Putting together a healthy meal is simple with a bit of research and planning. You can find a variety of resources to help you create healthy meals that give you the proper calories and nutrients you need. For example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Dietary Guidelines for Adults provides specific daily calorie numbers based on your age, sex and activity levels. Nutrition labels let you see the calories per serving and nutrient amounts in packaged foods and drinks. Online calorie calculators, such as the one at LIVESTRONG.COM's MyPlate, help you find calories in a variety of foods, and help you plan personal goals.
Planning
You can plan your meals individually, trying to balance the carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals you need a meal at a time, or you can plan your day's meals and snacks, balancing your needs over the course of day. One method of planning meals is the Create a Plate method, also called the plate method, which divides your plate by food types. One-half of your plate should contain nonstarchy fruits and vegetables. One-fourth of your plate should contain lean protein, while the other fourth can contain starchy carbohydrates, such as potatoes, rice, bread or pasta. You can also use the USDA's healthy eating pyramid to create a diet based on percentages of nutrients.
Breakfast
Traditional breakfast favorites, such as bacon, sausage and eggs, are high in saturated fat and cholesterol. Pancakes and waffles made from refined flour and slathered in butter and syrup are also unhealthy choices. Choose whole-grain bagels with a nonfat butter substitute or whole-grain pancakes or waffles, topped with fresh fruit or a pat of butter. Use egg whites for omelets or egg substitutes for scrambles. Serve lean meat, such as ham or turkey bacon. Oatmeal is high in cholesterol-fighting dietary fiber, while many cold cereals are fortified with vitamins and minerals. Balance the carbs in cereal with low-fat or fat-free milk.
Lunch
Make traditional sandwiches and salads healthier with substitutions. Try turkey burgers, made with ground turkey breast meat, and sweet potato fries that you bake, not deep-fry. Avoid meat toppings on pizza, which cause saturated fats, cholesterol and calories to soar. Use whole grains for pizza crusts and moderate amounts of low-fat cheeses. Use a fat-free mayonnaise for chicken salad, and add raisins, celery and walnuts for more nutrition. Serve it in a lettuce cup, rather than bread, to reduce calories. Skip the cheese, meat and fatty salad dressings, adding seeds and nuts for crunch. Grocery stores carry a variety of low-calorie, low-fat dressings.
Dinner
Start with a cup of fat-free soup to help increase your eating time in an attempt to reduce your overall calories. It can take 15 minutes or longer for the hormones that alert your brain that your stomach is full to send that message, according to Dr. Thomas Friedman at his website, Good Hormone Health. Study participants who ate soup before their meals ate 20 percent fewer calories than those who didn't, found Penn State University researchers.
References
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration; How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label; November 2004
- Good Hormone Health; Dr. Friedman's Guide to Weight Management; Theodore C. Friedman, et al.
- Penn State Live; Eating Soup Will Help Cut Calories at Meal; April 2007
- American Diabetes Association: Create Your Plate
Member Comments