[learningtofly]

Good evening all - I hope you'll entertain a question from a newbie. I looked through the FAQ section and may have missed a thread like this - if I did, my apologies.

I'm wondering how closely you plan your eating day-to-day. I'm not a very good planner - can manage to plan dinners for a few days at a time at best - and I think this may have been one of my downfalls in recent months.

My DH and I plan to begin South Beach tomorrow, and I made a big shopping run today for staples. I planned dinners and stocked up on salad greens, meat, the right cheeses, eggs, and things like that to use for lunches for the next few days. I didn't plan breakfasts and lunches because I'm so accustomed to eating something that sounds good rather than something I planned, and I didn't want to set myself up for an unfulfilled craving, you know?

So I'm just wondering how you structure your weeks. Tell me what helps make you successful.

Thanks in advance.

[murphmitch]

I always have SB ingredients in the house so I don't always plan my suppers ahead of time. My breakfast and lunch only vary a little bit, so there's not much room for error there. The only problem I can see with not planning (besides not having the ingredients there) is for some people it may be an opportunity to stray and be influenced to eat something spur of the moment due to hunger or time involved in meal planning. If you have veggies ready to go in fridge, meat defrosted and some easy to make recipes, you can get away with it.

[CyndiM]

I am not a planner by nature but I do plan very carefully when I'm going to be away from home, including lunch and snacks while working. Breakfast is always what I'm in the mood for and dinner if not a crock pot meal is often whatever looks good at the grocery store. I don't keep off plan foods in the house and do keep lots of veggies and beans around so there's always a SBD friendly meal to throw together.

[redflatshoe2]

I have to be a planner, I have a busy life (i.e. 50-60 work schedule and gradschool). To manage my diet, I have to plan and cook my dinner ahead. So for 3 hours on Sundays, I cook enough lunch and dinners for 2 people for 3-5 days.

For lunch or dinner (paired with small salad)

peppercorn pork loin with steamed collard greens and squash
tofu curry (chickpeas and spinach) with 1/2 black beans rice
lemon pepper salmon with steamed cabbage and kale
2 cups ground turkey chilli

I fill 12 containers with 3-4 oz lean meats and 2 cups of side dish.

Breakfast is usually 2 hard boiled egg (no yolk), 1/2 cup blueberries and 1 wedge LF laughing cow cheese.

This system works for me. If I am still hungry, I make a small salad or fruit platter.

[me4life]

i don't plan at all...even if i did i'd never follow thru. that said i'm a creature of habit and tend to have the same thing for breakfast and lunch and dinner is always the easiest for me to stay on track. now journaling thats another thing. if i don't write everything down i will completely forget what i ate.

[mythreesons]

I have my dinners planned out for the week. That is mostly for shopping trips though. (That way I can make sure I have all the necessary ingredients on hand) It also makes it easier for me b/c with three boys my brain isn't always functioning at 5 pm to decide on a meal.

I am on P1, so my breakfasts and lunches are somewhat similar, so no real planning needed.

[baristamon]

I usually plan at the grocery store. I pick up the ingredients I need for a few dinners (and hopefully enough for leftovers) and then I stock up on the staples for breakfast and lunch. (eggs, hummus, veggies, etc.) I plan to have my lazy days and nights, so its not so bad if I don't feel like slaving over the stove one or two nights. (after a full day's work and chasing a 2 year old, it feels like slaving to make a piece of toast sometimes).

[Schmoodle]

From the variety of answers it's obvious that different things work for different folks. I am a planner. I plan my dinner menus a week at a time when I make my grocery list. Sometimes I will swap out which thing goes with which night, but at least I know I have everything I need for 7 SB-compliant dinners on hand. Each morning I take a few minutes and plan the day, including snacks. It just seems when I am doing this I am staying on plan more easily. If i wait until I'm hungry and go to the kitchen to decide what to eat, it never ends well. Even if I don't have any off-plan food around, I'll end up with too many nuts, or not enough veg, etc. It's habit now, and part of my routine, so it doesn't seem like much extra work.