Hi Fit Moms! The last two weeks I’ve been writing a series about how to meal plan.  I’m hoping that there will be a style that you will like and can begin to use at home.  If you missed the first post that explains why I’m writing this series, check out “Meal Planning 101: how to make a weekly meal plan.”  Here are some of the ways I make a healthy meal plan, “Meal Planning 101: family favorites“, and “Meal Planning 101: shopping the sales paper, and “Meal Planning 101: theme nights.”

The next lesson in Meal Planning 101 is actually something I don’t do very often, because we are on a budget.  But, this is a very fun way to do it, it involves using a magazine or cookbook to plan my meals.  But, with the right cookbook (like a healthy meal on a budget type cookbook) or the right magazine you can find some ready made meal plans for you to just copy and post up on your fridge! All your planning and shopping lists many times are already done for you. This is a great option especially for those of you who want to eat healthy but just don’t know where to start. It’s also good for those of you who just refuse to give meal planning on your own a try.  This way is also good for busy moms who feel like they don’ t have a lot of time to make up their own recipe plan.

One cookbook that I often recommend, was one I used when I was trying to lose 40lbs after the birth of my daughter. I followed it perfectly. I just picked meals from it, writing it on a piece of paper. Every meal was recorded on a resource page, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. I then created a shopping list based on the meals. Click here for a FREE meal plan calendar or log. The book I used was called The Formula. The meals were great! The entire family enjoyed them. You don’t have to use this book! There are plenty out there like The Eat Clean Diet for Family and Kids, and for those of you who have trouble getting veggies into your kids diets, there’s the popular Sneaky Chef. Any book will do with good healthy recipes.

Not only can you find great healthy recipes for your weekly meal plan from cookbooks, but you can also find them in magazines! One of my favorites is called Clean Eating Magazine.  Many times they have the entire week planned for you!  Also, from time to time magazines like Everyday With Rachael Ray will have some healthy meal options.  Other magazines that I like to look through to pull healthy recipe ideas from when I’m making a magazine meal plan are Cooking Light, Eating Well, Taste of Home Healthy Cooking, and Weight Watchers.  If you’d like to subscribe to any of these, I have a way you can do it and save up to 50% or more off of the newstand prices! By clicking on the banner below you can save $$ and at the same time help my son who is trying to raise money to go to Boy Scout summer camp next year! This year it cost over $500 for him to go to summer camp, and he raised all of the funds himself. He’s starting earlier this year. So, if you like the idea of magazine meal planning… and you’d like to save money on your magazine… AND if you’d like to help an 11 year old raise $ so that he can pay for his own summer camp please click the link below.

What magazines or cookbooks do YOU use to help you meal plan?

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Before I begin, I’d like to share some news! I’m excited to announce that we will be starting a Friday series called “Figure Friendly Comfort Foods”. Now that fall is here, I’m craving every pumpkin dish, creamy soups, and any type of pie. The one thing I don’t want to do is pack on the pounds so I’m starting this series and I’d LOVE for you to join me! Every Friday I’ll post a comfort food makeover that’s a little easier on your waistline. If you have a blog, please join me on Fridays and you can link up below giving me one of your makeover meals! It will be fun to re-create the things we love, making healthier versions for our families. Will you join me??? Come back this Friday September 28 for the kick off! Work on your recipe this week, and link up here Friday. You can grab the banner below (code is at bottom of page) or come back tomorrow for a few more options.

Last week I started a series dedicated to different ways to meal plan, called Meal Planning 101.  If you missed the first two posts here are links to… “Meal Planning 101: how to make a weekly meal plan” and “Meal Planning 101: family favorites.” Today I will continue the series with another way that I make a meal plan.

We all know that times are tough.  The economy is just not what it used to be a few years ago.  Suddenly, a lot of us find ourselves pinching pennies.  Shopping the sales paper is one of my favorite ways to not only save money, but make a great meal plan.

Here’s how I do it. I look online for the local ads of my favorite grocery stores.  I write down my favorite fresh veggie and fruit items.  Then I look at the meat items and I start paring veggies with the meat to make a meal. Of course I also plan meatless meals because we are cutting back on meat in our house.

Here’s an example of how to shop the sales paper.  This week chicken was on sale for $1.67 per pound.  Tomatoes for 59 cents a pound.  Zucchini was 3 lbs for $1.  Lean ground beef $2.79 per pound.  My favorite Fuju apples were nicely priced at 69 cents a pound.  Baby okra, frozen, was $1.59 per bag.  Plain non fat yogurt was $1.79 each.  Extra large cans of black beans are $1.99.  A pound of strawberries are 99 cents. Avocados are 2 for $1!

Here’s what I just thought up off the top of my head to make with these ingredients.

Sample Weekly Meal Plan

Monday- Succotash (okra, corn, tomatoes) with cornbread

Tuesday- Stuffed zucchini boats (stuffed with lean ground beef and quinoa and use the cleaned out zucchini and tomatoes as well) served with an avocado black bean tomato salad

Wednesday- Moussaka, a Greek dish using the yogurt and lean ground beef

Thursday- Black bean chili (using the beans, tomatoes, lean ground beef, strain yogurt to add on top like a dollap of sour cream)

Friday- Zucchini, tomatoes, basil from my garden served over whole wheat pasta

Saturday- Homemade BRC Burritos (use the tomatoes to make salsa, black beans, and ground beef, brown rice in my pantry)

Sunday- BBQ chicken served with BBQ black beans, quinoa, and baked apples for dessert

Come back Wednesday when I share another one of my favorite ways to meal plan!  Subscribe so you won’t miss out!

Do you have a healthy meal plan?? If so, post the link below! We’d LOVE to see it!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

This post was shared on Orgjunkie! Check it out for tons of meal planning ideas. Pick healthy! 

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If your family is anything like ours every person probably has a favorite meal. I’m sure that almost everyone has a different favorite meal from each other. In our house, my favorite is homemade pizza. My son’s favorite is a yummy burrito.  My daughter’s favorite meal includes healthy orange flavored chicken. Byron, my hubby, his favorite is any kind of homemade green juice, and stir fry.

As you see we ALL have different favorites. This means that if I was making a “Family Favorite Meal Plan” that I’d instantly have 4 different dinners that I could put on my weekly meal plan, and look how easy that was!

How To Make A Family Favorite Meal Plan

Let everyone in your household tell you their favorite meals, 5-10 of them.  Compile a list of their favorites and use those meals to fill in your weekly meal plan chart. This type of plan will help you make sure that at least one night a week your picky eater is pleased, or it will just let everyone know they are special and loved.

To be clear, sit down and “interview” each member of your family.  Ask them to name 5-10 of their favorite breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack foods.  Record this list on a piece of paper. After you complete this list you should have a list of a ton of options that you can just plug into your weekly meal plan.  Each day you can choose from the list to make sure that everyone gets some of their favorites throughout the week. If I were you I’d do this before my weekly trip to the grocery store so that I can make sure I have all the ingredients I need for the week.

One fun thing we have in our house is a plate that says “My Special Day.”  You can use a plate like this, or any special colored or designed plate you have lying around your house. For fun, try to serve a meal on it to the person whose favorite meal is being served.  They’ll feel special. Everyone will have the plate at least one day or meal a week!

Just imagine…making a meal plan this way takes the guess work out of what your family likes to eat. It also saves you time because you will instantly have a list of at least 10++ breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack ideas to pull from. All you do is pluck one of the options off of your family favorites list, and plop it onto your Fit Moms Fit Kids FREE weekly healthy meal plan template.

That’s it! Super easy!

You will be relieved knowing you’ve planned good healthy meals for your family that you know they will LOVE, because they are their favorites!!

Come back later this week,  I’ll share another of my favorite ways to meal plan!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

It’s that time a year again. Our kids are going back to school. Some have been in school for a few weeks now.  For some of you that could mean more free time, because your kids are actually getting dropped off at a traditional school.  For others like me, it means that you are now even busier because you homeschool.  Whatever your situation there is a way for you to fit your workouts into your daily routine.

Here are some tips on how to make sure you fit fitness into your daily life.

1. Schedule, Schedule, Schedule

I know some of you like to fly by the seat of your pants, but if you haven’t fit your workout in your day in the last week you may want to re-think your plan. You need to plan for your success. This means breaking out a calendar like Goggle calendar, iCal, or Cozi.com and making sure you find a spot for your workout to go in 3-6 days a week!  It’s okay to mix up the time. For instance, one day maybe you will workout at 5:30am, another day at 7pm. It doesn’t matter just make sure you schedule and then follow your schedule. Protect your workout time, your health depends on it!

2.  Make a Meal Plan.

This tip can save your life, literally.  If you want to be fit and healthy you must plan your meals.  Most people are overweight because they do not have a proper diet.  Instead of a healthy diet of lean protein and veggies, they have a diet of Olive Garden and McDonald’s.  You have a better chance of eating smaller portions and the right foods if you make it yourself.  When you meal plan you can make sure you plan to eat enough fruit and veggies daily.  You will know in advance what you need to shop for to fulfill your weekly plan, which will save you money.  And, you will know what’s for dinner, can plan accordingly so you won’t have to make a fast food run because it’s 6:30pm, and you have nothing in your fridge, and you don’t know what to eat.  I will have a post up later this week on how I meal plan.

3.  Get Some Sleep

This tip is often overlooked, especially by busy moms. I know you think you are Superwoman, but guess what she does NOT exist.  You are NOT Superwoman.  You are a normal woman who God gave a certain amount of energy.  You can deplete it.  I know many nights you are up until 1am doing things around the house, finishing up things that need to get done. But, know this, without proper rest your body will fail you.  You were not meant to run on fumes. You need your sleep, you need rest.  Everyone knows that “If momma ain’t happy, nobody’s happy.”  Rest is a big part of that.  Did you know that sleep will also help you with your weight loss goals? Your body needs time to rest, recuperate, and reboot so that it can function at an optimal level.  This school year, make sure you get rest ladies. Your body will thank you for it. *A cool way to find out how efficiently you are sleeping is by using a Fitbit.  Check it out!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

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