The registered dietitians at Lean Cuisine have developed two easy-to-follow weekly meal plans for you - one set at
1500 calories a day and the other at
2000 calories a day - to help you reach or maintain your healthy weight range.
Follow the tips below and use the meal plans as a guide to help get you on track to a healthy lifestyle and keep you there.
Begin with the 1500 calories a day meal plan. Follow it for a week and rate how you feel at the end. If your goal is to lose weight, plan for no more than a 1 to 2 pound loss per week. Although this may seem small compared to other diet plans, a greater loss of weight is usually just water that will soon be regained. Be patient - donít give up! It may take a few weeks for your body to adjust to your new eating and active living regime.
Listen to your body for hunger cues. Depending on your activity level, some days you will burn more calories than others. If you feel hungry, eat an extra serving or two of vegetables or fruit. Wait 15 minutes and if you are still hungry, try drinking a glass of water. If this does not work, consider serving recommendations from the 2000 calories a day meal plan.
Keep a journal. Achieving and maintaining a healthy weight range is as much a mental strategy as it is a physical one. To keep focused, record what and how much you eat in a journal -
when you eat it. If you wait until the end of the day, itís easier to leave out the items youíd sooner forget you ate. Also, record what daily physical activities you participated in and then rate how you feel at the end of each day.
Gradually move to the 2000 calories a day meal plan. Continue to monitor your success and as you get closer to achieving your healthy weight target, consider increasing your calorie intake per day. It's also a good idea to adjust the meal plans to support your activity level. For example, eat more on days you are especially active, and less on days you are not.
Meal plans
Canada's Food Guide
For more information on healthy eating, view
Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating by visiting the HealthCanada Web site.
Nutritional Disclaimer:
Consult your physician in all matters relating to health before making any significant lifestyleor dietary changes. The information contained in, or made available through, this site is intended to help you make informed decisions about your health, not to replace or substitute for the personalized services of health professionals.
The nutrition information provided for each recipe is determined by a database analysis using the ESHA Genesis R&D program. Nutrition information is based on the ingredients and cooking techniques as listed in the recipe, and does not include optional ingredients or garnishes. Nutritional values represented are composite averages and may vary according to freshness, variety or differences in preparation. Altering cooking methods or substituting any ingredients may change the posted nutrition information significantly.
