Welcome to this Week's Weight Watcher's Meal Plan!
Time for my monthly weigh-in this week. The last one of the year. And the week Weight Watchers officially raises the curtain on its program changes. I've been given a sneak peek, but am sworn to secrecy until Monday morning 🙂 Check back after 10AM and I'll share with you my initial assessment.
Every Saturday I share my Weight Watchers Weekly Meal Plans with Points and Recipes here on Simple Nourished Living. It includes what I'm planning to have for breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well a few snack and dessert ideas.
Meal times so much easier when I've taken the time to think about what I'm cooking and eating ahead of time. With the shopping done and weight watchers recipes at the ready I can just walk into the kitchen and get cooking.
I don't always stick to my plan one hundred percent. Life happens. But, it helps to have a rough guide and prevents me from reaching into the cookie jar or bag of chips too often. Whoever said that failing to plan was planning to fail was spot on!
The Benefits of Cooking at Home More
Since I like to cook I may be biased, but I've always believed that the food you cook for yourself is essentially good for you. Taking the time to cook for yourself is a supremely nourishing act of kindness...
And mindfulness. When I step into the kitchen and begin to cook I lose myself in the process, becoming completely focused in the simple acts of chopping, mixing, stirring, smelling and tasting. It gives me pleasure and keeps me grounded and connected to myself, my family and the world.
My Overall Weight Watchers Meal Plan Strategy
Even when you like to cook, it can be the last thing you want to do at the end of a long day. I've found that the key is to keep things simple. Just reading many of the meal plan programs out there suggesting a different breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day are enough to make me run from the kitchen screaming. Are you kidding me? Who cooks like that? Not me or anyone I know.
I've experimented with many of the sophisticated meal planning programs out there, but I've never been able to make them work for me. Yellow sticky notes and iPhone lists are more my speed.
As a creature of habit, I tend to rotate between the same one or two breakfasts and lunches the days I eat at home each week. And because we are a family of two most recipes result in leftovers that we are happy to eat again or transform somehow. So, I usually only cook from scratch three or four times a week. We like to eat out a couple of times, usually during the weekend.
If we end up with more food than we can eat, I portion it out, package it up and pop it in the freezer for future quick and easy lunches and dinners.
I hope these posts make it easier for you to stay on track with your weight loss and/or healthy eating goals too. It's a process that gets easier with practice.
And remember, there's a Weight Watchers Weekly Meal Plans Section on the blog so you can get inspiration from all of the previous weekly meal plans too. Enjoy!
Weight Watchers Weekly Meal Plan (Week #58)
We've somehow made it to the most indulgent time of the year! As I attempt to maintain a certain balance in my diet, I'll be trying to keep my cooking this week as vegetable focused as I can with an emphasis on soups. I love soup. When you eat a really good bowl of soup, you feel good and you know you're being healthy too. It's a great way to eat a little less without feeling like you are depriving yourself. Have a wonderful week and remember to take the time to cook something healthy and delicious for yourselves, dear friends!
Breakfast
This week I'm going to begin the day with a cup of black coffee (half calf/half decaf) (0PP)
1. WW Individual Ham Cheese Veggie Muffins (3PP) Grapefruit (0PP) ½ Banana
2. Toasted Cheese (4PP) - a slice of whole wheat toast wrapped around a slice of reduced fat American cheese and Grapefruit (0PP)
Lunch
I like to keep lunch quick and easy. Limiting my choices makes weight loss/maintenance easier. (Here's research that supports the idea.) I eat lunch out 1 or 2 times a week with my mom and/or girlfriends, something I look forward to. Whenever I can I'll choose soup 🙂
1. Slow Cooker Creamy Cauliflower Potato Soup (2PP) and Sliced Lean Ham (2PP) wrapped in a Lettuce Leaf (0PP)
2. Leftovers from dinner
Dinner
Because we are a family of two most recipes result in leftovers, so, I only cook from scratch three or four times a week. (We eat out once or twice.)
1. Slow Cooker Hamburger Stew (4PP) - this slow cooker hamburger stew, a hodgepodge of vegetables and ground beef simmered for hours in the crock pot is simple yet satisfying. Serve with a Simple Tossed Green Salad (0PP) dressed with Light Dressing (1T = 1PP) and a slice of Crusty Bread (2PP)
2. Brussels Sprouts Salad with Maple Dressing (3PP) and a Baked Sweet Potato (5PP)
3. Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup with Black Beans (8PP)
4. Roast Wild Salmon on (6PP) and Broccoli Slaw (2PP)
5. Leftovers
Snacks
I try to limit my snacks to one in the late afternoon which keeps me from being overly hungry when I'm getting dinner. To prevent snacking while I'm making dinner, I often chew gum. A former Cheez-Its junkie, I've pretty much given up on processed, packaged snack-y foods that I can never seem to get enough of once I begin. Weight Watchers calls them Trigger Foods, I call them EVIL and have expelled them from my house 🙂
1. Hummus (¼ cup - 3PP) and Baby Carrots (0PP
2. Clementine (0PP) and Almonds (¼ cup - 4PP)
Dessert
I usually try to limit dessert to once or twice a week. I don't keep many sweets around the house. You can't eat what you don't have 🙂 And I usually save my points plus for homemade sweet stuff, which is more work, but always tastes so much better. Through the years I've convinced myself to not waste my valuable points on ho-hum sweet treats.
Low Fat Cranberry Bars (3PP) - A yummy recipe from my friend Alisa that I lightened up a bit.
If you make one of our weight watchers recipes, we would love for you to take a picture and share it on Instagram. Use the hashtag #simplenourishedliving. We want to see what you are making and would love for you to follow us on Instagram.
And remember, there's a Weight Watchers Meal Plans with PointsPlus section on the blog so you can get inspiration from all of the previous weekly meal plans too.
Have a wonderful week!
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Kristine Lajoie
Can you please tell me what the top picture on the left is? It looks like either fish or chicken on a bed of vegetables. I want to make that tonight!! YUM!!!
Martha McKinnon
Hi Kristine! Yes, it's simply a mixture of vegetables (zucchini, onions, and bell peppers) tossed lightly with a little olive oil, salt and pepper and whatever seasonings you like. Cooked at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes. Toss. Top with small (about 4 -5 ounces each) boneless,skinless chicken breasts, seasoned the way you like. Cook, another 20 minutes or so until the vegetables are tender and the chicken is done. Hope this helps!