Meal Planning to Reach Your Fitness Goals
Everyone has different nutritional needs as well as different fitness goals. Most people struggle to reach their fitness goals because they do not realize that what they do, nutrition-wise, will affect their fitness goals. I know it can be daunting to count calories and track every little thing you eat. But it is essential to make a plan for reaching your fitness goals. The saying goes, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
Not only does planning your nutrition help reach your fitness goals, but it also can help take the guesswork out of what you will be eating that day. I know that if I do not make a plan for the week, I tend to eat out more often. Also, I may not make the most healthy choices if I decide what I eat while hungry. Here are some tips for why meal planning is essential for reaching your fitness goals.
Meal planning is vital for achieving your fitness goals. It helps you stay on track, make more restorative choices, and take the guesswork out of what you'll be eating each day. Without a meal plan, you may end up eating out more, leading to unhealthy choices. Remember, everyone has different nutritional needs, and fitness goals, so it's crucial to have a plan in place to reach your goals. "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."
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Note: I am not a professional; this is only an informative and experience-based post. Before beginning any meal plans or diets, please consult your doctor or a registered dietitian.
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What are your fitness goals?
First things first, you have to determine what your fitness goals are. Some common goals are:
weight loss
increase muscle mass
overall improve health
improve cardiovascular health
It is a good idea to determine what your why is in terms of fitness goals. Why do you want to lose weight? Why do you want to increase muscle mass? Why do you want to improve your cardiovascular or overall health? What is important to you?
No matter your reasoning, make sure that it is for YOU. No fitness goals will be sustainable if you do not do it yourself. By determining you're why, you can begin your journey to create healthy habits and, eventually, a healthy lifestyle.
Caloric Intake
Depending on my goals, I will track my calories in an app like MyFitnessPal or Lifesum. This way, I can ensure that I plan my meals toward my goals. Tracking calories is unnecessary for everyone, but it is a helpful tool. In my opinion, tracking calories is not sustainable long term. Still, it is an excellent way for beginners to determine how much they are eating and the caloric value of different foods. Most people are unaware of how much they are consuming. After a while, knowing what a balanced meal looks like will become easy, and you may not need to track calories.
If your goals are to lose weight, you have to eat at a caloric deficit, which means you are eating less than you are spending. Tracking calories is helpful to lose weight. But it is not necessary. If you are eating recommended portions, adding whole foods, and cutting back on processed and packaged foods, then chances are you will be eating at a deficit. It is harder for most people to overeat whole foods with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and protein of choice than to overeat packaged and processed foods. Most packaged and processed foods are caloric-dense, meaning it takes very little to consume many calories.
Eating at a caloric surplus in addition to high-volume strength training would be best to increase muscle mass. Please note that this strategy in putting on muscle mass doesn’t necessarily mean you can eat however much or whatever you want to. It does have to be controlled. For example, you can eat like you would lose weight, with an extra couple of healthy protein-rich snacks throughout the day. The added protein will help with muscle gain and production.
Caloric intake is essential to improve overall health and to improve cardiovascular health. You can quickly improve by evaluating your eating and creating a balanced diet. In addition to caloric intake, creating balanced meals of whole foods with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and protein, your overall health will improve.
Healthy Portion Sizes
A balanced plate should contain vegetables, quality lean protein, and complex carbohydrates. A tiny serving of healthy fats for some meals, your healthy fats may be the oil you cook your food in, such as olive oil. The recommendation for a balanced plate should contain 1/2 veggies, 1/4 protein, and 1/4 complex carbohydrates. This doesn’t mean you grab the enormous plate you can find and load it up, but rather be mindful about how much you eat.
If calorie counting isn’t for you, you can use an excellent visual representation of the proper portion sizes for different foods. Such as the size of a baseball, your fist or 1 cup should be the portion size of rice, pasta, fruits, or veggies. A deck of cards, your palm, or 3 oz should be the portion size for meat, poultry, or fish. One large egg, a closed hall, or 1 oz should be the portion size for nuts or dried fruit. A ping pong ball, your thumb, or 1 oz should be the portion size for nut butter or hard cheese. A marble, the tip of your thumb, or one teaspoon should be the portion size for cooking oil, butter, or sugar.
By following a visual portion size and creating a balanced plate of healthy foods, you should be able to provide your body with the correct amount of macronutrients necessary for everyday life. By incorporating more whole foods and less processed and packaged foods, you should be able to provide your body with tons of micronutrients that your body needs.
Meal Planning
Then based on your fitness goals, you can determine how you plan your meals. Meal planning can look different to everyone. You can plan your meals for the week or the next day by tracking calories in an app. You can prepare meals for the week and grocery shop based on the meals you pick. You can even meal prep everything for the week so it’s ready to eat or pop it into the microwave/oven to heat up when needed. There are so many other strategies for meal planning that you can take. These are just a few examples of different approaches I have experience with.
I like to take the planning for-a-week approach. I like to decide what meals or recipes I want to make for the week, then write a grocery list based on those recipes to ensure I have all the ingredients available, so I don’t veer off the plan. I like to freeze the meat so it doesn’t go wrong, even though I only shop for one week. When I pick my meals for the week, I like to consider whether the meals are balanced. Do I have protein, carbs, and healthy fats in each meal? This way, I can ensure I have a healthy plate.
Since I work crazy early hours, my “lunch break” is around breakfast time. So I like to meal prep for the week to ensure I am not just grabbing something random for lunch. I want to make breakfast burritos, plain Greek yogurt with berries and granola, and oatmeal with chia seeds, dried fruit, and pumpkin seeds. This is the only thing I typically meal prep; I have prepped every meal. But since I love cooking, I like to cook fresh food.
The Take Away
Meal planning is an easy way to achieve your fitness goals. Though it makes it easier long term to count calories, it is not always necessary. If your fitness goals aren’t strict, you can achieve them by following the recommended daily intake. So as a beginner, count calories to ensure you plan your meals to suit your fitness goals. But while you track, pay attention to how much 3 oz of chicken looks visually, for example. This way, you can learn how much to portion without tracking calories.
I like to measure my food visually. SometimeSometime, I’ll break out my food scale, weigh some foods, and track calories, especially if I am eating caloric-dense food such as baked goods, crackers, or cheese. These types of foods are harder to visualize how much you are consuming since a small amount is higher in calories.
For any fitness goals, it is best to individualize what you are doing based on your individual goals and needs. Whether your goals are to lose weight, gain muscle mass, or eat healthier, you are setting yourself up for failure if you are doing something you can’t stick to. Whether you meal prep or calorie count, planning your meals is essential and beneficial to reaching your fitness goals. So pick something you can stick to, and don’t be afraid to try a different approach. Maybe a nutrition and fitness coach would be beneficial to help guide you in the right direction just for you.
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“Do something today that your future self will thank you for”
— unknown
I find that quote so inspiring. Hard work will pay off in the future, but you also have to live in the moment, and I feel like taking care of yourself is doing both. You are doing good for yourself now as well as for your future self.
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