I have been singing the praises of meal planning for over 30 years, and I have been planning my meals for all those years, too!
Because I’m so bullish on it, I did a meal planning workshop a couple weeks ago with a wonderful group of women. I love sharing the many benefits you get with the think-ahead-and-plan habit: time savings, money savings, reduced stress, delicious variety and, of course, healthier meals. But I have always wondered why and how does planning provide all those benefits?
I have since discovered the answer:
Because planning gives us control in an environment of uncertainty
I learned about this bit of brain science while listening to a podcast with Nataly Kogan, best-selling author of The Awesome Human Project, who shares science-backed practices to help us thrive through change and challenges.
As Nataly explained, “the brain worries when things are uncertain”—and if you are racing into the kitchen, starving, with no clue what to make, things are definitely uncertain.
This kind—or any kind—of uncertainty is the worst condition for the brain. In Nataly’s words, the brain actually “hates uncertainty” because it doesn’t know how to protect us from danger in a situation of chaos and turbulence. Yet protecting us from danger is viewed by the brain as its #1 job.
Interestingly, to the brain, facing the prospect of being unable to address hunger looks like the same danger as getting eaten by a pack of wolves. So when faced with a ravenous human, the brain frantically ruminates and worries about the potential danger of actually starving–or just getting really hungry, having your blood sugar dive, getting hangry, ending up with a not-so-great meal, facing hungry spouses and kids, etc.
Unfortunately, stressing is about all the brain can do to help you out of a hunger pickle. But its stress only makes matters worse. (Surely you’ve experienced “stress paralysis?”)
So how can we get ourselves off the hamster wheel of unproductive stress?
Simple: Plan your meals!
In other words, “talk back to your brain and say OK, let’s think this through. How can I better support myself in this situation? What actions could I take? Doing this kind of rational analysis [and taking rational action], shows your brain that you’ve got things under control.”
The best way to demonstrate that you have things under control at mealtimes?
By having a solid, rational game plan when you walk in the kitchen!
With a plan, you’ll have exact guidance about what to make, what goes with it, what ingredients are needed, how much time it takes and how to work it around the other activities in your life. “In other words, dear brain, there’s no need to worry. Instead, help me execute the plan!”
How about experimenting to see if a little planning could give you a sense of control to better deal with the daily stressor of making meals that keep us healthy?
Wondering how to start taking control of your mealtimes? I’ve got you covered with my very helpful and amazingly affordable step by step online meal planning course and my book aptly titled, Take Control of Your Kitchen.
