How To Plan Your Grocery Shopping Trip
If you go grocery shopping without a plan, you’re setting yourself up for a failed grocery shopping trip. That’s about as plain and simple as I can put it. My apologies if that sounds harsh, but I truly believe that grocery shopping planning is a foundational principle that you have to master as a part of your journey toward establishing long-lasting healthy eating habits.
You might be wondering exactly why it’s so important, and I get that. Why can’t you just go into the grocery store and let the items in the store speak to you to help you build out what it is you want to eat for the next few days or week. Listen — that sounds very idealistic, and a little spontaneity never hurts, but in my experience (and that of my clients), it typically doesn’t go to plan. You end up way over budget or with a smattering of foods that don’t quite create the cohesive meals you envisioned. And you know what that often leads to? Eating out, more money spent and not eating in a way that aligns with the habits you’ve established or are trying to establish.
I promise I wouldn’t give you bad advice. Planning your grocery shopping trip is a must. It’s actually a fun process if you ask me, and absolutely nothing to obsess or stress over. Planning your trip to the grocery store just means you know what’s in the recipes you plan to make, you know what’s in your own pantry/fridge/cabinets/etc., and you’ve organized what you need to buy on a list so that you can easily work the sections of the grocery store and mark items off as you go. That’s it.
This is something you should do each time you go grocery shopping, which is why I’m laying out step-by-step guidance for you. Let’s dive in.
Step 1 - Decide what you want to eat for the week, and create a menu.
This is all about your personal or family preferences and what you have a taste for. Pick out recipes or write down the name of meals you’ve committed to memory. Be sure to include lunch and snacks for you, your significant other and kids. If everyone eats the same thing it’s pretty easy, if not, take the extra step of writing out those details. What you’re doing is creating a menu for the week. It can be as fancy or as plain as you want. I typically write my own menu on a sheet of paper. I’ve created a free menu planner template if you want something you can easily fill in from your computer or print and fill in.
Step 2 - Review recipes and check your kitchen to determine what you need.
After you’ve written out your menu, it’s time to review ingredient lists. As you review recipes, write down the items that you need to pick up at the grocery store. Be sure to group things properly, e.g. spices with spices, produce with produce. That makes it easier to check things off your list as you work your way through the sections of the grocery store. Also, as you’re making your list, do forget to includes foods from your menu that don’t require recipes like the bananas with peanut butter your kids love or the baby carrots and hummus that you snack on. What you don’t want to do is have a menu planned out, then get home from the grocery store and not have the items you need to actually bring the menu to life.
Step 3 - Get your shop on.
I personally find grocery shopping to be very therapeutic. I love doing it. Grocery shopping services are fabulous, and I’ve used them plenty as of late. But, for me, there’s just something about being in the grocery store that I love. If you’re using a shopping service, you still need to complete steps 1 and 2. Seriously, it will save you the hassle of wondering if you actually ordered the items you need or if you just mindlessly filled your cart with the items that showed up as recommended or past purchases. Follow the list you created. You won’t regret it.
Now back to in-person shopping. You need to follow that list. A couple of extra items not on your list are totally fine. Maybe you want a kombucha you didn’t put on the list (talking to myself), or your favorite vegan cheese is in stock. I get it. That’s ok. But, if you load your grocery cart with 30 additional items you didn’t plan for, you’re kind of defeating one of the purposes of creating the list — to keep your eating in line with where you desire to be. Follow your list, work the sections of the grocery store and mark items off as you go.
Step 4 - Unload, prep and store.
Unloading groceries and putting things away is not glamorous or fun, in my opinion, but it’s an important part of the process. Here’s what I recommend.
Get your frozen items in the freezer, STAT.
Put away pantry and cabinet items next.
Take care of your refrigerated items and produce.
I wash some produce before it enters the fridge, others I don’t. I do this because some items tend to go bad more quickly once the water hits them. I’ve got a post on the way all about this process, so stay tuned.
If you’re going to immediately start cooking, you set the stage for yourself by putting groceries away. We all know what it’s like to try to get things done in a messy kitchen with everything in the way. And if you’re not going to cook right, you can take a minute to pat yourself the back, and maybe enjoy that kombucha that wasn’t on this list. 😏
I’d love to hear about your next grocery shopping trip in the comments or on Instagram at #dietdeconstructed. Don’t forget to grab your menu template if you want it.