Tips on planning in advance!

[custardlipstick]

Shrimpy - when i first did sw i never planned in uni and managed fine and lost 5 stone, now if i dont plan i end up in a huge muddle and end up eating kfc! lol i have to know what meat i need out of freezer for cooking etc and know if i have all the ingredients as my "little" shops were getting really expensive! Wish it still worked for me but hun - it has obviously worked for you and you look stunning so keep it up x

 

[*honey]

I am a lover of planning. I plan a week of lunchs and dinners and have a weekly chart up on my kitchen cupboards with what i am having each day. I work late on 3 night a week, but am home for lunch everyday, so on late nights the meal needs to be something i can prepare and have cooked or partially cooked ready to just finish when i get in. then plan the other days making sure i havent had pasta 2 days running for example. I do 100% green with occasional fish as a HEB, hubby does 6 green and 1 red. the red being a meal i can make with a Quorn substitute, usually a mince beef based meal. The HEB on a green for chicken is a reasonable portion, but the HEB of miced beef is pitiful, so RED for hubby is a beef dish.
I never have the problem of not wanting whats on the list, cos everything i put on a plan is food i want to eat. It helps as the others have said with the shopping and making sure you have everything in ready for each recipe. I find if i dont have a plan, and come in starving, with no pre planned meal, i am very likely to grab the quickest thing which = bad.

This is a pic of the planner i have on my cupboards

and my weekly meal plan thread

http://www.minimins.com/slimming-world/165322-weekly-meal-ideas.html

 

[gl12282]

Seriously considering on-line food shopping, but don't like the long slots (2 hours is a lot of hanging around!)

I'm the same but I have my shopping from Ocado and they only give you a 1 hr slot. Often a bit early too.

Gail x

 

[curlygirl2]

I meal plan a month at a time. Bit late this month, going to do it sometime today for the rest of the month. Still got some leftover roast beef so bought some stirfry veg this morning so that's what we'll have tonight.

Last month I cut down on my shopping and used a lot of stuff from the freezer and cupboards, so both now need to be restocked. Gonna be an expensive month foodwise!

Denise

Wow, thats a whole lot of planning! I should plan a bit more but I sort of do it on a daily basis!

I also need to get a bit more adventurous in the kitchen and start cooking a few more things. I live on all the easy stuff!

Lesley x

 

[Maximus]

Oi! I have never planned and have lost 64lbs thus far Maximus! I shall continue my way, and I'll enjoy every second of all the free food and all the choices I have!

Now listen up Shrimpster!

There'll come a time when I catch you up (hopefully) you will then have to call me Minimus when I change my username by deed poll.

 

[Maximus]

I'm the same but I have my shopping from Ocado and they only give you a 1 hr slot. Often a bit early too.

Gail x

What is Ocado Gail, out of interest?

 

[SlimmingKitchen]

I'm with Shrimpy with the buying syn free stuff. I do plan the weeks meals though. I write the list of meals at the top of the page, and ingredients I need to buy underneath in sections (fruit & veg / chilled / frozen / other) and try to stick to my list as I do my shopping. Seriously considering on-line food shopping, but don't like the long slots (2 hours is a lot of hanging around!)

I do my shopping online with Sainsburys and they have theirs in 1 hour slots. I set mine today to be delivered between 2-3pm and he turned up at 2.05pm so was well impressed. xxx

 

[Monkey_Monkey_Underpants]

I have to confess to being pathologically incapable of planning.
But the "flying by the seat of the pants" approach seems to be working for me so far, so I'll stick with it!

I do generally decide what colour day I'm going to be on, but that's often as far as I get.

But I'm losing quite well. Just think what I could do if I could get organised!

 

[gl12282]

What is Ocado Gail, out of interest?

Hi Steve,

It's a partner of Waitrose so you get the same stuff in there. At one stage I couldn't get Waitrose online but Ocado do Waitrose branded products and carry the same stock. Now it looks a little bit like they are separating a little bit because there is Waitrose own brand stuff as well as Ocado branded stuff. Stuff comes in 3 coloured bags - store cupboard, fridge and freezer which is helpful for lazy people like me who only unpack what they need to when the shopping arrives ! I think they are great and will refund straight away if there are any problems with things.

Gail x

 

[gl12282]

Now listen up Shrimpster!

There'll come a time when I catch you up (hopefully) you will then have to call me Minimus when I change my username by deed poll.

Looking forward to that day !!! (although I suspect the Shrimpster may reach her Mint HiFi day a bit sooner with that added incentive........)

 

[welshgirl21]

I plan my evening meals for the whole week, then lunches and HE's I do day by day. It works for me to plan my evening meals as I know what I'm making when I get home, but with lunches and HE's I like to see how I'm feeling that day as to what I have to eat.

 

[Shrimpy]

Looking forward to that day !!! (although I suspect the Shrimpster may reach her Mint HiFi day a bit sooner with that added incentive........)

*giggle* Here I come, 5lbs left!

Minimus will be known as such from now onwards, especially if I is getting mint HiFis!

 

[gl12282]

*giggle* Here I come, 5lbs left!

Minimus will be known as such from now onwards, especially if I is getting mint HiFis!

LOL. I am so looking forward to celebrating with you Shrimpy

Gail x

 

[gl12282]

P.S. I love the fact that the HiFi debate/discussion (from the original HiFi thread) continues around so many different threads in so many different sections !!!

 

[Shrimpy]

:8855:
We are naughty!!! we will celebrate like crazy, on every thread on the first page!

 

[helzzz]

I plan at the start of the week for 7 days. I start out by working out evening meals and listing any healthy extras that I'll need and also decide if it will be an extra easy day or green day (I don't do red days I like to have protein and carbs together). I then work backwards from that knowing how many healthy extras I can eat for lunch and breakfast. I then write a shopping list from the plan and take both with me so that if I'm buying something with a short sell by (eg meat) I know what date I'll be having it on and what date I need to buy (I tend to eat meat at the start of the week for this reason). I also try to make double portions of evening meals if possible so that I can have some the next day to reduce cooking.

I also put plan on the fridge and tell hubby in the morning what we'll be having for tea so that if it comes to tea time and I'm feeling like I want a take-away instead he'll say "I've been looking forward to X all day" - it works for me.

I also buy lots of fruit & muller lights which I don't plan specifically - just use them as snacks / desserts.

This week I've been sitting down after tea and choosing a bar from my selection box to use up my syns (I synned them all at the start of the week and have a list next to them so that I know what each one is worth before choosing). I think I need to get better at actually using my syns up and planning them better.

 

[Kyzi]

I plan a week in advance. We shop once a week so we need to know exactly what were buying as well not have time otherwise. It sounds a bit ultra organised but i have a notebook where we make a note of the week and what were having for breakfast, dinner & teas. Ive found its the best way to stay on track and plan properly. And you can see properly where your having healthy a & b's and where your syns (or arent).

x x

 

[Hannahkw1]

I plan once a week the evening meals, I choose 7 meals, list the ingredients needed, buy them, then depending on the sell by dates for things that is the deciding factor for which order they are eaten in.

Breakfasts are always porridge and milk which uses my hxA and hxB. Lunch is always a superfree soup homemade. This helps my planning alot! I buy whatever fruit is on offer and they are my snacks. Nice and easy!

 

[sparkledpixie]

Thank you for this post, I have been thinking about planning my meals for a long time as I often get to the evening and not know what to have/have nothing in ready for a syn free dinner.

Those who buy once a week... what fruit do you buy? I tend to buy pre prepared stuff (very lazy and picky when it comes to fruit) and it goes off within a few days normally

 

[elb4160]

I try to plan... rarely. I'll have a splurge and do a big meal plan but very rarely stick to it if ever really. I know I should but I'm lazy. And I'm sure a lot of you have seen me in the "what's for tea" thread fretting over not knowing what to make for dinner... heh