Free Weekly Menu Planner with Calorie Trackers
Grab a weekly menu planner template in this post and get started meal prepping! Come up with healthy meals for the entire week and make your shopping list – all with one printable! Also includes options to track macros and calories, so you can create menus full of healthy meals.
The last several weeks, I have been having so much fun creating meal planning printables and kitchen inventory logs. And the printables that I have created in this post go right along with the other planning resources I’ve created.
These printables however, have an added bit of detail for helping you meet your health goals. While I absolutely see the benefit of finding premade meal plans online, sometimes those plans just don’t fit our individual needs. And paying for a custom meal plan may not be possible.
So, instead of paying for or using a pre-created menu, you can use this free resource to create your own healthy menus! Here’s a few tips for the best way to make menu planning for health goals work for you.
Affiliate disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate this means I will earn a small commission if you choose to purchase through my links. This is at no extra cost to you! Read full disclosure here.
Benefits of Weekly Menu Planning
If you’ve been around here any amount of time, you’ve probably heard me say that I think meal or menu planning is a good idea.sReal quick, I’ll tell you some of the top reasons why.
Reduces Stress
We’ve all been there. It’s getting close to meal time, everyone is hungry, and you have no idea what to cook. Your stress level instantly starts to rise. But with menu planning, that’s not the case. You no long have to try to hurry to come up with meals. It’s already planned out.
Saves Time
It’s usually faster overall to sit down one and come up with your menu versus coming back to the “what are we going to eat” mindset over and over.
Saves Money
You’ll reduce the chances of wanting to grab fast food when you have a plan and know exactly what’s on the menu. You can also save money at the grocery store by bulk buying certain ingredients that you plan to use in multiple meals.
Promotes Healthier Eating
This is the time to work in some of those healthier meals that you’ve been meaning to try. It also gives you a quick look at your overall eating habits of the day. If you plan a lunch that was lacking in veggies, maybe you’ll bump of the veggies for dinner that night.
Tips for Creating a Menu Plan
Making a menu is only good if you’re actually going to use it. Here are some of my best tips for putting your weekly menu plans to use.
Make it Once, Use it Over and Over
This is hands down the top tip when it comes to successfully using weekly menus. Keep your completed weekly meal plan template to use again in the future. After all, you put in all that hard work coming up with daily meals – why only use it once?
When it comes time to do your weekly meal planning in the future, it’s already done! Your grocery shopping list is even ready to go. So while it may take a little time to set up initially, you’ll spend less time in the future on your meal prep plan.
Consider Your Schedule
Make sure you’re not planning to cook meals that are time consuming on a day of the week that your to-do list is already packed full. Choose meals on those days that don’t take much time to prepare or a slow cooker meal. Simple meals will definitely give you the best results on those days!
Plan for Leftovers
Don’t forget to work in a day (or two) for using up some of those leftovers. This has been the best way to cut down on food waste in our house.
Balance Your Meals
If you’re trying to live a healthy lifestyle, you’ll want to make sure your daily menu is well balanced in terms of nutrients.
How to Use Your Free Meal Planner Templates
I’ve designed 4 different options for these free meal plan templates. Every printable has all 7 days of the week, and enough space to plan meals for the whole day if desired.
Beyond that, the printables have various styles. Some have space for a shopping list, while others have space for tracking the macros and/or calories of each meal.
Since these printables are the meal planning templates only, that means that you can choose the meals you want or need to eat. You’ll have the options to choose healthy foods you love, while still have a balanced diet that meets your specific needs.
Don’t need to track the additional nutrition information of your meals? Use this free printable weekly meal planner for all of your family members, or grab this meal plan calendar for the entire month!
Meal Planning vs. Menu Planning
They are closely related as they both have to do with planning out what meals to eat. Menu planning just takes it a step further, in my opinion.
Instead of just coming up with a weekly dinner plan, you are coming up with an entire menu that covers all meals and snacks.
Menu planning requires a bit more work upfront. But once the work is done, you can reuse those completed menus again and again.
Meal Planning Favorites
Who said meal planning has to be boring? Seriously though, I’ve found that having a couple of fun planning supplies can really help make mundane tasks more enjoyable. Maybe that’s just the planning nerd in me, but either way, I’m going to share!
- Planner Pens – I love having good colored pens to write with. My personal favorite right now are these Mr. Pen gel pens. I love the matte color and how smooth they write.
- Highlighters – Colorful highlighters are fun and practical when menu planning. You can color code different meals or days of the week with these Mr. Pen colored highlighters.
- Cute Meal Planning Binder – Create a DIY meal planning binder that you love to use by getting a binder you love.
Get Your Free Printable Here
I love that you love my printables and want you to use them over and over – just remember they are for personal use only.
Your weekly menu planner printables will be in PDF format and print on US letter size paper (8.5 inches X 11 inches).
Happy Meal Planning!
