meal planning

I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of success on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm going to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will need to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

some people sit down and figure their menu before they shop. DH and I go
shopping with a list of items we might like to eat, then we shop the sales,
then when we get it all home and put away we make a list of what we have in
the freezer, we only plan for that days dinner. there are others here who
do it on a weekly basis, Lee
Teri wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of success
on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm going
to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will need to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

I do better with WW when I make out a menu for the week right before I go
food shopping. I aim for beef/chicken/pork plus rice/potato plus steamed
veggie for as many nights as I can get away with. DH & DD rebel if I do it
for too many nights. The other nights I fill in with lower calorie dishes
that are simple to make. DH does the dinner cooking. We had canned beef stew
the other night (4pts per cup) over ww bread (toasted) 1pt per 2 slices plus
a side of green beans. 5 pts for the whole dinner. If DH & DD want something
I don't want then I find a substitute for myself. DD wants lasgne this week.
I got 2 indiv serving stoffers for them and a WW version for myself. I keep
eggs/egg beaters, frozen fish, low cal soup on hand just in case.

The only cookbooks that I know of that have the points listed would be WW
cookbook. You should be able to find receipes on the ww website.

"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of success
on ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm
going to make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will
need to think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along
with everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the
leader offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c
water plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about
planning meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc?
Thanks!
Teri

I also shop for what I like and know is healthy...Funny how much reading I
now do in comparison to the past...The big number that often fools you is
"servings per package"...I will often make a pot roast and bake some chicken
thighs and make a brown whole grains dish as well as buying salad
makings...Most everything has the necessary info to figure points based on
weighing and measuring your portions...You family can eat the same as you as
long as you portion yourself out...Certainly you can buy meats and assorted
side dishes based on sound healthy and tasty foods...It might be interesting
to purchase one of the frozen so called healthy dinners just to picture in
your mind what a dinner should really look like...Most run around 300 or so
calories a meal...In time the weighing and measuring become second nature
and you can eyeball things...3 or 4 ounces of meat is not really that much
in the beginning but in time your mind readjusts and you just naturally eat
"normally"...If it were all so simple...Well at least for now it is working
for me...GG
"Laura" wrote in message
...
I do better with WW when I make out a menu for the week right before I go
food shopping. I aim for beef/chicken/pork plus rice/potato plus steamed
veggie for as many nights as I can get away with. DH & DD rebel if I do it
for too many nights. The other nights I fill in with lower calorie dishes
that are simple to make. DH does the dinner cooking. We had canned beef
stew the other night (4pts per cup) over ww bread (toasted) 1pt per 2
slices plus a side of green beans. 5 pts for the whole dinner. If DH & DD
want something I don't want then I find a substitute for myself. DD wants
lasgne this week. I got 2 indiv serving stoffers for them and a WW version
for myself. I keep eggs/egg beaters, frozen fish, low cal soup on hand just
in case.

The only cookbooks that I know of that have the points listed would be WW
cookbook. You should be able to find receipes on the ww website.

"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of success
on ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm
going to make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will
need to think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along
with everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the
leader offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c
water plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about
planning meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc?
Thanks!
Teri

"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of
success on ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for
dinner. I'm going to make a zero point soup (i should find some if I
google) but will need to think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making
salad to go along with everything ... i love salad and in the one
meeting I went to, the leader offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/
1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water plus splenda as a zero point tasty
dressing. How do you go about planning meals ... is there a cookbook
which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri
I plan all of my meals and usually do 3-4 at a time depending on what's
going on during the week. For salad dressing I use flavored vinegars.
My current one is Trader Joe's pomegranate vinegar which has a touch of
sweetness but just 10 calories for a tablespoon. There are tons of
other tasty dressings especially the ones that spritz on for one point a
spritz. The more variety you have, the better your chances of being
successful. I often have a salad for lunch but today I had a 1 pt.
Thomas English muffin with 1/2 piece of garlic herb laughing cow cheese
spread on each half and 3 ounces leftover roast turkey breast on top.
The points total for that was 5 and I had it with carrots, diet Hansen's
ginger ale and 0 point cranberry jello for dessert.

For dinner tonight I am having a grilled lean pork chop that has been
in a brine since Thursday. With it I am having a roasted golden beet
salad, fresh turnips cooked with seasonings and a bit of panko bread
crumbs and roasted asparagus. I usually have salads but sometimes use a
veggie like the beets as a substitute. Other dinner choices this week
will be turkey burgers spiced up with salsa and a bit of taco seasoning,
roast chicken and perhaps sausage for tomorrow. We are going away
Thursday through Sunday so that's why I am planning the four nights
through Wednesday. Costco has the nice big WW cookbook with lots of
recipes for just $17.99. It is a three ring binder and has so many
options, you'll have meal ideas for more than a month.

Audrey

Very true. I started with dinner portions of 5-7 oz. I thought that was
normal. I'm now down to 3-4 oz and am very comfortable with that amount. I
have increased the amount of veggies on my plate to help fill me up.

"Gary G" wrote in message
...
I also shop for what I like and know is healthy...Funny how much reading I
now do in comparison to the past...The big number that often fools you is
"servings per package"...I will often make a pot roast and bake some
chicken thighs and make a brown whole grains dish as well as buying salad
makings...Most everything has the necessary info to figure points based on
weighing and measuring your portions...You family can eat the same as you
as long as you portion yourself out...Certainly you can buy meats and
assorted side dishes based on sound healthy and tasty foods...It might be
interesting to purchase one of the frozen so called healthy dinners just to
picture in your mind what a dinner should really look like...Most run
around 300 or so calories a meal...In time the weighing and measuring
become second nature and you can eyeball things...3 or 4 ounces of meat is
not really that much in the beginning but in time your mind readjusts and
you just naturally eat "normally"...If it were all so simple...Well at
least for now it is working for me...GG
"Laura" wrote in message
...
I do better with WW when I make out a menu for the week right before I go
food shopping. I aim for beef/chicken/pork plus rice/potato plus steamed
veggie for as many nights as I can get away with. DH & DD rebel if I do it
for too many nights. The other nights I fill in with lower calorie dishes
that are simple to make. DH does the dinner cooking. We had canned beef
stew the other night (4pts per cup) over ww bread (toasted) 1pt per 2
slices plus a side of green beans. 5 pts for the whole dinner. If DH & DD
want something I don't want then I find a substitute for myself. DD wants
lasgne this week. I got 2 indiv serving stoffers for them and a WW version
for myself. I keep eggs/egg beaters, frozen fish, low cal soup on hand
just in case.

The only cookbooks that I know of that have the points listed would be WW
cookbook. You should be able to find receipes on the ww website.

"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of
success on ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for
dinner. I'm going to make a zero point soup (i should find some if I
google) but will need to think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making
salad to go along with everything ... i love salad and in the one
meeting I went to, the leader offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/
1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water plus splenda as a zero point tasty
dressing. How do you go about planning meals ... is there a cookbook
which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

what I've been doing, because its just my son and I, and he needs lunches
for school, I make one large dinner thing on sunday, lasagna, stew,
cassarole, thick soup etc... and calculate all the points in one serving
*usually two cups for the containers I have* and freeze them... that way I
know the points and can just add a salad or veggies or something else to go
along with it like a sandwich etc...

I like freezing things, and I do the large meal after i've eaten in the
evenings, and have only a half amount as a snack... *awesomeself control
there* but then its easy to just grab something from the freezer when your
son is gone to school and you don't want to make a huge meal...

which is a lot worse for myself... particularily working from home...

I've also gotten into the habit of purchasing fruit platters and veggie
platters from the store and keeping them in the fridge for whenI do that...
lets just look in the fridge cause I feel like snakin but I'm not hungry
cause I'm going to bed in 15 minutes ... thing...

we've all done that...

heh...



"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of success
on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm going
to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will need to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

freezing portions so works for us... we make some dishes that we portion.
Like you said lasagna, roast, and chili and soup. If DH feels like cooking
good. I rarely do so I won't even pretend I do it occasionally. If he
doesn't feel like cooking or I am here alone I get something from the
freezer or we heat from there. The added benefit is that if I want stuffed
green peppers he can have lasagna and we have the same vegetable. Lee
Drachen wrote in message
...
what I've been doing, because its just my son and I, and he needs lunches
for school, I make one large dinner thing on sunday, lasagna, stew,
cassarole, thick soup etc... and calculate all the points in one serving
*usually two cups for the containers I have* and freeze them... that way I
know the points and can just add a salad or veggies or something else to
go
along with it like a sandwich etc...

I like freezing things, and I do the large meal after i've eaten in the
evenings, and have only a half amount as a snack... *awesomeself control
there* but then its easy to just grab something from the freezer when your
son is gone to school and you don't want to make a huge meal...

which is a lot worse for myself... particularily working from home...

I've also gotten into the habit of purchasing fruit platters and veggie
platters from the store and keeping them in the fridge for whenI do
that...
lets just look in the fridge cause I feel like snakin but I'm not hungry
cause I'm going to bed in 15 minutes ... thing...

we've all done that...

heh...



"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of
success
on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm
going
to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will need to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about
planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

Oooooooooohhhh... I never even thought about making stuffed green peppers
and freezing them... that would be awesome...

I use to cook a lot when there was more people involved, my ex and I would
entertain a lot during the weekends, and he still does, *hense why I've been
losing weight and he hasn't... hee*

but I'm putting stuffed peppers ingredients on my list of things to purchase
this week!!!


"Stormmee" wrote in message
...
freezing portions so works for us... we make some dishes that we portion.
Like you said lasagna, roast, and chili and soup. If DH feels like
cooking
good. I rarely do so I won't even pretend I do it occasionally. If he
doesn't feel like cooking or I am here alone I get something from the
freezer or we heat from there. The added benefit is that if I want
stuffed
green peppers he can have lasagna and we have the same vegetable. Lee
Drachen wrote in message
...
what I've been doing, because its just my son and I, and he needs
lunches
for school, I make one large dinner thing on sunday, lasagna, stew,
cassarole, thick soup etc... and calculate all the points in one serving
*usually two cups for the containers I have* and freeze them... that way
I
know the points and can just add a salad or veggies or something else to
go
along with it like a sandwich etc...

I like freezing things, and I do the large meal after i've eaten in the
evenings, and have only a half amount as a snack... *awesomeself control
there* but then its easy to just grab something from the freezer when
your
son is gone to school and you don't want to make a huge meal...

which is a lot worse for myself... particularily working from home...

I've also gotten into the habit of purchasing fruit platters and veggie
platters from the store and keeping them in the fridge for whenI do
that...
lets just look in the fridge cause I feel like snakin but I'm not hungry
cause I'm going to bed in 15 minutes ... thing...

we've all done that...

heh...



"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of
success
on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm
going
to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will need
to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the
leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c
water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about
planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri

and you can either go ahead and cook them or just make them up and cook when
you want they frees either way if you blanch the pepper before you freeze.
Lee, who's wonderful sister made them for her.
Drachen wrote in message
...
Oooooooooohhhh... I never even thought about making stuffed green peppers
and freezing them... that would be awesome...

I use to cook a lot when there was more people involved, my ex and I would
entertain a lot during the weekends, and he still does, *hense why I've
been
losing weight and he hasn't... hee*

but I'm putting stuffed peppers ingredients on my list of things to
purchase
this week!!!


"Stormmee" wrote in message
...
freezing portions so works for us... we make some dishes that we
portion.
Like you said lasagna, roast, and chili and soup. If DH feels like
cooking
good. I rarely do so I won't even pretend I do it occasionally. If he
doesn't feel like cooking or I am here alone I get something from the
freezer or we heat from there. The added benefit is that if I want
stuffed
green peppers he can have lasagna and we have the same vegetable. Lee
Drachen wrote in message
...
what I've been doing, because its just my son and I, and he needs
lunches
for school, I make one large dinner thing on sunday, lasagna, stew,
cassarole, thick soup etc... and calculate all the points in one
serving
*usually two cups for the containers I have* and freeze them... that
way
I
know the points and can just add a salad or veggies or something else
to
go
along with it like a sandwich etc...

I like freezing things, and I do the large meal after i've eaten in
the
evenings, and have only a half amount as a snack... *awesomeself
control
there* but then its easy to just grab something from the freezer when
your
son is gone to school and you don't want to make a huge meal...

which is a lot worse for myself... particularily working from home...

I've also gotten into the habit of purchasing fruit platters and
veggie
platters from the store and keeping them in the fridge for whenI do
that...
lets just look in the fridge cause I feel like snakin but I'm not
hungry
cause I'm going to bed in 15 minutes ... thing...

we've all done that...

heh...



"Teri" wrote in message
...
I've been thinking that in order for me to increase my chances of
success
on
ww - meal planning might be in order... especially for dinner. I'm
going
to
make a zero point soup (i should find some if I google) but will
need
to
think out dinner plans. I'm fine with making salad to go along with
everything ... i love salad and in the one meeting I went to, the
leader
offered 1/4c any mustard but yellow, w/ 1/4c any vinegar and 1/4 c
water
plus splenda as a zero point tasty dressing. How do you go about
planning
meals ... is there a cookbook which gives point values etc? Thanks!
Teri