One of my goals for the site (and my instagram) has always been to share what I’m doing in hopes to help others make healthy choices and changes in their own lives. Meal planning and prepping became the center of that for a while and as I continue to tweak the way I go about doing things, I figured this would be a wonderful time to share my process!

Currently I am planning my meals and making my grocery list on Sundays for the following week. For example, today is Sunday, June 23rd and I am sitting down to plan our meals for the week of Monday, July 1st. I look at our calendar and see approximately how many and what kind of meals we will need. Are we going to be on the go and needing easy, no heat options? Do we have an event or plans that include a meal so I don’t have to make as much? Are we traveling and do I need to pack snacks and food for our trip and/or do I need to make extra meals to freeze when we return? There are SO. MANY. QUESTIONS. to ask yourself when you’re planning and it may seem overwhelming at first! I promise it gets easier and just like anything else will become second nature the more you work through the process.

Our week of July 1, 2019 looks like: just coming back from a weekend trip to Long Island on top of 4th of July and the crazy on/off work schedules that go along with it. From my planning for the week of June 24th that I did on Sunday, July 16th I know that we will already have freezer meals ready to go for when we get back. I’ll pull those out on Sunday, June 30th when we get back from our trip and then I will have minimal cooking to do for the week!

Once I have a rough outline of the week I’m planning for, I can take inventory of what we already have and make a grocery list for the fresh ingredients we will need. I typically do this master plan in the Notes app on my iPhone but from now on, I’m going to do it right here on the blog so I can share it with all of you! My plan looks something like this..

Week of July 1

Breakfasts - Egg bakes (from the freezer) and overnight protein oats (Matt needs 4 to go, Brooke cook at home)

Monday Night Dinner - Antipasto Salad from the Keto Diet Cookbook over romaine (use marinated onion oil for dressing)

Meals - Matt needs 6 lunches/dinners to go. Brooke needs 4 lunches/dinners to go.

Defrost…

• Collagen Pancakes

• Chicken Broccolini Stir Fry

• Butter Chicken with Broccoli

• Butter Chicken Sauce (2) + Shredded Chicken + Peas (will make 3 meals)

• Ground Turkey & Bacon Hash

• Chicken Pot Pie (2)

From there I check my freezer inventory note (I use Google Keep for this) and remove any items I’ll be using from the inventory list. Since this is going to be a travel week, we’re defrosting LOTS of freezer meals and only supplementing with one freshly prepared meal and leftovers from it to make it through the week.

A few notes…

*Matt takes his breakfasts to go and eats at work but I cook breakfast at home most mornings since my work day starts a bit later.

*Monday, July 1st isn’t included as part of the rest of the new “meals to make” section because Mondays are the only weeknight that I am actually home for dinner to make a fresh meal for us. It’s basically our at home date night and I try to make something special each week if I have time! Tuesdays through Thursdays I eat my dinner in the car in between my private music students (shameless plug for my company, Lessons By Brooke & Company - check us out!) This is definitely not an ideal, “rest and digest” way to eat, but this is life for me right now and I’m okay with that.

*You may have noticed that we technically need a total of 10 lunches/dinners that are prepped and ready to be eaten but I’m technically only defrosting 8 meals. That is because we will have some leftovers of the Antipasto Salad from Monday night and when I eat dinner in the car, I typically take a less conventional type of meal - leftover protein from the week or beef jerky paired with some raw fruits and veggies, easy things I can eat cold and with my hands. I literally eat while I am driving (do as I say not as I do LOL) so I can’t be packing myself a saucy, warm dish like butter chicken unless I want to end up wearing it, haha!

*Keep in mind that this isn’t a typical week - I will share more of what that looks like as soon as I can! Hoping I’ll have time to write on the plane next Sunday but in case I don’t, I promise to be back with a more “normal” meal plan post soon :)

I think I covered everything but please feel free to comment with any questions or clarifications needed! I have been meal planning and prepping in some way, shape or form for a long time (almost 6 years!) so sometimes it is hard for me to zoom out and focus on the baby steps :) I hope this was helpful!!!

xo

Brooke

Some of the above may be affiliate links, which means I am given a small amount commission if you click on and make purchases through them. Doing so is no additional cost to you, but it does help me! I promise to only ever share things I truly use, love and recommend. Thanks for your support!