A nutritional diet can provide the essential elements for health and still stay within 1,500 calories by limiting oils, carbohydrates and proteins. To maintain your weight at the 1,500-calorie mark, the nutritionists at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Mass., suggest a nutritious, low-fat diet. It offers daily selections from the grain, vegetable, fruit, oil, milk and protein healthy food groups.
Breakfast Menu
Plenty of flavor takes the place of food quantity in a nutritional diet breakfast. Cantaloupe (half of one fruit) offers substantial potassium and Vitamin A and Vitamin C. Whole wheat toast (one slice) represents a grain group serving rich in fiber and B vitamins. Spread with 2 tsp. almond butter because it is enhanced with calcium, Vitamin E and protein. Get more calcium and Vitamin D from non-fat coffee yogurt (1 cup) or a serving of non-fat milk (1/2 cup).
Lunch Suggestion
Vitamin-rich minestrone soup (1 cup) is packed with healthy foods, such as tomatoes, spinach, zucchini, kidney beans and garbanzo beans. Accompany the soup with a sandwich made from two slices of whole wheat bread, two slices of tomato, 1 oz. low-fat mozzarella cheese and 1 tsp. yellow mustard. Sparkling water or unsweetened tea are zero-calorie beverages that will not add to your dietary count.
Sample Dinner
The swordfish in this sample dinner helps satisfy the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) suggestion to eat fish twice weekly for its omega-3 fatty acids. An equal amount of salmon or trout may be substituted for the swordfish to get the same benefits. A 1,500-calorie diet includes these simply prepared healthy foods for dinner: 1 cup salad greens dressed with olive oil and vinegar (1 tbsp. each), 4-oz. broiled swordfish, one baked sweet potato, five mushrooms, 1/2 cup cooked asparagus.
Nutritious Snacks
Snacks are healthy foods when they provide needed nutrients. Choose snacks and desserts such as nuts, fruit, whole-grain crackers and fruit. For instance, the 1,500 calorie plan still has room for 1 oz. peanuts or cashews, ½ cup unsweetened strawberries and two whole-grain crackers spread with 2 tsp. peanut butter and a 1/2 cup non-fat milk. Use them as snacks or dessert, whenever you are hungry during the day. These provide healthy fats and essential vitamins and minerals.
Nutrient Facts
Any nutritional diet should draw less than 35 percent of its calories from fat. It should be a daily source of fiber, protein and essential vitamins and minerals. This nutritional diet sample menu meets those requirements. It totals 1,536 calories, with 34 percent of calories from fat (59.5 g).
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