Meal Plan at a Look
Breakfast/ AM Snack
Lunch/ PM Snack
Dinner/ Night snack
Yogurt parfait/ Lemon-raspberry bites
Greek salad/ Cottage cheese bowl
Salmon, broccoli & rice/ Apple & nut butter
Yogurt parfait/ Lemon-raspberry bites
Chickpea chopped salad/ Edamame
Crispy rooster bowl/ Kefir
Egg scramble/ Yogurt parfait
Chickpea chopped salad/ Edamame
Stuffed peppers
Tofu scramble/ Lemon-raspberry bites
Chickpea chopped salad/ Apple & kefir
Halibut & salad
Egg scramble/ Yogurt parfait
Chickpea chopped salad/ Edamame
Hen & rice soup
Tofu scramble/ Yogurt parfait
Hen & rice soup/ Mini stuffed peppers
Spring roll salad
Egg scramble/ Yogurt parfait
Hen & rice soup/ Mini stuffed peppers
Hen casserole
Day 1
Photographer: Morgan Hunt Glaze, Prop Stylist: Abby Armstrong, Meals Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey
Breakfast (301 energy, 35g carbs)
A.M. Snack (230 energy, 26g carbs)
Lunch (384 energy, 32g carbs)
P.M. Snack (170 energy, 14g carbs)
Dinner (439 energy, 36g carbs)
Night Snack (291 energy, 31g carbs)
1 medium apple2 Tbsp. almond butter
Each day Totals: 1,816 energy, 85g fats, 16g saturated fats, 103g protein, 174g carbohydrates, 40g fiber, 1,573mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the night snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add 1 serving Massaged Kale Salad to dinner.
Day 2
Photographer: Morgan Hunt Glaze, Meals Stylist: Margaret Monroe Dickey, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel
Breakfast (301 energy, 35g carbs)
A.M. Snack (230 energy, 26g carbs)
Lunch (427 energy, 40g carbs)
P.M. Snack (179 energy, 22g carbs)
Dinner (558 energy, 47g carbs)
Night Snack (90 energy, 12g carbs)
Each day Totals: 1,785 energy, 70g fats, 14g saturated fats, 124g protein, 182g carbohydrates, 33g fiber, 1,832mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the A.M. snack and scale back to ½ cup kefir on the night snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add ¼ cup dry-roasted unsalted almonds to the night snack.
Day 3
Courtesy Picture
Breakfast (385 energy, 33g carbs)
A.M. Snack (311 energy, 22g carbs)
Lunch (427 energy, 40g carbs)
P.M. Snack (179 energy, 22g carbs)
Dinner (486 energy, 56g carbs)
Each day Totals: 1,788 energy, 82g fats, 14g saturated fats, 124g protein, 173g carbohydrates, 41g fiber, 1,826mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add 1 serving Apple with Cinnamon Almond Butter as a night snack.
Day 4
Photographer: Jen Causey, meals stylist: Julian Hensarling, prop stylist: Josh Hoggle
Breakfast (411 energy, 38g carbs)
A.M. Snack (230 energy, 26g carbs)
Lunch (427 energy, 40g carbs)
P.M. Snack (185 energy, 37g carbs)
1 medium apple1 cup nonfat plain kefir
Dinner (527 energy, 39g carbs)
Each day Totals: 1,780 energy, 72g fats, 14g saturated fats, 121g protein, 179g carbohydrates, 36g fiber, 2,044mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the A.M. snack and omit the blueberries at lunch.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add ¼ cup dry-roasted unsalted almonds as a night snack.
Day 5
Photographer: Jennifer Causey, Meals Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
Breakfast (385 energy, 33g carbs)
A.M. Snack (311 energy, 22g carbs)
Lunch (427 energy, 40g carbs)
P.M. Snack (179 energy, 22g carbs)
Dinner (499 energy, 50g carbs)
Meal-Prep Tip: Reserve 2 servings One-Pot Hen & Rice Soup to have for lunch on days 6 & 7
Each day Totals: 1,801 energy, 73g fats, 14g saturated fats, 142g protein, 166g carbohydrates, 35g fiber, 2,274mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add 1 serving Apple with Cinnamon Almond Butter as a night snack.
Day 6
Breakfast (411 energy, 38g carbs)
A.M. Snack (311 energy, 22g carbs)
Lunch (450 energy, 38g carbs)
P.M. Snack (122 energy, 15g carbs)
Dinner (523 energy, 45g carbs)
Each day Totals: 1,817 energy, 83g fats, 14g saturated fats, 128g protein, 158g carbohydrates, 37g fiber, 2,139mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Omit the A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Add 1 serving Apple with Cinnamon Almond Butter as a night snack.
Day 7
Photographer: Morgan Hunt Glaze, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster, Meals Stylist Jennifer Wendorf
Breakfast (385 energy, 33g carbs)
A.M. Snack (244 energy, 20g carbs)
Lunch (413 energy, 36g carbs)
P.M. Snack (122 energy, 15g carbs)
Dinner (462 energy, 48g carbs)
Night Snack (179 energy, 22g carbs)
Each day Totals: 1,806 energy, 68g fats, 14g saturated fats, 144g protein, 173g carbohydrates, 37g fiber, 2,291mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 energy: Scale back to ½ cup nonfat kefir at breakfast and omit the A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 energy: Scale back to 1 Tbsp. sliced almonds on the A.M. snack and add 1 serving Easy Spinach Salad to dinner.
Steadily Requested Questions
Is it OK to combine and match meals if there may be one I don’t like?
Sure—if there’s a meal you don’t like, be at liberty to substitute it with a special meal on this plan or browse all of our diabetes-friendly recipes. We aimed for about 40 to 50 grams of high-fiber carbohydrates per meal to assist secure blood sugar ranges, so a easy swap ought to work for most individuals.
Can I eat the identical breakfast or lunch every single day?
If it’s simpler on your routine to eat the identical breakfast or lunch every single day, go for it! Every meal is pretty comparable in carbohydrate content material and complete energy, so making a swap ought to work for most individuals.
Why is there not a modification for 1,200 energy?
We now not present modifications for 1,200-calorie days in our meal plans. The 2020-2025 Dietary Pointers for People means that limiting energy to 1,200 per day is just too low for most individuals to fulfill their dietary wants, plus it’s unsustainable for long-term well being and well-being.
Ought to I in the reduction of on carbohydrates?
Should you’ve been informed you could have excessive blood sugar ranges or want to scale back your danger, you might suppose you might want to in the reduction of drastically on carbohydrates. Nonetheless, that’s usually not needed or sustainable long-term. Many carbohydrates, reminiscent of whole-grains, legumes and fruits, comprise fiber, which is a useful nutrient for wholesome blood sugar ranges. As an alternative, specializing in fiber-rich carbs and lowering refined grains and added sugars might be an efficient technique. For extra particular person suggestions, contemplate reaching out to a registered dietitian for steering.
How This Meal Plan Could Profit Blood Sugar
Follows the Anti-Inflammatory Weight-reduction plan: To assist wholesome blood sugar ranges, we embody the rules of the anti-inflammatory food plan. Analysis exhibits that following an anti-inflammatory food plan might decrease blood sugar ranges and scale back the danger of creating sort 2 diabetes. An anti-inflammatory food plan focuses on nutrient-rich vegatables and fruits, legumes, entire grains, seafood and a big selection of wholesome fat, reminiscent of nuts, olive oil and avocado. It limits refined grains, processed meals with minimal dietary worth and added sugars.
Excessive-Protein with Reasonably-Low Carbohydrates: To assist wholesome blood sugar ranges, we opted for a moderately-low carbohydrate degree of about 40% of each day complete energy and unfold the carbohydrates out pretty evenly between the day’s meals and snacks to assist secure blood sugar ranges. Whereas there’s no one-size-fits all advice for the quantity of carbohydrates an individual ought to eat per day, there are some vitamin methods that will assist assist wholesome blood sugar ranges. These methods embody lowering complete carbohydrates, emphasizing high-fiber carbohydrates and together with loads of protein. Every day offers at the very least 103 grams of protein and 33 grams of fiber on this blood sugar–pleasant plan.
Coronary heart-Wholesome: Having sort 2 diabetes can enhance the danger of creating coronary heart illness, so we made this plan with each blood sugar and coronary heart well being in thoughts. To assist a wholesome coronary heart, we capped saturated fats at 14 grams per day (with an higher restrict of 20 grams on days we embody fatty fish, like salmon) and capped the sodium at 2,300 milligrams per day, as really helpful by the Dietary Pointers for People.
How We Create Meal Plans
Registered dietitians thoughtfully create EatingWell’s meal plans to be easy-to-follow and scrumptious. Every meal plan meets particular parameters relying on the well being situation and/or life-style objective it’s concentrating on and is analyzed for accuracy utilizing the vitamin database, ESHA Meals Processor. As dietary wants differ from individual to individual, we encourage you to make use of these plans as inspiration and alter as you see match.
