Meal Planning + Printable

Meal. Planning. Is. Incredible.

If you don't do it already, I highly encourage you to.

What is meal planning? 
Meal planning is an effective way of planning out every meal you will eat for the upcoming week. This includes breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner. I personally suggest not including dessert... if you haven't planned for it, you won't eat it! :)

Why should I plan my meals?
Meal planning is a wonderful way to stick to a healthier way of living, save money, and actually eat all of the food you buy at the grocery store!

How do I effectively plan my meals for the week? 
- Be detailed. The more details you include, the better your planning will be.
- Be honest with yourself. You don't have to cook every meal and if you eat out for dinner a lot, that's fine, just make sure to incorporate that in your planning!
- Don't set your standards too high. If it's a stressful week, it is okay to eat frozen pizza... this is real life.
- Think in terms of leftovers. Try to plan meals that have ingredients that can be reused in other meals throughout the week.

- List your ingredients. Make sure to have a place to list off EVERY ingredient you need in order to eat that week, including the things you already have. After you have planned your week, go through your pantry and refrigerator and cross off any items you already have. Using this, you will be able to effectively put together an organized grocery list!

How can I organize all of this information? 
- Use my meal planning printable! :)
- Not only have I prepared a FREE printable for you to use to plan your meals, I have also included an example of how to effectively use this planner! Make sure to check it out!

      {download here}

Now what??

- Plan your meals, make your grocery list, and go get your groceries! 
- TIP: Make sure to put your week's meal plan somewhere visible so you'll remember what you planned to eat that week! 
- Check back in tomorrow for my FREE grocery list & grocery checklist printables!