Weekly Meal Plan Ideas

Prepare lunches in advance to take to work.

Prepare lunches in advance to take to work.

When trying to eat a little more healthily, or clean up your diet to lose weight, preparation is key. If you know in advance what you're going to eat, you're far more likely to stay on track and not find yourself reaching for junk food when you get hungry. You needn't plan your whole week's menu down to every minute detail, but having a rough idea of what you're going to eat can help.

Make a Better Breakfast

At breakfast time, you can easily find yourself just grabbing a muffin or sugary coffee as you head out the door. You can make a healthy breakfast in just five minutes, though. For instance, the National Health Service website suggests scrambled eggs on whole-wheat toast; a smoothie made with mango, peaches, spinach and banana; or an English muffin with poached egg and ham. A frittata with plenty of veggies is another idea for a quick but nutritious breakfast, as is unsweetened oatmeal with fresh fruit.

Learn to Love Lunch

Lunch can also be one of those times when you find yourself in a rush and just eating a bagel or a bag of chips and a candy bar at your desk if you're not prepared. Dietitian Juliette Kellow recommends rotating among seven different lunches -- a different one for each day of the week -- to keep things interesting. Kellow's suggestions include a baked potato with prawns, tuna, kidney beans and chilli sauce in a whole-wheat pita bread, a roast beef and tomato sandwich on whole-grain bread, a salad with mozzarella and tomato, vegetable soup with whole-wheat toast, and whole-grain crackers with a small amount of cheese -- around 1 ounce is ample -- celery and apple. You can add a side salad to any entree.

Family-Friendly Dinners

One way to set up every evening meal of the week is to base it around the U.S. Department of Agriculture's healthy plate guidelines, which suggest splitting your plate into quarters. Plan on one-quarter each for fruits, vegetables, grains and protein, with an additional small serving of dairy on the side. The protein could be chicken, lean steak, white or oily fish, or a vegetarian protein like tofu. The grains should be whole grains, like brown rice or whole-wheat noodles. You can also make a double serving of vegetables if fruits don't fit into your savory meal.

Super Snacks

Snacking should be part of your plan too, as it can help keep you full and keep your cravings under control. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics advises keeping your snacks small and only eating when hungry. Have plenty of go-to snacks at hand, as you may need one, two or even three each day, so variety is essential. The academy suggests keeping your snacks under 200 calories, with quick eats such as peanut butter spread on apple slices, a whole-grain dinner roll with turkey, low-fat cheese and mustard, a banana with frozen yogurt and chopped nuts, a small salad, a whole-wheat English muffin with cream cheese, veggies and tomato sauce to make a mini-pizza, or a fruit smoothie.

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