The best way to ensure blood sugar and nutritional balance, and to keep from feeling hungry, is to spread your meals and snacks throughout the day.
Try to eat something nutritious every 3 hours or so. Most or all of your calories are best consumed from breakfast through supper. If you follow this system you won’t have many calories, if any, left for the evening, though, so choose nutrient dense foods that are filling and a good source of fiber whenever possible.
Eating small meals helps keep the metabolism running smoothly, which assists in burning fat also. Mini meals also provide a steady influx of important nutrients. Here are some sample plans (with calories listed by each feature) of how your calorie breakdown might work.
MINI MEALS FOR BREAKFAST:
2 Whole Wheat Blueberry Pancakes (178)
1/2 Tbsp. Land O’Lakes Light Butter made in part with Canola Oil (25)
2 Tbsp. Light Syrup (48)
4 oz. Orange Juice (52)
303 calories total
1 Large Egg Scrambled w/2 tsp. butter (137 *)
1 Slice Whole Wheat Bread (90)
1/2 Tbsp. Jam (25)
4 oz. Orange Juice (52)
294 calories total
*Or choose to use 1/4 cup (4 Tbsp.) of an Egg Substitute for fewer calories–about 30 calories for the egg and 67 calories for 2 tsp. butter totaling 97 calories for the scrambled eggs.
That brings the total calories to 254 giving you a chance to add 1/2 glass of milk or some low fat yogurt (about 40-50 calories) to add some protein and calcium to round out the nutritional balance.]
MINI MEALS FOR LUNCH:
1 cup Vegetable Soup by Health Valley (55)
1/2 Sandwich (or have an open-faced sandwich with one slice of bread):
1 Slice 100% Whole Wheat Bread (90)
6 Slices Honey Ham (70)
1 Slice Reduced Fat Mozzarella Cheese (60)
1 tsp. Mustard (60)
1 Slice Tomato (13)
291 total calories
1 Martha’s Vineyard Salad from Arby’s (277)
4 oz. Skim Milk (40)
317 total calories
MINI MEALS FOR SUPPER:
1 cup Four-Cheese Whole Wheat Ravioli (256)
1/4 cup Low Sodium Marinara Pasta Sauce (20)
1/2 cup Steamed Broccoli (26)
302 Total Calories
1 Spa Lean Cuisine Classics Salmon with Basil (230)
8 oz. Skim Milk (80)
310 Total Calories
MINI MEALS FOR SNACKS:
1 oz. (about 1/4 cup or 28 nuts) whole natural plain
almonds (170)
1 medium Apple (80)
1 small square of Dark Chocolate (50)
300 Total Calories
1 cup Low-fat 1% Cottage Cheese (160)
(1/2 cup 2% Cottage Cheese has about 100 calories)
1/2 cup blueberries (41)
Drizzle a LITTLE (1 Tbsp.) real maple syrup over blueberry-topped cottage cheese (50)
2 Whole Grain Crackers (such as Crispbread Rye Crackers) (72)
293 Total Calories
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