When you first start getting into fitness, it's hard to know what, how much, and when to eat. So I've put together a weeks worth of meal ideas to help kick-start your new habit!

Okay, so I've put together a weeks worth of healthy meals with alternatives to help you understand what a healthy diet looks like

Just note, that every single one of you reading this will have different daily calorie requirements. So some of the portions may need to be adapted to fit your exact needs

If you're interested in knowing how many calories you need, you can work out your daily calorie needs here (unless you're a client of mine then I've done this for you)

When I built this plan I followed a few rules;

1. There are 3 meals a day

2. Everyday has at least 5 fruit & vegetables

3. Every meal has around 30g of protein

4. Everyday has 2L of water

These foundations result in a consistent source of muscle-recovering protein, a blend of nutrients and an easy-to-follow plan

I follow a diet plan called "Flexible dieting" - In my opinion it's the best nutrition plan in the world. It revolves around eating good, nutritious foods 80% of the time and eating the "naughtier" foods the other 20%

As long as you control the 20% (and don't go completely overboard!) you'll be able to still eat the foods you love and get amazing results!

The Meal Plan

Day 1

Breakfast: 2 x Wheatabix with a sliced banana, blueberries, milk & Greek yogurt

Lunch: 1 x Sliced Cajun chicken breast in a fajita with lettuce, tomatoes, greek yogurt & mint

Dinner: 2 x Chicken sausages with a handful of new potatoes, green beans and sweetcorn

Snacks/Extras: A handful of grapes. Sliced red pepper. 2L of water

Alternatives:

1. Swap the wheatabix for any wholemeal cereal

2. Chicken can be swapped for good ham

3. Chicken sausages can be swapped for lean pork sausages

4. Any fruit & veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 2

Breakfast: A fruit smoothie with strawberries, banana, protein powder, milk alternative and a handful of oats

Lunch: Tuna salad with cucumber, tomatoes, tbsp of mayo & crusty bread

Dinner: Spaghetti bolognaise with a side of peas

Snacks/Extras: Apple. Carrot sticks. 2L of water

Alternatives:

1. Smoothie can be swapped for Day 1's breakfast

2. Protein powder can be swapped for Greek yogurt

3. Tuna can be swapped for salmon or any other lean fish

4. Spaghetti bolognaise can be swapped for just the meat and a big salad

5. Any fruit & veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 3

Breakfast: 2 x Crumpet with a tsp of peanut butter and jam. Protein shake on the side

Lunch: Leftover bolognaise and avocado

Dinner: 1 x Pork chop with the fat removed. Mashed potato, broccoli and mushroom

Snacks/Extras: 1 x 100 calorie chocolate bar. Grapes. Sliced red pepper. 2L water

Alternatives:

1. Crumpets swapped for normal toast (preferably brown bread)

2. Protein shake for Greek yogurt

3. Bolognaise for chicken, avocado and tomato salad

4. Pork chop for lean lamb chop

5. Fruit & veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 4

Breakfast: Fruit smoothie with banana, blueberries, spinach and protein powder

Lunch: Salmon, microwave rice and peas

Dinner: Lean meatballs, pasta and tomato and basil sauce

Snacks/Extras: Cucumber. Pear. Coke zero. 2L of water

Alternatives:

1. Fruit smoothie for any high-fibre cereal and berries

2. Salmon for any other fish

3. Meatballs and pasta for meatballs, mashed potato and green beans

4. Fruit & veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 4

Breakfast: Bran flakes, flaked almonds, blueberries and a protein shake

Lunch: Chicken breast and ham sandwich with BBQ sauce and lettuce

Dinner: Leftover meatballs, rice and mozzarella

Snacks/Extras: 1 x 100 calorie chocolate bar. Celery sticks. Carrot sticks. 2L water

Alternatives:

1. Bran flakes for porridge or overnight oats

2. Protein shake for Greek yogurt

3. Chicken and ham sandwich for a tuna, mayo and sweetcorn sandwich

4. Meatballs for sliced jerk chicken breast

5. Any fruit & veg can be swapped for any F&V

Day 5

Breakfast: 2 x egg, 2 x bacon rasher, tomato and beans

Lunch: Kofta chicken breast, with mint yogurt, tomatoes, red onion & lettuce in a pita

Dinner: Beef steak strips, egg-noodles, red pepper & onion. Topped with sweet chili

Snacks/Extras: 1 x 100 calorie yogurt of choice. Grape. Apple. 2L water

Alternatives:

1. Eggs & bacon for cereal from Day 4

2. Pita for avocado to make a salad

3. Beef strips for chili chicken thighs

4. Any fruit & veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 6

Breakfast: Overnight oats with seeds, strawberries and a small handful of cashews

Lunch: 1/2 Pizza and salad

Dinner: Steak with green beans, peas and new potatoes

Snacks/Extras: Glass of wine. Satsuma. Sliced cucumber. 2L water

Alternatives:

1. Swap the overnight oats for normal porridge or other high-fiber cereal

2. 1/2 Pizza for another cheat meal of choice (staying within 650 calories)

3. Steak for lamb or pork steaks

4. Any fruit or veg can be swapped for any other F&V

Day 7

Breakfast: 3 x egg omelette with sliced ham and pepper

Lunch: Roast beef with a small Yorkshire pudding, and tonnes of veg

Dinner: Grapes, sliced ham and cheese on oat cakes

Snacks/Extras: Small slice of apple crumble

Alternatives:

1. Omelette for fried eggs, bacon, mushroom and tomatoes

2. Roast beef for chicken or pork roast (no crackling)

3. Ham and cheese oatcakes for a sandwich with ham and pickle

4. Any fruit & veg can be swapped for any F&V

Conclusion

So the diet plan above is a very good representation of a healthy, well-rounded meal plan, but please

DON'T TAKE IT TOO LITERALLY

It doesn't need to be exactly that to get results. In the past I've given people diet plans and they've messaged me saying something along the lines of;

"Hi Ben. I haven't got any peas in. Can I swap it for sweetcorn?"

Or

"Ben, can I have my cheat meal on a Thursday instead of a Saturday?"

YES! Of course you can. This plan isn't something I've copied from a magical book that's been passed down through generations. It's not a spell book. It's a list of healthy foods in row. It doesn't need to be in any order or with the EXACT ingredients

Please feel free to swap and adapt to fit your lifestyle (:

And let's be honest. A lot of the foods I've listed are varied to make the plan more inclusive

I think I've probably had the same breakfast every morning for about 2 months now! So don't feel like you're not sticking to the plan because you've doubled up on certain meals either

So, good luck with it. This diet plan will 100% get you healthier and leaner if you stick to the formula as best you can

Thanks for reading,

Ben