Planning for Success

Over the last several months of my healthly lifesyle change, I have come to realize that planning is everything. If you can successfully plan out your meals for the day or for the week ahead, you are less likely to endulge in something not so good for you.

Weekly planning:

By planning out your meals for the entire week you can save yourself time, money and calories. If you have a weekly meal plan, you can save time by grocery shopping once for the week instead of several times during the week. You can save money by buying and cooking in bulk for the week. Also by planning ahead for the week before you go to the grocery store, you can ensure that you have plenty of healthy options for you and your family around the house. The more healthy options you have around the house the more likely you are to pick them over something else.

Daily planning:

If you really want to help yourself reach your nutritional goals, one must is to plan out your meals and snacks for the day. Before I leave the house in the morning, I make sure that I have my morning snack, lunch, and afternoon snack taken care of for the day. When I take the time to pack these items and take them with me, I will usually take the time to eat them over some other temptation at the office.

Traveling is another great time to take advantage of your planning skills. By packing nutrional snacks like almonds, fruits, veggies, protein bars, and protein powder you can help to ensure that you don't end up with the afternoon munchies at the candy bar aisle in the quick trip. Also take an ice chest and pack bottled water and other healthy drinks. If you can limit your temptation by not having to go into the quick trip, you will increase your chances that you will make the right choice.