Grace-Filled Homemaking

4 Things Busy Mama’s Can Do To Stay On Plan

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 As a Mama to two under two, I definitely understand how hard it can be to take the time to make healthy choices for yourself. I used to struggle a lot with feeling selfish for taking the extra time, money and energy to focus on my health until I realized this simple truth: When I put my health first, I’m actually placing my children first because I’m giving them a healthy Mama. When I’m healthy, I have more energy to play, I’m in a better mood and to be blunt, I’ll be around for them a lot longer, Lord willing! I’ve learned some great “hacks” along the way that have helped me to stay on the Trim Healthy Mama plan:

Pre-Packaged Food

  Keeping items on hand that are already halfway prepared allows me to create healthy meals quickly. Things like Laughing Cow Cheese, Lavash Bread, String Cheese and Oikos yogurt make easy snacks that I can eat while nursing or playing with a tot. I also buy a lot of frozen fruits and veggies. My local Dollar store has a pre-sliced bag of “Fajita Mix” that contains peppers and onions. I love using it for omelets, stir-frys, and fajitas. The price of pre-packaged items can be a bit high at times, so when I find a good deal on produce, I’ll slice and freeze fresh fruit and veggies to have on hand. It’s the same concept, with a frugal twist. 🙂

 Menu Planning

  In my upcoming series, I’ll go into a lot more detail, but menu-planning is a tool that benefits busy Mama’s in so many ways! First of all, with a menu plan, you never have to worry about what’s for dinner that night. You know exactly what needs to be done to prepare for dinner earlier in the day. Your grocery list will most likely contain most of the ingredients you need for meals that week, so you aren’t running to the store constantly. Best of all, there isn’t that temptation to hit up the local drive thru or gas station pizza joint (not that I know anyone who does this! Wink!). Menu planning doesn’t have to be complicated or anything fancy. Mine is a simple printable I got from Pinterest!

Simplicity

 I think Mothers (and women in general) have this tendency to complicate things. I blame the Insta-Pinterest phenomenon for that. We see someone’s fancy-schmancy meal and do our best to replicate it thinking that it will bring us some sort of happiness or fulfillment. In all reality, complex meals aren’t ideal for busy Mama’s. At least not every night of the week! Keep it simple. Meat and vegetables, a pasta dish, a crockpot soup. Overthinking can be your worst enemy! 🙂 I’ve found that I stay on plan when I create a simple dinner menu, made from meals that I already eat, but tweaked by one or two ingredients. You can see an example of my weekly dinners here. 

Preparing Ahead

 Taking a few minutes of time to prepare healthy drinks and meals will save you a lot of time, especially when you’re in a crunch. Preparing can be as simple as making a pitcher of oolong tea for Shrinker sippers, or it can be a little more time consuming in the form of a freezer meal or creating a sweet treat for the week. I like to take one afternoon to prepare a pitcher of oolong tea and a simple sweet to have on hand for the week. If I have time, I’ll pre-cut some veggies and toss a salad for a fast lunch. Keeping those things on hand gives me no excuse to stray from my healthy ways!

 What hacks do you use to stay on plan? 

 

 

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  2. Betzymama

    I go on autopilot when life gets busier than usual. I call it my K.I.S.S. menu. Breakfast M, F–some eggs, T, Th, S–smoothies, W–yogurt and berries. Lunch: M, W–salad in a jar, T, Th–leftovers. Then I have 4 weeks of dinner menus with either/or options on some meals, but not for family favorites, so it turns into about 8 weeks options that only take a minute to choose and figure my grocery list for.

  3. Kristi

    Hi, Cate!
    I am just beginning the Trim Healthy Mama plan, pinning recipes and ideas, and I came upon your blog through Pinterest. I’m sure most, if not all, of us Mom’s appreciate quick tips to help us on our journey. But I just have to tell you that after reading this post, your paragraph on Simplicity really spoke to my heart. I am guilty of getting on the all-or-nothing bandwagon (probably why many diets up to this point haven’t stuck with me), and it struck me how right you are. No fancy-schmancy recipe or meal plan is gonna give me happiness or fulfillment….or help me to lose weight and keep it off. Doing your best, whatever that means to me/you/anyone, is all that matters. Now I just need to learn to ease up a bit and give myself some of the grace that God so freely gives! Thank you for your great ideas!
    Also, some great tips from Betzymama above!

    • Cate H

      Hey, Kristi!
      I totally get that. I’m a perfectionist when it comes to diet plans as well. It’s really helped me lately to tell myself that I didn’t get unhealthy from one little mistake or bad day. It was a string of multiple days, with no intention to change. I’ve found that even done imperfectly THM works so that Grace is spot on! 🙂 Good luck on your THM journey! You got this, girl! <3