Suggestion:  Prepare for Meals in Advance

It is important to make time for and put energy into meals and food preparation.  Rather than wait until your are stressed out, just getting home from work or tending to the children, why not plan ahead and save some time and headaches.  Every Sunday plan the meals you will have for the week, including breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Figure out what ingredients you have and what you may need and then do your grocery shopping for the entire week.  You could even do some of the cooking on Sunday and just use leftovers for meals during the week.

Ideas for implementation

• Get up 10-15 minutes earlier to prepare a healthy breakfast to start the day properly
• Make double and triple batches and freeze them in lunch and dinner size portions
• Share cooking with a friend and swap portions of the meals you make to add more variety to your eating
• Use a Weekly Meal Planning Tool™ (click to open and print as necessary)

The Weekly Meal Planning Tool™ can help you organize your meals on a weekly basis.  There is space to put in what needs to come out of the freezer beforehand so you don't get to dinner time and have a frozen steak that still needs to be thawed.  Also, it may help cut down on the urge to just "grab fast food" because you don't know what to make for dinner or what you have in the house.  Snacks can even be included so you carry them with you each day and can avoid those tempting vending machines!

NOTE:  Please see Chapter 9 in the featured book "The Guide To Healthy Eating", by David Brownstein, MD and Sheryl Shenefelt, CN for more food preparation tips.