Week# 2 Make A Plan Ahead Of Time

You know how it is... you wake up in the morning with the goal to make healthy eating choices all day. But your day spins out of control and the pressure hits and you are rushing and running around like a crazy person. Your blood sugar is low and you're in a hurry so you drive through for fast food or grab some cookies or eat some other kind of empty calories. And that bad decision can  lead you to feeling like "the day is blown" and you may even sink into more bad decisions based on the initial poor choices.

Or maybe you did a good job of eating healthy all day and have plans to go out to eat with your spouse that evening but the reservations are for later than your usual dinner time and the restaurant is crowded and by time you are sitting down you are famished so you eat way too much bread and order something delicious but calorie laden and again since you've blown it you opt for a restaurant dessert on top of it all.

It really is amazingly hard to make wise eating choices when you feel like you are STARVING!

So our challenge for this week is menu planning: 

1. I would prefer you plan all meals and snacks for the entire week ahead of time

but if this is too daunting

2. Plan at least all of the meals and snacks for the next day ahead of time and enter them into myfitnesspal and eat what you have entered

That's right I want it that specific. I will eat a Thomas whole grain english muffin with 2 (measured) tablespoons of Jiff Peanut butter and a medium grapefruit for breakfast. Plan it (at least the day before) enter it into myfitnesspal and carry through with your plan

And as you do this planning consider carefully the demands of the day you are planning for. Do you really have time to come home for the healthy lunch you have planned or do you need to pack snacks or even meals to take with you as  you travel for work, errands or family carpools? 

Nearly every restaurant provides their menu on line. So yes I want you to choose what you are going to eat the day BEFORE you are sitting in the restaurant. Planned and entered into myfitnesspal and you just carry out the plan.

Now I know this isn't always possible. Perhaps you planned a healthy lunch at home for tomorrow but the morning of the next day friends call to invite you out to lunch. I realize there are last minute changes to plans. Try to keep these to a minimum but should they arise regroup right then. You want me to go to lunch with you today? (or even in 30 minutes) I am going to pull the menu up on the computer and plan ahead what I am going to eat and enter it in myfitnesspal before you pick me up. Or if someone brings cake to work and you decide to amend your plan to take your sugar day on Friday and instead eat cake with your co-workers. Delay the first bite for a few minutes and enter it into myfitnesspal BEFORE you eat it. Does that make sense?

Our goal is to plan our meals and snacks ahead of time when we are calm and have our goals clearly in mind. Do your best to do that this week and you earn the 5 daily bonus points.