My Sunday Mantra

My mantra for eating healthy is "If you fail to plan, plan to fail". It is completely worth my time to prepare breakfasts and vegetables on Sunday afternoons instead of trying to find something healthy to eat before we all leave the house in the morning. 

Here are some suggestions for planning your weekly meals. 

First, find a planner for your dinners. I like this one that I've shared before in another blog post. Plan all of your meals around vegetables and proteins, and then throw in some fresh fruit and/or grains if that is part of your wellness plan. 

• I always plan for at least one slow-cooker meal each week. Usually it's a whole chicken with whatever veggies we have in the house like carrots, sweet potatoes, peppers, onions, etc. 
• We have Mexican a lot, so one meal is usually spiced up. It's a great way to use leftover meat too. Meat + Salsa = Easy & Yummy dinner!
• I try to find a new recipe each week. I am currently working my way through Everyday Paleo. Each time I try a recipe, I put a quick post-it note in there with tips for the next time I make it. 

Second, plan your breakfasts. Here's what I prepare on Sunday afternoons:

• Sweet potatoes with grilled chicken or sausage or bacon for post-workout breakfasts. I put 1/3 of a sweet potato in each container and top it with sliced chicken, a few slices of bacon, or a small sausage patty. 
• Scrambled Eggs--one dozen eggs usually gets us through about two mornings of breakfast. I heat up some coconut oil in a skillet, crack the eggs directly into the pan, and then scramble with a fork. Yum! 
• Extra meat--I try to fix 1-2lbs of bacon and/or sausage to have for the week. 

Third (and the biggest struggle for me) are lunches. Usually I send leftovers with Dr. Wes and Ben, but that still leaves lunch for Will and me. 

• Prepare veggies and fruit on Sundays. I like to have "quick" and mess-free fruit for lunches for Ben. Often it's grapes, strawberries, or blueberries. Sometimes I have to thaw out a bag of organic fruit to send, but our household much prefers fresh fruit. And bananas. Oh my goodness--we eat a ton of bananas in this house. 
• We don't eat a lot of raw veggies (except in salad) and it's worth my time to steam broccoli  carrots, and green beans on Sundays. 

Find a day or night that works for you, and see if spending a few hours in the kitchen can save you time during the week. I bet you'll find that you are preparing healthier meals and eating out less. It saves us time, money, and makes a big difference in our family's health! 

I'd love to hear your tips too! 

--Katie