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Episode 34: “Will meal planning work for me?”

 

“Will meal planning work for me?”

Wondering, “will meal planning will work for me?”

It’s almost the end of 2020, and 2021 is fast approaching. This is the perfect time to give yourself a pat on the back for accomplishing a lot of things this year despite the situation. This may be the year you took up new hobbies, took time to take care of your own needs, and perhaps even got your nutrition and fitness in order. However, not all of us may feel like we truly made the most out of this year, especially if we didn’t meet our expectations or achieve some goals we set for ourselves at the beginning of this year.

I thought to myself, ‘How can I help you in achieving the goal of eating healthy as we head into the new year?’ It obviously had to be something that is simple and sustainable. I think meal planning would be the best way to start your new year with a bang.

Key Learnings:

Tune in to this short yet meaningful podcast episode and learn about:

  • Simple and easy steps to plan your meals
  • Overcoming mental struggles over home cooking
  • What specific things to prepare for when planning your meal
  • Things to remember before going grocery shopping
  • Helpful tips for packing and storing home-cooked food

Simple Steps on How to Start Planning Your Meals according to Dr. Avishkar Sabharwal:

  1. Take that pledge that you have been planning to take for the new year.

– Doing what you’ve done so far will probably not work since it hasn’t worked in the past either. Your mind will try to play tricks on you… But remember, all of these are hypotheticals ’til you actually try them.

  1. You need to plan, to plan. 

– Plan to spend about 5 minutes to decide when in your week would be a good time for you to plan for the upcoming week to do grocery shopping, buy the relevant things you need and cook them.

  1. Plan for the upcoming week.

– In 7 days, you have 21 meals. Start planning for 21 meals. Aim for things like overnight oats or leftovers.

– Think of dishes you can cook using simple, nutritious, and time-saving ingredients.

-Also, plan to carve out 2-3 hours to prepare for the upcoming week.

  1. Time to go shopping.

– Tip: Go shopping on a full stomach and with a list in your hand. And don’t waver from the list.

  1. Get the family involved.

– Involving the family in the cooking process will not only improve your connectedness with the rest of the family, but it will also inculcate healthy habits in the children early on.

Kids are more likely to enjoy something they helped create.

Tips on Packing/Storing Food according to Dr. Avishkar Sabharwal:

  1. Use air-tight containers or ziplock.
  2. When using a container, make sure you fill it to the top.
  3. When using a ziplock, get all the air out before you lock it up.
  4. Divide the sauce you made into 14 portions for the 14 meals and pack them.
  5. Make space in your freezer and put them all in it.
  6. If you fail to remove the air, any air present in the container will likely cause a freezer burn giving food the ‘freezer taste’ that you get when you leave it in the freezer for too long.
  7. Use mason jar salads. Prepare for 1 whole week in one go then keep it in the refrigerator.

– Separate the sauces from the leaves so they won’t be in contact with each other to prevent leaves from getting soggy.

Quotes:

“Once you commit to taking an action, you’re not left in indecision and you move ahead.”

“The goal has to be to keep moving forward. Staying in indecision will keep you stuck in the same place.”

“Any good execution requires planning, which in turn requires some amount of time.”

“It takes time for a new habit to become second nature.”

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