Menu plan examples

The basic principles of weight loss are straightforward – we need to eat fewer calories and burn off more through being more active. When losing weight many people just focus on the calories and forget that we still need to eat a variety and balance of foods. Here are a couple of examples of menus which show how we can cut back on calories and still get a balanced diet.

Menu 1

(Figures in brackets refer to number of recommended portions for men)

	Starchy	Fruit & Veg	Dairy	Protein	Other
Breakfast
Small bowl of wholegrain cereal e.g porridge or wheat biscuits with low fat milk Piece of fruit – whole of chopped on cereal Small glass of unsweetened fruit juice Tea/coffee with low fat milk	1	2	1	0	0
Mid morning
Tea/coffee with low fat milk Snack if hungry – see below
Lunch
Chicken salad sandwich (2 for men) on 2 slices of wholemeal bread with either 2 tps low fat spread or low fat mayo Piece of fruit, low fat yogurt and water	2 (4)	1.5 (2)	1	1	1
Mid afternoon
Tea/coffee with low fat milk and two finger kitkat Snack if hungry – see below					1
Dinner
Beef stew – enough to provide meat equivalent to deck of cards, 4 tablespoons vegetables (2 types) and 2 medium potatoes (3 for men) Glass of low fat milk/yoghurt	2	2	1	1	1
Above female 1520Kcal, Male 1800kcal
Snacks	Main meals provide enough of dairy and protein foods. You could still snack away of fruit and one more portion of a starchy food e.g slice of toast with 1 teaspoon of low fat spread or 2 crispbread.

Menu 2

(Figures in brackets refer to number of recommended portions for men)

	Starchy	Fruit & Veg	Dairy	Protein	Other
Breakfast
2 slices of pan bread/ 1 slice of soda bread toasted with 2 teaspoons of low fat spread or jam Piece of fruit, low fat yogurt Glass of unsweetened fruit juice Tea/coffee with low fat milk	2	2	1	0	1
Mid morning
Tea/coffee with low fat milk and chocolate biscuit Snack if hungry – see below					1
Lunch
Slice of ham and pineapple pizza, (2 slices for men) bowl of salad veg with low fat dressing Piece of fruit, slice of fruit bread	2 (3)	2	1	1	1
Mid afternoon
Tea/coffee with low fat milk Snack if hungry – see below
Dinner
Medium fillet of fish, 2 tablespoons of salsa (mango, red onion, tomatoes, lime juice and coriander mixed), 2 tablespoons peas, serving of rice equivalent to the size of a tennis ball Yoghurt	1	2	1	1	1
Above female 1660Kcal, Male 1900kcal
Snacks	Main meals provide enough of dairy and protein foods. You could still snack away of fruit and one more portion of a starchy food e.g slice of toast with 1 teaspoon of low fat spread or 2 crispbread.

If are more active you can introduce more starchy foods into your diet. However, go easy on any fats you add.