Sometimes (or, lots of times) life doesn’t go according to plan. Even with the best intentions of planning meals for the whole week sometimes you end up at the store without a list or a plan and find yourself just needing to buy food because your refrigerator is empty and it’s 5:00 on a Friday evening. Or worse, a Sunday.
So, what do you do?
Try to plan meals on the fly? Probably not the best idea. Stroll up and down the aisles looking for inspiration? No one has time for that. Peep other shoppers’ carts to see what they have? Honestly not a bad idea.
The good news is I’ve put together a quick guide for you when you find yourself in this position! The internet will be there when you get home so you can look up recipes or inspo for whatever you purchased!
It might take a little extra time, but it definitely encourages creativity and might open your eyes to other items at the store you never looked before. I know I’m almost always laser-focused when it comes to my shopping trips unless I have an alternate agenda or a lot of spare time. I get in, check items off my list at rapid speeds, and get out.
Without a list, though, a little different. Perhaps you’re forced to look around a little bit more and might notice something you’ve been meaning to try! Either way, I hope this guide proves useful to you when you are in a pinch!
Choose 1-2 protein sources to get you started. This list contains leaner, more healthful, and plant-based proteins because these are often overlooked by the majority of us! It’s super easy to go for frozen hamburger patties or dino nuggets, but proteins honestly don’t take a lot of effort to prepare.
Choose 2-3 starch sources. Some of these (beans, lentils, brown rice, quinoa) also have a great protein content so you get some more bang for your buck. Even plain pasta has about 10 grams of protein per serving. Because these are so versatile, choose 2-3 to get you through the week. Canned beans and lentils are totally good.
Fruits are a no-brainer. There is always plenty of room in your day for fruit! A variety of fruits of different colors will provide different and necessary nutrients, so choose 3-4 to get enough! Fruit also provides a lot of our dietary fiber to support gut health and it’s made up of lots of water so it’s also super hydrating!
Same with fruits, I’m not sure I need to go over the benefits of vegetables. What I will say is try to go for some different ones than you normally may. We tend to always buy lettuce, carrots, cucumbers and tomatoes. But when was the last time you bought mushrooms or purple cabbage? How about eggplant? Choose 4-5 as vegetables should make up a good portion of your meals and you want a nice variety.
Don’t forget some more staple or snack foods! I also included avocado in this section because while it’s technically a fruit, we eat it as a vegetable, and it’s really a fat SO I just figured that was more miscellaneous than anything! I put oil and vinegar on here to encourage you to make your own salad dressing. Granola bars are easy snacks on the go and cereal can be a really healthy food to eat!
Keep in mind this list is not exhaustive – just a handful of options! Especially the last section, think more about what your individual tastes are!
Bookmark this page so you have it when you shop!