Confused over which diet of the day to follow? The menus below are based on just three principles: Get protein with every meal, have at least two servings of fruit or veggies at each meal, and choose fiber-rich carbs. Unsweetened beverages like coffee, iced tea, and diet soft drinks are unlimited. Average your calories out to about 1,600 per day, enough to help you lose weight slowly. Then, as you reach your goal weight, increase portion sizes of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and add a little more healthy fat to maintain that weight.
Monday
- Breakfast
Banana-Walnut Oatmeal (1 c. cooked oatmeal; small banana, sliced; 2 T walnuts; 1 T honey); glass of 1% reduced-fat milk (1 c.); sections of 1 orange
- Lunch
Ham and cheese sandwich: Lean deli ham (3 oz); light Swiss cheese (1 oz); 2 slices rye bread; sliced tomato, lettuce; 1 tsp each: low-fat mayonnaise and grainy mustard; 1 apple
- Supper
Herb-roasted chicken, skin removed (6 oz); small baked sweet potato, skin removed; 1 tsp butter; steamed whole green beans (1/2 c.) with drizzle of olive oil (1/2 tsp); chopped fresh pineapple (1/2 c.)
- P.M. Snack
Small apple
Tuesday
- Breakfast
Bran flakes (1 c.); sliced almonds (2 T); Dried bing cherries (2 T); 1% reduced-fat milk (1 c.); 1/2 pink grapefruit
- Lunch
Lean deli roast beef (4 oz); whole-grain baguette (2 oz); low-fat mayonnaise (2 tsp); tomato slices; 1 Bartlett pear
- Supper
Pan-seared pork tenderloin (6 oz); wild-and-brown-rice blend (1/2 c.) with chopped walnuts (1 T); steamed carrots (1 c.) with dill and butter (1 tsp); sliced strawberries (1 c.)
- P.M. Snack
Sliced kiwi fruit (1 c.) with low-fat vanilla yogurt (1/2 c.)
Wednesday
- Breakfast
Whole-grain toast (2 slices); chunky or smooth peanut butter (2 T); glass of 1% reduced-fat milk (1 c.) or 2 slices reduced-fat cheddar cheese (1-1/2 oz); sliced fresh peaches (1 c.)
- Lunch
Turkey Roll-Up (Roll 3 oz thinly sliced lean turkey breast, 1 oz Havarti cheese with dill, 1 c. shredded spinach, and 2 thin slices avocado into a whole wheat tortilla spread with 2 tsp low-fat mayonnaise); sliced cucumbers (1 c.) with a splash of red-wine vinegar; tomato juice (6 oz); wedge of watermelon
- Supper
Roasted garlic hummus (2 T) with carrot sticks and 1 piece whole-wheat pita bread (cut into triangles); grilled chicken breast, skin removed (6 oz); steamed broccoli (1 c.), drizzled with olive oil (1 tsp); and grated Parmesan cheese (1 tsp); baked apple with cinnamon
- P.M. Snack
Green grapes (a handful)
Thursday
- Breakfast
2 scrambled eggs rolled up in a corn tortilla; fresh tomato salsa (1/2 c.); mixed fresh-fruit salad (1/2 c.)
- Lunch
Lentil soup (1 c.); terriyaki baked tofu (available in supermarkets) (2 slices); baby carrots (1 c.) or carrot sticks; fresh apricots (2)
- Supper
Spiced Salmon: (Brush a 6-oz salmon fillet with chili garlic sauce and 1 tsp honey. Roast at 400° for 8 to10 minutes.) Steamed zucchini and halved grape tomatoes (1 c.) drizzled with garlic, olive oil (1 tsp), and chopped basil; whole-grain garlic couscous (1 c.) with olive oil (1 tsp); 1 tangerine
- P.M. Snack
Salted mixed nuts (1/4 c.)
Friday
- Breakfast
Strawberry-Almond Smoothie (Blend 1 c. low-fat vanilla yogurt, 1/4 c. plain soy milk, and 1 c. frozen strawberries with 1 tsp honey and 1 T almonds); reduced-fat cheddar cheese cubes (1 oz); rye crackers, crispbread style (2)
- Lunch
Steamed peeled shrimp (4 oz); cocktail sauce (2 T); three-bean salad (1 c.); tropical fruit salad : mango, papaya, pineapple (1 c.)
- Supper
Turkey meatloaf (6 oz); mashed winter squash (1/2 c.) with cinnamon and butter (1 tsp); cooked spinach (1 c.) drizzled with olive oil (1 tsp) and red-wine vinegar
- P.M. Snack
Mixed citrus sections (1 c.)
Saturday
- Breakfast
Small blueberry bran muffin; unsweetened applesauce (1 c.); 1 %-fat cottage cheese (1 c.)
- Lunch
Spinach-mushroom salad with 1 tsp olive oil; grilled chicken breast (4 oz) with skin removed; whole-grain baguette (2 oz); tomato slices, lettuce; Dijon mustard (2 tsp); fresh cantaloupe and strawberries (1 c.)
- Supper
Chardonnay, 5 oz; mixed greens with balsamic vinegar and a drizzle of olive oil (1 tsp); grilled swordfish (6 oz), baked or broiled; garlic mashed potatoes (1/2 c.) made with 1% milk and butter (1 tsp); roasted asparagus (1 c.) drizzled with olive oil (1 tsp) and lemon juice
- P.M. Snack
Sliced fresh mango (1 c.)
Sunday
- Breakfast
2-egg omelet or scrambled eggs; whole-grain English muffin; blackberry jam (1 T); seasonal fresh-fruit salad (1 c.)
- Lunch
Split-pea soup (3/4 c.); Ham (3 oz) and cheese (1 oz) sandwich on whole-wheat bread (2 slices) with Dijon mustard; red or green grapes (1 c.)
- Supper
Pesto Pasta (Mix 1 T prepared fresh or bottled pesto with 1 c. cooked whole-grain penne, 1/3 c. cooked cannellini beans, and 2 T chopped roasted bell peppers); steamed zucchini (1 c.) with crushed red-pepper flakes and a drizzle of olive oil (1 tsp); sliced kiwi with fresh orange sections (1/2 c.)
- P.M. Snack
1 T almond butter, 3 rounds melba toast
By Maureen Callahan, MS, RD
Comments (16)
isn’t that a lot of food if you are on a diet
Love all you food ideas.
Great for the busy professional.
I feel it would be impossible for me to lose any wieght on that amount of food. I think 1200 to lose would be a lot more realistic. I have even had to drop to 1000 to lose before even with exercise. That might work for a man who is working on a construciton job or some work like that. The last time we lost, he was on 12-1400 and I was on 1000 to 1200. Anything above that we did not lose.
Not very practical. What did you do with the rest of the watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapple, mango and papaya?
This is absolutely a weight-loss diet. There’s plenty of healthy food here, but most people who follow this diet strictly for two weeks will lose weight. In fact, I would need to add some whole grains to this diet to stick to it and not feel light-headed.
I was wondering for more specifics about preparing the dinners. What herbs do I add to the “herb roasted chicken?” and how about the turkey meatloaf? Where is the recipe for that?
I want to know what to do with all the extra ingredients with eating something different everyday! For example, to eat a rollup, you need to buy tortillas, you can’t just buy one or 2! I am single, so I find I waste a ton of food trying to eat healthy. I get really tired of frozen meals, etc. Does anyone have any tricks for us single girls? I don’t want to have to think this much to use left overs! I am with Chris!
Its good information day by day.
I well appreciate it.
I’m a single mother of 3 should i try to get them to eat the same as me or should i let them eat what they been eating
This is a nice variety of menus. Perhaps I would repeat a few days (until I used up the tortillas, etc., as one poster suggested). But as far as ideas for healthy, balanced meals — this fits the bill!
I think there is a real need for
recipes for single people with additional
ways to use the leftover ingredients
(fresh ingredients esp.)like avocado,
banana, strawberries etc. We single
people want the fresh food but many
times can not buy high quality fresh
food in the quantities we need.
This looks like a very good diet menu. Lots of fruit and veggies, lean meats and whole grains. You might think it looks like a lot of food, but first off you don’t want be hungry during a diet because it will just make you want to reach for sweets. Second, portion control is very important. If you’re putting a half a cup of peanut butter in your sandwich you’re not going to loose weight!
This reminds me of the original basic Weight Watchers, enough protein to avoid being hungry between meals, and not so many options. I do better if I have NO sweets, and having just a little only makes me want more. Better not to have any.
While this seems to be a healthy diet, it is high in calories for some of us. Also, I need to eat 5 or 6 small meals a day. Is there a way to tweak this to add more meals,reduce the number of calories and keep it healthy?
Is there a way to incorporate these healthy tips with 5 to 6 smaller meals per day and fewer calories. To lose weight I need 1200 calories per day.
I think this menu is OK but it is hard to each such foods when you don’t like half of the ingredients. Also, I think this is a lot of food to eat at one time. I think it would be better to split it up into 5 or 6 mini meals and lower calories don’t you think.