The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Challenge has been specially designed by our team of nutritionists and exercise experts to ensure you have variety and healthy choices to make the Challenge – well, less challenging!
The Healthy Mummy eating plans are developed so they can easily become part of your normal routine so you can maintain them and reach your weight loss goals.
When following a new meal or exercise plan you may need some time to adjust to the differences in your routine and changes in your usual shopping habits.
Below are some tips on how to save time and money when participating The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge:

Shopping List Tips

• Each week when you receive the weekly Meal Plans and finalised your Shopping List you can then go through and see which items you may already have and just purchase the fresh and chilled foods for the week.
• Sometimes there are more than one option for ingredients e.g. extra virgin olive oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil etc. If you don’t want to purchase each variety, just choose the one you cook with the most and then substitute it when other options appear in recipes. There may be cases when you do need to use a specific variety, for example you wouldn’t want to roll sweet Date Balls in sesame oil before covering them in coconut, so using the specific coconut oil for these types of recipes is recommended.
• You can also choose your favourite options for ingredients like flours, sauces, vinegars etc, rather than purchasing every variety listed on the Shopping Lists.
• Everything on the Shopping Lists can be purchased from a large supermarket, or are specified if not.
• When possible shop locally for your fresh fruit & vegetables so you can just purchase the quantities specified in the shopping list, rather than buying pre-packed items that will increase your shopping bill and often can lead to food waste.
• There are a number of fresh herbs used in the recipes as these are an ideal way to make meals tasty whilst keeping things healthy. If you don’t want to spend the extra money to buy fresh herbs you can always use dried, semi-dried or frozen options. Read our tips on freezing herbs and other food items so you can buy in bulk if it’s cheaper.
• Go to a local butcher or supermarket that allows you to specify fresh meat, poultry and seafood quantities to match the list’s requirements. Or buy these products in bulk and freeze what you don’t need straight away so you can make the recipes again and continue with your healthy eating diet plan when the Challenge is over.
• Visit the deli counter at the supermarket to specify quantities for cheeses and deli meats rather than paying for a large packet if you don’t need to use all of it.
• If your local supermarket has a self serve section for dried fruits and nuts then you can easily purchase smaller quantities of the seeds, grains, nuts and fruits that are listed in each week’s shopping lists. Or buy these items in bulk and store in the pantry for use throughout the Challenge.
• Ingredients that aren’t as common or that you may not already have in your pantry e.g. Tamari (gluten free soy sauce) or Sambal Oelek (chilli paste) have been used in a number of the recipes throughout the whole Challenge so you should only need to buy these items once which will keep costs down. You could always use alternatives for these types of ingredients if you prefer e.g. use normal soy sauce or your own favourite chilli paste.
• If the suggested fresh meats and seafood are too expensive at your supermarket or shops or you don’t like something, then choose alternatives e.g. use tinned salmon instead of fresh or replace fish fillets with lean chicken breast or similar.
• Remember to work with your preferences and what you may already have in the pantry. If you can make a healthy substitution for an item on the shopping lists that will reduce your grocery bill, then do it.

Time Saving Tips

• Most of the recipes in The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Challenge can be ready in under 20 – 30 minutes.
• We have included a wide variety of recipes in each weekly meal plan to ensure you can eat tasty and nutritional meals without getting bored. But we’ve also included recipes that are similar with slight changes e.g. the Ham Bruschetta and Turkey Bruschetta, so you’re not ‘reinventing the wheel’ every time you prepare a meal.
• Customise your Meal Plan to suit your budget and the time you have available for food preparation. Repeat some recipes if you like them or make items in bulk to freeze or keep in the refrigerator, to save time with preparing something different every day.
• Recipes that can be pre-prepared or frozen are mentioned in the recipe introductions. Meals like soups, pasta sauces, casseroles and even some salads (if you don’t dress them until ready to serve) can be made ahead of time.
• You could set aside a day where you go through the Meal Plan for the week and pre-prepare the recipes you can, so you can easily grab meals from the fridge or freezer at meal times.
• Many of the breakfasts can be made in under 5 minutes or can be pre-prepared the night before or a few days before e.g Chocolate Oats & Strawberry Muesli.
• If you like a particular recipe then make more of it. Making larger batches of porridges, soups, pastas, frittatas, salads etc will provide you with leftovers to have available for another day.
• When you are low on time or don’t like an option in the Meal Plan, you can always quickly prepare a Healthy Mummy Smoothie instead of a breakfast or lunch recipe, and each week we have suggested some of our favourite smoothie recipes for mums on the Challenge who regularly use our smoothies.

A little bit of planning with shopping and meal preparation will ensure The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge is a successful healthy eating plan for you to reach your weight loss goals.
And don’t forget to share your tips, photos and weight loss progress on our Facebook page, Instagram, Pinterest.
We hope you love the variety of food and recipes on the plan.