Healthy Meals for the Week: Recipes, Tips & Meal Plans

Need a simple meal plan for the week? Need meal prep ideas so that dinner time is less hectic? Or do you need breakfast tips and ideas to make your mornings less stressful? You can learn to prepare healthy meals for the week with less hassle by following a few steps.

How to Set Up Healthy Meals for the Week

The first step is meal planning. Set aside at least a half day when you can plan what you want to eat for the week. Having a weekly meal plan is essential for healthy weight loss and nutritious eating. This planning stage gets much easier once you get the hang of it, but schedule a half day in the beginning.
Step two is shopping. Try to grocery shop when you're not too busy so that you can take the time to read nutritional labels and make smart choices. If you can, leave the kids at home so those high-calorie treats and sugary cereals stay on store shelves. Always prepare a shopping list before you go and buy only the items on the list. Not only will you eat healthier by following your plan, but you'll save money, too.
Step three is meal prep. By preparing ingredients for meals or full meals in advance you decrease stress and hassle during the week. Use the meal prep ideas listed below. Or take the weekly meal plan and chop, measure, pre-cook, and package as many ingredients as possible so that healthy diet-friendly meals are the easiest choice when you're hungry and short on time.

Once you get the hang of this system, the whole program gets easier. Use these weekly meal plans, 1,200 calorie diet plans, 1,800 meal programs, and other tips to guide your process.

Healthy Meal Prep for the Week

Preparing a fresh treat — PeopleImages / Getty Images

If you have an hour, then you have time to plan healthy meals for the week. You'll pre-cook them and then freeze them so they are ready to eat when you're hungry. Use this step-by-step guide to gather the ingredients, cook each food, assemble meal packages, store the containers and reheat your yummy diet-friendly dinner.

7-Day Healthy Diet Plans

If you want to lose weight faster, then you'll learn to plan meals in advance. That way you're never making food choices when you're starving and too tired to cook.

Whether you are following a 1,200 calorie per day diet, a 1,500 calorie per day diet or an 1,800 calorie per day, you'll find a plan to follow here.

Then use the downloadable schedules to track your meals for the week so that you reach your goal weight and keep the pounds off for good.

Use Your Fitbit to Plan Weekly Meals

Do you own a Fitbit or another brand of fitness tracker? Perhaps you use MyFitnessPal, LoseIt, or another food tracking system. Some people use a fitness tracker app to check their diet after they eat. But you can also use it in advance to plan healthy meals for the week. Use these tips to learn how to get more out of your activity monitor for better health and weight loss.

A Week's Worth of Healthy Breakfast Meals

Plan a week's worth of healthy breakfasts with this step-by-step guide. Then say goodbye to morning stress and say hello to hassle-free, healthy eating. This yummy breakfast is less than 300 calories and is packed with protein and fiber.

Nutritious Breakfast Tips and Recipes

You should eat a healthy breakfast to boost your energy and lose weight. Use these time-saving breakfast tips and healthy breakfast recipes designed specifically for weight loss. The breakfast foods are quick and easy to prepare, low in calories and packed with protein and fiber so you stay full and satisfied all morning.