Hi all! Coach Stefanie here!
When I decided to lose weight and started on this journey, I quickly realized that my biggest pitfall was going to the store (or my husband going to the store). I would always be tempted to pick up additional items in the store and would often purchase products without scanning them. After all, who wants to stand in the store and scan everything?
Update: Find all four parts of the series below.
- The Why: Grocery Planning 101
- The How: Meal Planning for a Month
- The Secret to Success: Frozen Foods
- The Day-to-Day: Tactical Tools
Many people solve this problem by using grocery order/pickup programs. These programs are great since they let you pick out your items in the comfort of your home, meaning you aren’t tempted by impulse buys. I love supplementing my grocery shopping this way but have, unfortunately, found this to be a less than reliable technique. I had several experiences where my items were substituted with others that were not BITE friendly or not substituted at all. Which resulted in missing key ingredients in recipes.
One time, my plain nonfat Greek yogurt, that I had planned to use instead of Sour Cream on my baked potato and tacos, was substituted with Vanilla yogurt…not helpful. In the end, I had to run to another store on my way home from picking my order up. Which brought with it the same temptation. It was also less than ideal for the frozen food in my car.
Instead of using grocery pickup, I have adopted a once a month grocery shopping routine.
I create a 4-week plan in which I plan breakfasts and dinners. My lunch is usually made up of leftovers from dinner (so I make sure my dinner is more than 2 portions). Then, I do most of my shopping in bulk which helps lower the price for this monthly shopping spree. Depending on the month, I sometimes grab a few fresh ingredients in the middle of the month. Which is when I will use a grocery pickup program. I will also use it to get some smaller items or specific things that I am unable to get at the big store.
Using this method has drastically cut down on my spending and on the amount of bad food decisions I make. I also struggle with dinner temptations when I don’t plan the evening out in advance. Instead, this gives me options of what I can make and most of them are easy to finish up.
Over the next few weeks, I will go into more detail on how I set up my meal plan, how I prepare, and how this plan works in my everyday life. Attached below is the template that I use for shopping. I wanted to share this with you now in hopes of you joining me in this process!
How do all of you shop? Are you a weekly or even daily shopper? Leave a comment with your favorite grocery planning hacks! Come back next Monday for my next post!
Happy Tracking!
Read Part 2 HERE
Read Part 3 HERE
Read Part 4 HERE
