Mindful Eating: Creating a Meal Plan
Oh what a loaded topic I have on the blog today! Food, meal plans, healthy lifestyle choices are loaded subjects for me. While I was not a large child, I would have never considered me skinny either – which is strange because looking back, I really was in a healthy weight range throughout high school and college. As an adult, after children, my weight has crept on. Issues like insulin resistance and polycystic ovary syndrome complicate the weight issue even more. My plans for 2024 have been to make healthier eating choices to help with not only my weight but also the hormonal changes that come with middle age. This post will focus on mindful eating: creating a meal plan.
Focus on your main goal when creating a meal plan.
For me, my main focus is reducing the amount of sugar in my diet. When my sugar intake decreases, my overall health increases. I see multiple benefits of limiting sugar in my meal plans.
Focus on what your main goal is and create a meal plan that moves towards that goal. One of the easiest and most consistent changes I have made is switching out how I prepare my morning coffee. Instead of a sweet creamer which I would give a heavy pour into my coffee, I now add a scoop of collagen (protein and joint benefits), a touch of Stevia, and a little half&half.
In my meal planning, I try to do the same thing – look for little changes I can make that will reduce that sugar intake. I have incorporated more sweet potatoes into my diet as they are a healthier veggie than a basic baked potatoe. I’ve really cut back on the amount of bread served with our meals. Little changes can contribute to healthier long term lifestyle choices.
Know the basics when creating a meal plan.
It is helpful to understand the very basic food categories to help you create a nourishing meal plan. Foods have carbohydrates, proteins, and/or fats. Understanding that keeping carbohydrates paired with protiens and fats paired with protiens while keeping carbohydrates and fats separate has been a tremendous help to me. Trim Healthy Mama has been a big resource in guiding my mindful eating habits. With this knowledge, creating a meal plan is easier.
I love finding healthy recipes on Instagram that I can try. The Galvaston Diet book has also been an asset for understanding this new season of life and I am in. It is amazing what power and medicine is in the foods we eat. In this book, I am learning the value of protein and fiber in my diet as well as the benefits of weight lifting for overall body health.
Create One Week at a Time Meal Plans
It is easier to be mindful when there is a determined number of days. Seven days of creating a meal plan is a doable amount for me. As I have shared before here, I function best when I eat every 3 hours; therefore, I have three meals a day and 2-3 snacks a day.
I’ve recently found an account on Instagram where the mom shares meals that she makes for her family. The ingredients are purchased from Aldi’s. Now, next to having a good plan, I love saving some money! Alison Havens is the mom’s name and here is one of her weekly meal posts. For whatever meals I plan, I can always tweak them to a healthier version if need be. Honestly though, my suppers are not my biggest health concern – my mindless snacking is. Another resource I have discovered that does provide healthy snack and meal options is The Peachy Spoon. A friend sent me this recommendation and I am grateful!
Incorporate your favorites into your meal plan.
I’m uncertain why I buy into the lie that I need different healthy foods each and every day. When I eat horribly, I go to the same foods over and over again. Why can’t I apply that to my healthy food choices. Love a great chicken salad? Fix it everyday if need be. Found just the right treat to satisfy your sweet tooth? Keep it on hand.
You can incorporate favorite meals and snacks again and again. Just about any type of roasted vegetables are amazing to me. No matter what the main course is, adding some roasted veggies are always a healthy choice for me.
So go ahead and create a meal plan following these tips: focus on your main goal, know your basics, plan only a week at a time, and incorporate your favorites! Please let me know how your meal planning goes.
5 Daily Habits for Healthy Eating
Eating healthy may seem overwhelming or like an insurmountable tasks; however, establishing healthy eating habits creates positive outcomes in your life. With the implementation of 5 daily habits for healthy eating, you will see an improvement in your overall health.
1. Take a multivitamin.
Multivitamins provide nutrients that your body might be lacking. For me, Vitamin D and C are two vitamins that I need more of in my body. When I take a daily multivitamin, my energy levels noticably improve. Of course, the addition of raw fruits and vegetables will also increase the nutrients available to your body. While the increase in energy levels is wonderful, I will caution against taking any vitamins on an empty stomach. Please eat a full meal before taking vitamins in order to reduce the possibility of nausea and always consult your doctor before taking any new vitamin or supplement.
2. Drink water.
Sure this habit is a no brainer but if you are like me and not a huge fan of water, you might want to get creative in how to get your water intake higher. Setting a goal for how many ounces you will drink per day, using a pretty water bottle, or adding a no sugar sweetener to your water might be ways to make drinking water daily an easy habit. Since reducing sugar in my diet, I find that I am reaching more for water and allowing myself one Coke Zero per day.
There is a drink that Trim Healthy Mama created called “Good Girl Moonshine” and it has water, apple cider vinegar, ground ginger, and stevia in it. I’ve made it with a flavored tea to give it extra punch. This drink is a healthy sipper and also helps with weight loss – the apple cider vinegar can help to invigorate your metabolism.
3. Plan ahead.
This habit is CRUCIAL to my success. Creating a meal plan the weekend before the next week helps me keep on track for healthy eating. Designating specific times to create meals and snacks saves me from becoming too hungry and eating anything in sight. With the proper preparation, I already know what my next meal or snack will be. I have sat down with my own schedule and written in meals and snacks; however, I believe you could use a calendar as well.
Part of my planning includes researching various healthy eating sites via Pinterest and Instagram for meal and snack inspiration. My favorite is when I can find a Trim Healthy Mama weekly meal plan and pull meal ideas from it. In 2022, I set a goal of providing 365 different meals for my family. This task definitely required planning ahead! You can read all about it here.
I recently discovered The Peachie Spoon on Instagram and love the variety of recipes she has that help stabilize blood sugar levels. 4. Eat every 3 hours.
Trim Healthy Mama is the eating plan that I am most closely adhering to and one of its pillars of success is the habit of eating every 3 hours. This time frame allows your body to process the food from the previous meal without overloading its systems.
When I create my meal plan, I write out the times I will be having my meals and snacks. Typically I have a meal at: 6:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 3:00 p.m., 6:00 p.m., and 9:00 p.m. My 6:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., and my 6:00 p.m. times are for meals and the other times are for snacks. The key to success is pairing either fats with protein or carbohydrates with protein but NO MIXING fats, carbs, and protein. I highly recommend the Trim Healthy Mama book. The sisters that wrote the book spent years in research on ways to provide the best nutrition to your body.
As an Amazon Associate, I may be eligible to earn commission on viable links. 5. Celebrate the wins.
Making healthier choices is hard. Celebrating each little win is a great habit to establish daily. Do you feel more energized? That’s a win. Did you lose half a pound? Consider that a win. Are you able to think more clearly? Another win. Celebrate your ability to grow and change for the better. This is a habit to incorporate in every aspect of life!
By implementing these 5 daily habits for healthy eating: take a multivitamin, drink water, plan ahead, eat every 3 hours, and celebrate the wins, you are sure to feel the positive results in your body!
