In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleWhy This PlanDay 1Day 2Day 3Day 4Day 5Day 6Meal Prep TipsFAQsFoods to Focus OnLifestyle Habits
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
Why This Plan
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Meal Prep Tips
FAQs
Foods to Focus On
Lifestyle Habits
Close
Photo:Easy Chicken Tenders with Lemon & Garlic: Morgan Hunt Glaze. Roasted Root Veggies & Greens over Spiced Lentils: Ali
Easy Chicken Tenders with Lemon & Garlic: Morgan Hunt Glaze. Roasted Root Veggies & Greens over Spiced Lentils: Ali
Why This Meal Plan Is Great for You
To help support healthy blood pressure and overall heart health, we limit saturated fat to a maximum of 14 grams per day. While there’s some debate onsaturated fatand heart health, we do know that most of us aren’t getting enough heart-healthyunsaturated fats. In this plan, you’ll find ample sources of unsaturated fats, including nuts and nut butters, avocado and olive oil. We also limit sodium to 1,500 milligrams per day. This is the ideal limit for people with high blood pressure, according to the American Heart Association.
We prioritized two important nutrients that can help lower blood pressure: potassium and fiber. Each day provides an average of about 3,700 milligrams ofpotassium. The AHA recommends a minimum of 3,500 mg of potassium per day for people who aim to treat or prevent high blood pressure.High-potassium foods include squash, spinach, banana, dairy and sweet potato. We also include an average of 44 grams of fiber per day.Fiberis an important nutrient with many health benefits, including improved heart health and cholesterol as well as reduced blood pressure.
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 (331 calories)
Top toast with almond butter and chia jam; serve with yogurt and peach on the side.
A.M. Snack (311 calories)
Lunch (501 calories)
P.M. Snack (184 calories)
Dinner (484 calories)
Meal-Prep Tip:Reserve three servingsCopycat Olive Garden Pasta e Fagiolito have for lunch on Days 2 through 4.
Daily Totals:1,811 calories, 88g fat, 14g saturated fat, 99g protein, 170g carbohydrate, 47g fiber, 4,312mg potassium, 1,488mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 calories:Omit yogurt at breakfast and almonds at A.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories:Add ¼ cup unsalted dry-roasted shelled pistachios as an evening snack.
Blaine Moats
Breakfast (408 calories)
Lunch (308 calories)
P.M. Snack (101 calories)
Dinner (663 calories)
Daily Totals:1,795 calories, 84g fat, 13g saturated fat, 76g protein, 201g carbohydrate, 41g fiber, 3,098mg potassium, 1,470mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 calories:Omit almonds at A.M. snack and apple at lunch.
Make it 2,000 calories:Add 2 Tbsp. natural peanut butter to the apple at lunch.
Photographer: Jake Sternquist, Food stylist: Annie Probst, Prop stylist: Gabriel Greco
Breakfast (407 calories)
Lunch (402 calories)
P.M. Snack (176 calories)
Dinner (395 calories)
Evening Snack (101 calories)
Daily Totals:1,793 calories, 71g fat, 13g saturated fat, 87g protein, 220g carbohydrate, 38g fiber, 3,737mg potassium, 1,454mg sodium.
Make it 1,500 calories:Omit almonds at A.M. snack and omit evening snack.
Ali Redmond
P.M. Snack
Dinner (452 calories)
Daily Totals:1,805 calories, 66g fat, 10g saturated fat, 86g protein, 236g carbohydrate, 47g fiber, 3,327mg potassium, 1,498mg sodium.
A.M. Snack (206 calories)
Dinner (478 calories)
Daily Totals:1,776 calories, 82g fat, 11g saturated fat, 99g protein, 173g carbohydrate, 39g fiber, 3,495mg potassium, 1,185 sodium.
Make it 1,500 calories:Omit kefir at breakfast, change A.M. snack to 1 medium peach and omit orange at P.M. snack.
Make it 2,000 calories:Add 1 medium apple to A.M. snack and add 1 medium banana as an evening snack.
Photographer: Victor Protasio, Food Stylist: Sally McKay, Prop Stylist: Hannah Greenwood
A.M. Snack (291 calories)
Dinner (423 calories)
Evening Snack (53 calories)
Daily Totals:1,782 calories, 82g fat, 107g protein, 171g carbohydrate, 45g fiber, 4,288mg potassium, 1,332mg sodium.
Make it 2,000 calories:Add ¼ cup unsalted dry-roasted shelled pistachios to evening snack.
How to Meal-Prep Your Week of Meals:
Frequently Asked QuestionsYes! Feel free to mix and match meals if there’s one you don’t like. You can also check out more of ourheart-healthy recipes. Just be sure to watch the saturated fat and sodium if you’re making a swap.Definitely, if it’s easier to eat the same breakfast or lunch every day then go for it. Each of the options selected are heart-healthy and low in saturated fat and sodium, so choosing the same option daily should work for most people.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.If left untreated, high blood pressure can increase the risk of heart attack, heart disease, stroke, vision loss and kidney damage. Because it has few, if any, outward symptoms, it’s important to get your blood pressure checked regularly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Feel free to mix and match meals if there’s one you don’t like. You can also check out more of ourheart-healthy recipes. Just be sure to watch the saturated fat and sodium if you’re making a swap.
Definitely, if it’s easier to eat the same breakfast or lunch every day then go for it. Each of the options selected are heart-healthy and low in saturated fat and sodium, so choosing the same option daily should work for most people.
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.
If left untreated, high blood pressure can increase the risk of heart attack, heart disease, stroke, vision loss and kidney damage. Because it has few, if any, outward symptoms, it’s important to get your blood pressure checked regularly.
Heart-Healthy Foods to Focus On:
Strategies to Improve Blood Pressure:
There are several nutrition and lifestyle strategies that can help improve blood pressure.
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.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health Topics – High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.How much sodium should I eat per day?American Heart Association.How Potassium Can Help Control High Blood Pressure.Reynolds AN, Akerman A, Kumar S, Diep Pham HT, Coffey S, Mann J.Dietary fibre in hypertension and cardiovascular disease management: systematic review and meta-analyses.BMC Med. 2022;20(1):139. doi:10.1186/s12916-022-02328-xAmerican Heart Association.Health Threats from High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.Five Simple Steps to Control Your Blood Pressure.
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.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health Topics – High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.How much sodium should I eat per day?American Heart Association.How Potassium Can Help Control High Blood Pressure.Reynolds AN, Akerman A, Kumar S, Diep Pham HT, Coffey S, Mann J.Dietary fibre in hypertension and cardiovascular disease management: systematic review and meta-analyses.BMC Med. 2022;20(1):139. doi:10.1186/s12916-022-02328-xAmerican Heart Association.Health Threats from High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.Five Simple Steps to Control Your Blood Pressure.
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.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health Topics – High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.How much sodium should I eat per day?American Heart Association.How Potassium Can Help Control High Blood Pressure.Reynolds AN, Akerman A, Kumar S, Diep Pham HT, Coffey S, Mann J.Dietary fibre in hypertension and cardiovascular disease management: systematic review and meta-analyses.BMC Med. 2022;20(1):139. doi:10.1186/s12916-022-02328-xAmerican Heart Association.Health Threats from High Blood Pressure.American Heart Association.Five Simple Steps to Control Your Blood Pressure.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Health Topics – High Blood Pressure.
American Heart Association.How much sodium should I eat per day?
American Heart Association.How Potassium Can Help Control High Blood Pressure.
Reynolds AN, Akerman A, Kumar S, Diep Pham HT, Coffey S, Mann J.Dietary fibre in hypertension and cardiovascular disease management: systematic review and meta-analyses.BMC Med. 2022;20(1):139. doi:10.1186/s12916-022-02328-x
American Heart Association.Health Threats from High Blood Pressure.
American Heart Association.Five Simple Steps to Control Your Blood Pressure.
