We’ve all been there – staring into the fridge after a long day, exhausted, and wondering what to eat.
The last thing you want to do is think about cooking, and before you know it, you’re grabbing takeout again.
Sound familiar?
For busy professionals, meal planning can feel like one more thing on a never-ending to-do list.
But it doesn’t have to be that way.
In a world that loves to complicate things, we aim to keep meal planning simple.
Let’s break it down into easy steps that’ll save you time,keep you on track with your fitness goals, and make your life a whole lot simpler.
Why Meal Planning is Key to Reaching Your Fitness Goals
You’re probably already doing the hard work in the gym.
And you’ve probably heard that your nutrition plays the leading role in getting results.
Meal planning outlines the meals you’ll eat for a period of time (typically one week) and the ingredients needed.
Meal planning is like setting the GPS for your nutrition.
Waiting until your hungry to make decisions on what to eat is like driving without directions and hoping you end up in the right place.
No planning out your meals only increases the chances you’ll make a wrong turn.
How to Create a Simple Meal Plan
Whether you eat one, two or three meals per day, the primary goal here is to keep things simple.
What are the core ingredients that compose a healthy meal you enjoy?
Most people eat the same meals on a regular basis which is the primary reason we begin by identifying the foods you enjoy eating.
Use this one-page Meal Planning Made Simple sheet to list the different foods you prefer.
This simple sheet will lay the foundation for keeping your meal planning simple!
What simple spices or seasonings could you add to change the flavor profile of a protein or vegetable?
Write these down on your Meal Planning Made Simple sheet and keep this where you can regularly access it.
Changing the flavor profile of a single food source keeps things simple.
A five course meal that requires 37 ingredients and more than an hour of prep time makes things complicated and increases the likelihood that you’ll order takeout when life gets difficult.
When planning out your meals, you may find it easier to think in terms of a few different ways to season chicken breast versus how to prepare Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts with Goat Cheese.
Lay a solid foundation first so you can continue to build on it for years to come.
Once you have your sheet completed, you can easily mix and match proteins, seasonings, vegetables and fruits to come up with a larger variety of meal options.
Grocery Shopping Made Easy
Now that you’ve identified the foods you enjoy, you can use the Meal Planning Made Simple sheet to take inventory of what you currently have on hand.
Based on the meals you’re planning, you can simply replenish the foods missing from your inventory of the Meal Planning Made Simple sheet.
This saves time and keeps you focused (no more wandering aisles aimlessly).
If your preferences change or something sparks your interest, make the adjustment on your sheet to keep yourself on track.
Grocery stores and their traffic patterns are designed to promote certain food items.
Ever walk into a store for one thing and suddenly find you can’t carry everything you want?
This isn’t by accident…prepare your list in advance and stick to the plan!
Common Mistakes to Avoid
It’s easy to overcomplicate meal planning.
Don’t get bogged down trying to make every meal Pinterest-perfect.
The rest of the world isn’t counting on you to post your dinner to social media to inspire their continued consumption anyway.
Keep it simple!
When life gets tough, what is a healthy meal you could still pull together without too much difficulty?
Don’t make a plan that requires everything to fall perfectly for you to execute.
Make the plan you can execute no matter what life throws at you.
Base your meal plan around healthy foods that you enjoy eating.
If you’re planning on eating salmon because it’s healthy but you really don’t like the taste, your plan will likely fail in short order.
This next one is one of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever heard on nutrition.
Eat like an adult.
Regardless of what is mentioned above, eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner isn’t an adult meal no matter how much you enjoy it.
Conclusion
If you aren’t already planning your meals in advance, hopefully this post (and this sheet) help you keep things simple.
There are several things that every person we’ve helped get results with their health and fitness over the last decade have in common.
Meal planning is one of those critical few tasks they share.
Easy to do…easy NOT to do.
Don’t let something as simple as completing this one-pager keep you from seeing results.