2-Day Meal Plan

Nutrition is a key factor in contributing to how we feel, how we perform, how we sleep, how we look, and how our body internally functions. Fueling our body well has significant long term benefits and short term benefits. In the long term, your likelihood of chronic disease (hypertension, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, metabolic syndrome) greatly decreases when you fuel your body with nutrient-dense, fresh (aka not processed) foods. In the short term, you will notice significant positive changes in how your body feels and looks, your energy levels, and how you sleep -- all based on what you put into your body.

The short term and long term benefits explain why proper nutrition is SO vital to living well. Yet, so often we can overlook nutrition. We can fall prey to the social aspect of food and the taste of food, forgetting that food is PRIMARILY fuel. Yes, we should enjoy it. Food does bring us together. Cooking is an art, but we primarily eat to nourish our bodies. I know that statement is simplistic, but I believe it is overlooked as most of us (who are reading this blog) are blessed with a surplus of food. It is easy to fall into the mentality that we eat to enjoy ourselves and forget, rather, that we eat primarily to nourish our bodies, and secondarily to gather and enjoy. You can nourish your body, and nourish your soul at the same time -- they don't need to be independent. If you are seeking to co-exist nourishment and enjoyment, look no further!

A few things to note:

• This meal plan is created for an individual who is exercising 30-60 minutes/day with a target goal of 1,700-1,800 calories/day. This plan is also dairy-free and low gluten.

• Consume as much as you want of the following: water (at least half your body weight in ounces), fresh lemon/lime juice, spices/herbs, mustard, vinegar, green onion, chiles, hot sauce, pure flavor extract, cocoa powder (unsweetened — good in smoothies).

• You can eat as many vegetables as you desire — there is no limit on those. Four servings is just a guide!

• At the end of the day, listen to your body. You know what it needs better than anyone else!

Day 1

Breakfast: Smoothie

• 1 handful of spinach

• 2 tbsp of hemp seeds

• 1/4 avocado

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk

• 1/4 cup of your favorite fruit (strawberries, pineapple, berries…)

• 2 scoops of unflavored Vital Protein’s Collagen Peptides (or your favorite protein powder).

Lunch: Open-Faced Panini + Carrots + Apple

• 1 slice of Ezekiel bread topped with 2 tsp. of vegan pesto (click here for recipe ) & 2/3 cup rotisserie chicken

• 10 baby carrots

• 1 small apple

Dinner: Lettuce wrapped turkey burgers + Caramelized Onions + Avocado, Sweet Potato Fries, & Broccolini

• Butterhead lettuce (as much as you want)

• 6 oz turkey patty

• Caramelized onion (as much as want — just use 1 tsp oil/butter per serving!)

• 1/8 avocado

• 1/2 cup sweet potato fries (use 1 tsp oil 1/2 cup serving).

• Broccolini (as much as you want, at least 5 oz).

Post-workout snack: 1/2 cup lactose-free plain yogurt topped with 1 cup blueberries

Anytime Snack: 1 cup sliced cucumbers & 1/2 cup cooked oatmeal topped with 1/2 small banana

Day 2

Breakfast: Omelette + Turkey Bacon + Toast + Side of fruit

• 2 eggs

• A handful of sautéd spinach

• Add as much as you’d like of...tomato, onion, green onion, peppers

• 1/4 avocado or 1/4 cup dairy-free “cheese”

• 4 slices of nitrate and nitrite-free turkey bacon

• 1/4 cup of your favorite fruit

• 1 slice of Ezekiel bread with 1 tsp of nut butter

Lunch: Salad + Fruit

• 1+ cups of greens (Choose your favorite — baby romaine, spinach, kale, arugula, iceberg…etc)

• 2/3 cups of rotisserie chicken

• 1 tbsp of either unsalted pumpkin seeds or unsalted sunflower seeds

• Optional: chopped onion

• 1 tbsp of your favorite dressing (Primal Kitchen has great options)

• 3/4 cup of chopped pineapple or 3/4 cup strawberries

Dinner: Chicken, Asparagus, Rice

• Roughly 3/4 cup when sliced chicken breast

• 10 large spears of asparagus

• 1/2 cup cooked of seasoned brown rice

Post-Workout Snack: 1 large banana, 10 baby carrots, 1/4 cup hummus

Grocery List

P R O D U C E

• Spinach

• Greens of your choice

• Avocado (1)

• Favorite fruit (strawberries, pineapples, berries) (2)

• Carrots

• Butterhead lettuce

• Yellow onion (1)

• Broccolini

• Organic apple (1)

• Cucumbers

• Bananas (2)

• Asparagus

• Optional: tomato, green onion, peppers

P A N T R Y

• Hemp Seeds

• Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides

• Oatmeal

• Nut butter *flavor of your choice

• Unsalted sunflower or unsalted pumpkin seeds

• Favorite dressing (Primal Kitchen has great clean options!)

• Brown rice

M E A T

• Rotisserie Chicken (1)

• Turkey Patties

• Turkey Bacon (nitrate & nitrite-free)

• USDA Organic Chicken Breasts

R E F R I G E R A T E D / F R O Z E N

• Unsweetened coconut or almond milk

• Ezekiel bread

• Lactose-free plain yogurt

• Pasture-raised eggs

• Hummus

• Optional: Dairy-free cheese

O T H E R

• Vegan Pesto (or the ingredients to make it: 2 cups fresh basil, pine nuts, garlic cloves, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, extra virgin olive oil)