Calling all entrepreneurs, hustlers, and hard workers! 

If you’re anything like me, you know how much effort it takes to be intentional with nutrition and health in a busy season, which sometimes is every season. I mean, does the idea of meal prepping/planning stress you out? 

Ever just find that you work through lunch and by 3:00 in the afternoon, you’re reaching for those cookies or chips in the back of your pantry because you’re just RAVENOUS and don’t feel like spending 30 minutes preparing a nutritious meal… or because your fridge is empty since you haven’t been to the store in two weeks?

Yeah, same. 

I started to notice that the busier I got with book writing, business, etc… the less margin I seemed to have when it came to taking care of my health. 

It got really bad in the summer of 2018. I was pulled in about 18 million directions, or so it seemed, and fueling my body (and stocking my fridge) kind of seemed like the last priority. 

Until I burned out. I took the majority month of September off of social media, simplified my weeks, and really treated it as an opportunity to reset some things.

And that’s when I created a nutrition system that works for me and can be easily implemented into your routine too!

I chose to dedicate one hour every Sunday afternoon to be a Planning Power Hour. In that hour, I lay out my calendar for the week, plan dinners, and prep any social media content that has yet to be written. 

I wanted to make meal planning effortless and fun because I’m no nutritionist, nor am I much of a chef, so coming up with daily dishes out of thin air just isn’t something that works for me.

However, I also found that I was wasting a lot of money (and food) when I didn’t have meals I was specifically shopping for at the grocery store because I’d just throw whatever looked good into the cart without much planning for the week… and then life would happen or we’d end up going out to eat one night or something wouldn’t get used and end up going to waste. 

Womp womp.

So, I decided I needed to find a way to be a better steward of my resources so I didn’t waste money on food that wouldn’t be used — and more importantly, so that I didn’t waste food! 

This is where I came up with the Pinterest plan.

I mean, who doesn’t love Pinterest?

Here’s how it works:

1. I create a secret Pinterest board for the upcoming work week (Monday through Friday)

2. I search for healthy recipes and pin about 5 to that secret board (usually enough for a dinner each day, a snack of the week, and lunches we can make or eat a few days in row).

3. Then I select one pin at a time and visit the link to see the ingredients/recipe.

4. I copy and paste the ingredients into a notes section on my phone.

5. I repeat this process for each of the recipes on that week’s board and then, depending on the amount of time I have, either go to the store and use that note as my grocery guide OR order those groceries online using Amazon Prime.

It’s really that simple! Especially when I choose to order online, the process to prepping for healthy eating all week takes me no more than 30 minutes on a Sunday afternoon! It’s fun, simple, and completely pinnable 😉

Alright, I’m done being a cheeseball -even though that sounds delicious right now-.  

If you want to learn about even more of the systems I use to create structure, order, and routine as a busy, working woman, check out Own Your Everyday micro course here.