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Meal planning is often talked about as a big time saver. But if you don’t plan consistently, it can feel like the opposite. Sitting down to plan meals might seem like one more thing on an already full to-do list.
The more familiar you get with meal planning, the faster it becomes. Most regular planners can create a weekly plan in 15 to 30 minutes. That small upfront investment saves hours throughout the week. Here’s how.
You stop scrambling to figure out what’s for dinner
Instead of standing in front of the fridge at 5 pm trying to piece something together, you can jump straight into cooking. This is sneaky time savings because decision-making takes longer than we think. A quick pantry check can easily turn into 15 or 20 minutes of searching, debating, and second-guessing.
You make fewer grocery store trips
Before I started meal planning, I went to the grocery store every other day. I would buy just a few things to make the next recipe or two, but it didn’t mean the trip to the store was any faster. I still had to walk each aisle to find what I needed and make sure I hadn’t missed anything from the list in my head. That time at the grocery store every week really started to add up!
Now, I plan my meals and only go to the grocery store once a week. In a single grocery trip, I get everything I need for the week, and then I don’t have to go back until the next meal plan is made!
An organized grocery list makes trips even faster. When your list follows the layout of your store, you can move through it once and be done. Now I can get in and out in 30 minutes or less.
You can prep ahead because you know what you’ll eat
Prepping without a plan often leads to wasted time and wasted food. Chopped vegetables go limp and end up in the trash. Cooked grains get slimy and inedible.
With a meal plan, food prep becomes intentional. You can chop veggies you know you’ll use, marinate meat early, and make sauces ahead of time. You can spend time prepping on a Sunday afternoon or in the marginal moments of your day. Using your downtime for food prep means dinner gets on the table faster.
You plan meals that fit your schedule
Meal planning is also a time-management tool. When you look at your week before you plan, you can match meals to your energy and schedule. When you don’t have time or energy, you can plan 15-minute meals, crockpot recipes, leftovers, or freezer meals.
It might feel like takeout is the fastest option, but it can get expensive over time and doesn’t support the goal of eating more meals at home. Planning ahead makes home-cooked meals doable during hectic weeks.
Tips for Getting Started
- Get your recipes in one place
Going back and forth between bookmarked blogs, saved social posts, and handwritten cards wastes time. When your recipes live in one place, planning is faster and less frustrating.
- Plan fewer meals
A common mistake for someone new to meal planning is thinking you need to plan every meal of every day, but often that’s too much! Start with a few dinners each week and fill the gaps with leftovers and simple backup meals. Over time, you’ll learn how much planning is “just right” for your family.
- Use an organized shopping list
Scribbled, messy lists slow you down in the store. Organize your list by aisle so you can shop efficiently without backtracking. Tools like Plan to Eat automatically create organized lists and remove the extra step of list-making.
The 30 minutes you spend meal planning this week will save you so much time in the days that follow. It removes the nightly dinner decisions and extra grocery trips, and enables you to get ahead. Meal planning is a favor to your future self, and you’ll feel it when 5 o’clock comes around!
