In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleWhy This PlanDay 1Day 2Day 3Day 4Day 5Day 6Day 7Meal Prep TipsFAQsHealthy Aging FoodsOther Lifestyle Tips
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
Why This Plan
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Meal Prep Tips
FAQs
Healthy Aging Foods
Other Lifestyle Tips
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Photo:Pan-Seared Steak with Crispy Herbs & Escaro: Brie Passano. Chicken Fajita Soup: Morgan Hunt Glaze.
Pan-Seared Steak with Crispy Herbs & Escaro: Brie Passano. Chicken Fajita Soup: Morgan Hunt Glaze.
Aging is a natural part of life, and it isn’t something to dread. In fact, certain factors can help your later years be just as healthful and enjoyable as your younger ones. While there are some factors we can’t control (like genetics), our diet and lifestyle choices can play an important part in helping us age healthily. This seven-day meal plan focuses on high-fiber and protein-packed meals to help keep you healthy, strong and supporting your body as you age.
Why This Meal Plan Is Great for You
In this meal plan, you’ll find at least 30 grams of fiber per day to help keep you feeling satiated and to support healthy aging. A fiber-rich diet not only helps improve your digestive health, but it may also helppromote healthy agingas it can help maintain a thriving and diverse gut microbiome. Increasing your fiber intake may also lower your risk for chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes and cancer.If you aren’t eating a lot of fiber at the moment, don’t worry! Slowly increase your fiber intake and stay hydrated to avoid uncomfortable symptoms like bloating or gas. This meal plan focuses on including foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes and lean proteins to offer a wide array of nutrients your body needs to function at its best.
This 1,800-calorie meal plan has modifications for 1,500 and 2,000 calories to support those with differentcalorie needs. While we previously included meal plans and modifications for 1,200 calories, we no longer do. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests that limiting your calories to 1,200 per day is too low for most people to meet their nutritional needs, plus it’s unsustainable for long-term health and well-being.
Breakfast (425 calories)
A.M. Snack (167 calories)
Lunch (577 calories)
P.M. Snack (170 calories)
Dinner (503 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,841 calories, 87g fat, 23g saturated fat, 93g protein, 190g carbohydrate, 38g fiber, 2,295 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit A.M. snack and P.M snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add 10 whole-wheat crackers to P.M. snack.
Breakfast (461 calories)
A.M. Snack (183 calories)
Lunch (485 calories)
P.M. Snack (149 calories)
Dinner (528 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,806 calories, 80g fat, 25g saturated fat, 101g protein, 185g carbohydrate, 35g fiber, 2,234 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit the eggs at breakfast and omit P.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add ½ avocado to lunch and add 1 tablespoon walnuts to P.M. snack.
Jacob Fox
A.M. Snack (124 calories)
Lunch (443 calories)
P.M. Snack (402 calories)
Dinner (425 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,855 calories, 67g fat, 16g saturated fat, 136g protein, 181g carbohydrate, 33g fiber, 2,038 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit P.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 tablespoons walnut halves to A.M. snack and add 1 medium apple to dinner.
photography / Caitlin bensel, Food Styling / Emily Nabors Hall
A.M Snack (176 calories)
P.M. Snack (318 calories)
Dinner (352 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,750 calories, 66g fat, 13g saturated fat, 101g protein, 200g carbohydrate, 37g fiber, 2,127 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit crackers at P.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add ½ cup of low-fat plain Greek yogurt to A.M. snack, add 2 slices low-fat Cheddar cheese to P.M. snack, and add 1 medium peach to dinner.
Photographer: Brie Passano, Food Stylist: Greg Luna
A.M. Snack (188 calories)
P.M. Snack (258 calories)
Dinner (400 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,777 calories, 72g fat, 19g saturated fat, 104g protein, 191g carbohydrate, 33g fiber, 2,302 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit A.M. snack and omit walnuts at P.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add 12 whole-wheat crackers to P.M. snack.
Breakfast (493 calories)
A.M. Snack (140 calories)
Lunch (561 calories)
P.M. Snack (184 calories)
Dinner (401 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,777 calories, 69g fat, 17g saturated fat, 88g protein, 189g carbohydrate, 41g fiber, 2,030 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit milk at breakfast and avocado at lunch.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 large hard-boiled eggs to breakfast and add 2 tablespoons walnut halves to A.M snack.
Breakfast (342 calories)
A.M. Snack (376 calories)
Lunch (527 calories)
P.M. Snack (183 calories)
Dinner (417 calories)
Daily Totals: 1,844 calories, 73g fat, 23g saturated fat, 97g protein, 213g carbohydrate, 34g fiber, 1,855 mg sodium
Make it 1,500 calories: Omit A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories: Add ½ cup blueberries to breakfast and add ½ cup low-fat cottage cheese to P.M. snack.
How to Meal-Prep Your Week of Meals:
Frequently Asked QuestionsYes! This meal plan is meant to serve as a framework for a high-fiber diet. It doesn’t need to be followed exactly to reap the benefits. When choosing recipes, we made sure to check calories, fiber, protein and sodium to align with the parameters of this plan and be within our sodium limits. If you’re making a recipe swap, it may be helpful to choose a recipe with similar calories, fiber, protein and sodium levels. For more inspiration, check out these delicioushigh-fiber recipes.Definitely, it’s fine to eat the same breakfast or lunch every day. The breakfasts range from 342 to 493 calories, while the lunches have 443 to 576 calories. These ranges are fairly close, though if you’re closely monitoring your calories or other nutrients, like protein, you may want to adjust a snack or two.We no longer provide modifications for 1,200-calorie days in our meal plans. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests that limiting calories to 1,200 per day is too low for most people to meet their nutritional needs, plus it’s unsustainable for long-term health and well-being.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! This meal plan is meant to serve as a framework for a high-fiber diet. It doesn’t need to be followed exactly to reap the benefits. When choosing recipes, we made sure to check calories, fiber, protein and sodium to align with the parameters of this plan and be within our sodium limits. If you’re making a recipe swap, it may be helpful to choose a recipe with similar calories, fiber, protein and sodium levels. For more inspiration, check out these delicioushigh-fiber recipes.
Definitely, it’s fine to eat the same breakfast or lunch every day. The breakfasts range from 342 to 493 calories, while the lunches have 443 to 576 calories. These ranges are fairly close, though if you’re closely monitoring your calories or other nutrients, like protein, you may want to adjust a snack or two.
We no longer provide modifications for 1,200-calorie days in our meal plans. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests that limiting calories to 1,200 per day is too low for most people to meet their nutritional needs, plus it’s unsustainable for long-term health and well-being.
Healthy-Aging Foods to Focus On:
Other Tips for Healthy Aging
While these meals are a great place to start, there are several other habits that are important for aging in a healthy way. Check out these tips to help you feel your best as you get older:
How We Create Meal PlansRegistered dietitians thoughtfully createEatingWell’smeal plans to be easy-to-follow and delicious. Each meal plan meets specific parameters depending on the health condition and/or lifestyle goal it is targeting and is analyzed for accuracy using the nutrition database, ESHA Food Processor. As nutritional needs differ from person to person, we encourage you to use these plans as inspiration and adjust as you see fit.
How We Create Meal Plans
Registered dietitians thoughtfully createEatingWell’smeal plans to be easy-to-follow and delicious. Each meal plan meets specific parameters depending on the health condition and/or lifestyle goal it is targeting and is analyzed for accuracy using the nutrition database, ESHA Food Processor. As nutritional needs differ from person to person, we encourage you to use these plans as inspiration and adjust as you see fit.
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SourcesEatingWell uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable and trustworthy.Reynolds A, Mann J, Cummings J, Winter N, Mete E, Te Morenga L.Carbohydrate quality and human health: a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.Lancet. 2019;393(10170):434-445. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31809-9U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.Coelho-Júnior HJ, Marques FL, Sousa CV, Marzetti E, Da Silva Aguiar S.Age- and sex-specific normative values for muscle mass parameters in 18,625 Brazilian adults.Frontiers in Public Health. 2024;11. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1287994
Sources
EatingWell uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable and trustworthy.Reynolds A, Mann J, Cummings J, Winter N, Mete E, Te Morenga L.Carbohydrate quality and human health: a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.Lancet. 2019;393(10170):434-445. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31809-9U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.Coelho-Júnior HJ, Marques FL, Sousa CV, Marzetti E, Da Silva Aguiar S.Age- and sex-specific normative values for muscle mass parameters in 18,625 Brazilian adults.Frontiers in Public Health. 2024;11. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1287994
EatingWell uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable and trustworthy.
Reynolds A, Mann J, Cummings J, Winter N, Mete E, Te Morenga L.Carbohydrate quality and human health: a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.Lancet. 2019;393(10170):434-445. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31809-9U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.Coelho-Júnior HJ, Marques FL, Sousa CV, Marzetti E, Da Silva Aguiar S.Age- and sex-specific normative values for muscle mass parameters in 18,625 Brazilian adults.Frontiers in Public Health. 2024;11. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1287994
Reynolds A, Mann J, Cummings J, Winter N, Mete E, Te Morenga L.Carbohydrate quality and human health: a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses.Lancet. 2019;393(10170):434-445. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31809-9
U.S. Department of Agriculture. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.
Coelho-Júnior HJ, Marques FL, Sousa CV, Marzetti E, Da Silva Aguiar S.Age- and sex-specific normative values for muscle mass parameters in 18,625 Brazilian adults.Frontiers in Public Health. 2024;11. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1287994
