Chapter 5 - Sample Meal Plans
Putting all this information into a concrete meal plan can be daunting for beginners. These sample meal plans for a typical carb cycling week should help. Use them as a basic blueprint for designing your meals but remember, it's not carved in stone. You can add or discard meals according to your chosen 7-day plan.
PLAN 1
Monday (low carb day)
Breakfast
3 whole eggs, scrambled, poached boiled or fried.
1/2 cup of high-carb fruit like blueberries, pineapple or peaches
1/cup oatmeal sweetened with honey
Snack
I apple or 1/2 cup unsalted nuts
Lunch
Turkey sandwich with lettuce and tomato on whole- wheat bread.
Herbal tea
Snack
1/2 cup ricotta cheese or 2 medium apricots
Dinner
Spinach Frittata
Grilled beef strips with green bell peppers
Green salad
Tuesday (High carb day)
Breakfast
Two slices whole wheat bread with Swiss cheese
1 cup low-fat yogurt with fresh blueberries
Snack
1 banana
Lunch
Grilled salmon with brown rice
Grated carrot and cucumber salad
Snack
1 slice whole wheat bread with almond butter
Dinner
Whole wheat pasta with fresh tomatoes
Black beans with garlic oil
Fresh green salad
Wednesday (low carb day)
Breakfast
3 scrambled eggs with avocado
Snack
2 apricots or 2 plums
Lunch
Caesar salad with grilled chicken strips
Herbal tea
Snack
Low-fat yogurt or 1/2 cup of nuts
Dinner
Flank steak with green beans and onions
Green salad with feta cheese
Thursday (High carb day)
Breakfast
- 2 poached eggs
- 2 slices whole-wheat toast
- 1/2 cup fruit
Snack
- 1/2 cup fruit or nuts or 1 banana
Lunch
- 1 cup brown rice with chickpeas
- Sweet potatoes
- Green salad
Snack
- Low-fat yogurt with honey or 1 banana
Dinner
- Baked potato
- Grilled chicken breast
- Avocado and tomato salad
Friday (low carb day)
Breakfast
- 1/2 cup oatmeal
- 1/2 cup fruit
- 1/2 cup ricotta, feta or goat cheese
Snack
- 1/2 cup fruit or nuts or 1 low-fat yogurt
Lunch
- Avocado and chicken salad
- Sliced tomatoes on lettuce
- Herbal tea
Snack
- 1 orange or 1 apple or 2 plums
Dinner
- Grilled salmon with vegetables
- Naked beans
- Green salad
Saturday (high carb day)
Breakfast
- 2 scrambled eggs on whole-wheat toast
- 1 low-fat yogurt sweetened with honey
Lunch
- Sweet potatoes
- Lentil soup
Snack
Dinner
- Tuna Casserole Whole wheat noodles
- Spinach salad
Sunday (low carb + cheat day)
Breakfast
- Lean sausages with fried eggs
- 1/2 cup fruit
Snack
- Almond butter or 1/2 cup nuts
Lunch
- Tuna salad
- 1 piece of fresh fruit
Snack
- 2 plums, two apricots or 1 apple
Dinner:
Whatever you want! In moderation, please. For example, have two slices of pizza instead of two or three. Indulge in a moderate portion of ice cream or cake. If you've been craving French fries all week, eat a small plate of them, not a whole platter. You get the idea.
PLAN 2
If you prefer more than three meals a day, here is a sample plan to guide you.
TYPICAL LOW CARB DAY
Meal 1
- 3 egg
- 3 strips of lean bacon
- Sautéed peppers
Meal 2
- 4 oz. grilled turkey or chicken breast
- 1 cup carrots
- Lettuce and tomato salad
Meal 3
- 4 0z grilles salmon, tuna or shrimp
- 1 cup broccoli
- 1 banana
Meal 4
- 4 oz. chicken
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 low-fat yogurt with honey
Meal 5
- 4 oz. tuna
- 1 cup chickpeas
- 1 sliced tomato or cucumber
Meal 6
- 4 oz. lean steak
- 1 cup green beans
- 1/2 cup fruit
TYPICAL HIGH CARB DAY
Meal 1
- 2 eggs
- 3 strips of bacon or 3 small sausages
- 2 slices whole-wheat toast
Meal 2
- 4 oz. chicken
- Green salad
- 1/2 cup oatmeal sweetened with honey
Meal 3
- 4 oz. salmon
- 1/2 cup brown rice
- 1/2 cup carrots and peas
Meal 4
- 4 oz. chicken
- 2 cups spinach
- 1 cup arb-rich fruit like peaches, plums or apricots
Meal 5
- 1 cup of corn
- 1 sliced cucumber
- 1/2 cup of wild rice or quinoa
Meal 6
- 4 oz. grilled beefsteak
- 1 yam
- 1 cup green beans
- Green salad
PLAN 3
Here is a third meal plan sample that just includes several suggestions for each day, letting you calculate the portions as you learned in a previous chapter.
Low carb day
Breakfast
- Egg muffins
- Sour cream with chives
- 1 banana
OR…
- Whole wheat pancakes with cream cheese
- 3 sausages
- Blueberries or diced pineapple
OR…
Lunch
- Tacos with lean ground beef
- Green salad
- 1 piece whole fruit
OR…
- Bell peppers stuffed with lean ground beef
- Sliced cucumber and spinach topped with grated parmesan cheese
- 1 apple
OR…
- Chicken salad on lettuce
- Baked butternut squash with herbs
- Fruit salad
Dinner
OR…
- Beef stroganoff with mushrooms
- Brown rice
- Shredded lettuce and tomato salad
- Jelly cup
OR…
- Chicken fajita wraps
- Zucchini boats stuffed with mozzarella
- Green salad
- 1 piece whole fruit
Snacks
- Rice cake with almond butter
- Protein shake
- Hummus dip and celery sticks
- Strawberry and banana smoothie
- Cottage cheese with honey
- Cream cheese with herbs and carrot sticks
HIGH CARB DAYS
Breakfast
- Scrambled eggs with bacon and chives
- Oatmeal with blueberries and honey
- 1 piece whole fruit
OR…
- Boiled eggs
- 2 slices whole-wheat bread with cream cheese
- 1 banana
OR…
- Fried eggs with sausage
- 2 slices whole what toast
- 1 yam
Lunch
- Grilled turkey sandwich
- Chickpea salad
- Yogurt with honey
OR…
- Grilled salmon
- Sweet potato and spinach salad
- 1 piece whole fruit
OR…
- Shrimp with whole wheat noodles
- Potato salad
- 1 piece whole fruit
Dinner:
- Baked chicken
- Mexican brown rice
- Peas with carrots
- 1 piece whole fruit
OR…
- Pan steak with potatoes
- Broccoli with sweet corm
- Jelly cup
OR…
- Pasta with chicken and mushroom
- Cherry tomato and spinach salad
- Quinoa sweetened with honey
As you can see, there is huge room to get creative and once up with mouthwatering, meals. Once you get the hang of it, you will be able to come up with delicious treats for the whole family to enjoy along with you (although family members not on the plan or kids should not restrict themselves to portions or calories.
You can also tweak your favorite recipes to make them carb cycling-friendly by replacing processed carbs with healthy ones, and saturated fats with good fats.
