To feel fit we need  to eat well. One common barrier to eating fit and healthy is time. We get home famished and grab the quickest convenience food we can find. We know that we should eat fresh, whole foods. But lack or time and lack of energy gets in the way.

Or does it? Perhaps the real issue is lack of a plan.

With a little planning, our healthy food can be our convenience food. We can have fresh, whole foods at home ready to prepare. This helps us look and feel our fittest! It also helps our entire family feel fit.

To start, I will share a few easy, healthy meal planning tips. Afterwards I will share some of my favorite helpful resources and tools….

Easy Healthy Meal Planning Tips From Whole Foods Market:

Feeling Fit Was Not Compensated For Sharing These Tips. I just thought they were well thought out and many are tips that I have tried and personally found helpful…

January may be the official month of resolutions, but a lot of us find Autumn’s change-of-season energy just as powerful when it comes to creating new schedules. Here are some strategies to help you start a plan, plus some of my favorite weeknight recipes to whet your appetite.

• Don’t overwhelm yourself by thinking you need to plan an entire week of meals. Start with a two- or three-day chunk and work up to more as you learn what does and doesn’t work for your household.
• Keep a file of recipes you’d like to try for inspiration. Also have on hand a few tried-and-true favorites that you and your family really enjoy–a mix of new meals and familiar ones is likely to be the most satisfying. (Editors note: Or keep a Pinterest Board, Evernote file, Yummly file, etc.)
• Plan at least one large-batch meal to serve later in the week or  freeze is always a winning strategy. (Editors note: I often do a mini-variation where I have 2 days worth and serve it slightly different the second day and with different side dishes).
• Get others in your household on-board by asking them what they’d like see on the table. You may find someone who’s willing to help out, or even take ownership of a meal or two each week.
• Remember that a meal isn’t just a main course. Don’t forget to plan for easy side dishes or, for variety, think about a meal or two where the sides themselves are the stars.
• Keep a few prepared foods like frozen pizza, packaged soup or veggie burgers on hand for back-up meals. Put some extra effort into a really delicious salad and an easy fruit dessert to serve with it and you’ll have a fantastic dinner on even the busiest nights.  
• Once you’ve collected your ideas, make a schedule and write up the ingredients you’ll need, checking your cabinets and refrigerators so you don’t buy what you already have.
• Plan a shopping trip – recruit friend or family member to go along and make it something to look forward to!

(Reprinted with permission through BlogsRelease)

Some of Feeling Fit’s Favorite Meal Planning Resources:

• Since I used their tips, it is only fair to share a Whole Foods Resource – The Whole Foods website offers some recipes, meal plans, and healthy cooking techniques.
• Yummly – I love the wealth of recipes on Yummly. Not only do I use it, I also recently started sharing Feeling Fit recipes to Yummly. If you are interested, our Yummly profile is: www.yummly.com/page/feelingfit
• Magazine Subscriptions – I have subscribed to Clean Eating for a few years. I started with the print issues and moved to digital. They feature meal plans complete with recipes and shopping lists. I have not followed any as I am more a DIY person but I have gained new recipes, ideas and inspiration. Other cooking magazines may have a similar benefit.
• Spark People – Spark People has numerous resources relating to fitness and nutrition. Their nutrition tracker has the option of generating a meal plan for you. Spark Recipes section lets you add your own recipes and add them to your meal plan and also search recipes members have shared. (Hint, if you pre-log food you can create your own meal plans and also a shopping list).
• An oldie but a goodie, this 2012 article from Fitfluential provides a great explanation of the benefits of planning your meals: Why You Need to Start Planning Your Meals

 

Credits:

• Tips provided by Whole Foods Market, used by permission through BlogsRelease
• Most images by Sam of Feeling Fit, one exception is the strawberry image in the introductory collage is a stock image through picjumbo.com Image credit: Fresh Strawberries Breakfast By Viktor Hanacek

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