be mad at anyone else but yourself if you end up eating a bag of popcorn, tootsie rolls from the kids candy stash, and a soda and then feel like crap the rest of the day! That meal plan from the trainer….. you still need to go buy all the food and prep it so you may still have done the same thing! Buying a meal plan doesn’t get the meal planned!
As with any changes, we need to be in action for something new to become a habit. Leave the meal plan (noun) behind and get into action to meal plan (verb) what you are going to eat for the next few days!
Just a few getting started tips:
Look at what you already have in the pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. What meals can you make over the next few days using what you already have.
Think about incorporating at least 3 food groups in meals, and 2 food groups in snacks.
Start with 1 small step toward practicing planning your meals. What is one small action you can start now?
Stay healthy!
Ashley