Seven More Sample Menus for a 1400 Calorie Diet

Seven More Sample Menus for a 1400 Calorie Diet

About two months, and 14 pounds ago, I published a week’s worth of sample menus for my 1400 calorie, low-sodium, and low-fat diet. I am now 3.35 pounds away from my goal, 159 pounds. When I reach it, I will have lost a total of 51.25 pounds since I started this project January 3, 2007. My blood pressure is consistently low normal without medication and I have made working out at the fitness center a normal part of my life. My sample menus are not carefully prepared and balanced by a dietitian; they are literally what I ate on a given day to meet the requirements of my less than 1400 calorie, less than 20 % of calories from fat, less than 1500 mg of sodium, diet.

Since then, aside from the main page, the page with my sample menus has become the most popular on my blog. I wondered how my diet had changed, I’ve come up with a number of new recipes, and thought some might find an update of more sample menus useful. My low sodium chili, Joel’s chili 3, remains a staple in my weekly menus but I don’t need to serve it over brown rice or pasta as much as I did at first. Eating 4-7 times per day was something I did right, right from the beginning. I have learned that it keeps my metabolism up. Chocolate or strawberry low fat frozen yogurt has become something I eat regularly and something I look forward to as a reward for making smart choices during the day.

A lot of dieters talk about reaching a plateau where they keep doing the same things but their weight loss stops. I have never had that happen on my diet and I attribute that to my 3-4 day a week habit at the fitness center, and the fact that I eat throughout the day.

I am not a trained nutritionist, and my only criteria for selecting these foods for my own diet are those of calorie, sodium, and reduced fat. My personal goals in addition those previously-mentioned are: 78-158 g protein, 30-38 g fiber, and less than 300 mg cholesterol. Your recommended diet may be very different. I only offer these menus to share what I have eaten on given days while staying loyal to my diet.

Monday

Breakfast: ¼ pound extra lean ground beef (96/4) in ½ whole wheat pita with 1 t. mustard (left over from the night before, I was in a hurry)

Snack: 10 white seedless grapes

Lunch: 1 cup Joel’s chili 3,

Snack: 25 white seedless grapes

Dinner: 4 fish tacos, including 4 oz. wild salmon, 4 small corn tortillas heated in dry skillet, 1 thin slice of Swiss cheese (mozzarella or non-fat cheddar is better), lemon juice, and green taco sauce; 2/3 C steamed corn, 9 Brussels sprouts, and a garden salad with 2 C mixed greens, 1/3 C grape tomatoes, and 3 T Joel’s salad dressing .

Dessert: 1 cup low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: 1 small bag 94% fat-free popcorn

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1348.79, Protein: 64.77, Carbohydrates: 216.22 g, Fiber: 35.42 g, Fat: 27.38 g, Percent calories from fat: 18.27%, Saturated fat: 11.17 g, Cholesterol: 166.48 g, Sodium: 1026.42 mg.

Tuesday

Breakfast: 1.5 cup old-fashioned oatmeal with 1 T brown sugar, .5 oz. raisins, 1 T flax seed meal, and 1 t. cinnamon.

Snack: small banana

Lunch: tuna salad, very low sodium tuna, non-fat mayonnaise, onions, pickles relish, in ½ whole wheat pita

Snack: small banana

Dinner: Chicken tenders and tofu in sweet sour stir fry with.25 C pineapple, ¾ C broccoli stir fry, .1 package light firm tofu-baked, 1 T sweet-sour sauce. ½ C brown rice, 2 C grilled summer squash and sweet onions, 1 serving steamed spinach (about 4 C raw).

Dessert: ¾ C low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: 1 Ry-Krisp sesame cracker

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1284, Protein: 58.21, Carbohydrates: 230.9 g, Fiber: 34.37 g, Fat: 19.13 g, Percent calories from fat: 12.8%, Saturated fat: 25.62 g, Cholesterol: 122.5 g, Sodium: 589.72 mg.

Wednesday

Breakfast: 4 oz blueberry all-natural yogurt

Snack: small banana

Lunch: 1.5 C Joel’s chili 3

Snack: 4 oz blueberry all-natural yogurt

Dinner: Healthy Choice Lemon Pepper Fish dinner, 9 Brussels sprouts, 3 Ry-Krisp sesame crackers and a garden salad with 2 C mixed greens, 1/3 C grape tomatoes, sweet onion, and 2 T Vidalia onion fat-free dressing.

Dessert: 1 cup low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: ½ whole wheat pita with 1 T low-fat mozzarella cheese

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1345.04, Protein: 54.74, Carbohydrates: 260.88 g, Fiber: 40.74 g, Fat: 18.01 g, Percent calories from fat: 12.05%, Saturated fat: 59 g, Cholesterol: 88.13 g, Sodium: 1319.72 mg.

Thursday

Breakfast: Egg white omelet with .5 C Egg Beaters, steamed spinach, sweet onion, 1 T non-fat cheddar cheese, and 3 T red bell pepper.

Snack: None

Lunch: ¾ C Joel’s Chili 3

Snack: 4 oz strawberry all-natural yogurt

Dinner: 1 serving (4 oz. chicken) stuffed chicken breasts, 1 C baked sweet potato, 2/3 C steamed mixed vegetables, and a garden salad with 2 C mixed greens, 1/3 C grape tomatoes, sweet onion, and 2 T Vidalia onion fat-free dressing

Dessert: 1 cup low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: none

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1276.85, Protein: 86.88, Carbohydrates: 195.52 g, Fiber: 29.16 g, Fat: 18.62 g, Percent calories from fat: 13.12%, Saturated fat: 74.19 g, Cholesterol: 119.7 g, Sodium: 1168.62 mg.

Friday

Breakfast: Egg white omelet with 1/3 C egg whites, 3 mushrooms-chopped, sweet onion, 1 T non-fat cheddar cheese, and 3 T red bell pepper.

Snack: 4 oz strawberry all-natural yogurt

Lunch: 1/2 whole wheat pita with ¼ pound extra lean ground beef (96/4) and mustard

Snack: 1 medium orange

Dinner: 1.5 cups no-yolks noodles, 1.5 cups chicken cacciatore, and 1 serving steamed spinach (about 4 C raw).

Dessert: 1.5 C low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: 1 medium orange

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1371.3, Protein: 75.7, Carbohydrates: 216.45 g, Fiber: 35.43 g, Fat: 20.64 g, Percent calories from fat: 11%, Saturated fat: 6.22 g, Cholesterol: 183.75 g, Sodium: 729.35 mg.

Saturday

Breakfast: ½ C GoLean Crunch cereal, 1/3 C skim milk, ¼ C wild blueberries.

Snack: None

Lunch: 1 C lima bean, portobello mushroom, barley soup, 1/8 pound extra lean ground beef (96/4) in ½ whole wheat pita

Snack: ¼ cantaloupe

Dinner: 1 serving baked salmon in dill sauce on steamed spinach, with 4 corn tortillas, and 2/3 C steamed corn.

Dessert: 1 C low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: ¼ cantaloupe and 1 small bag 94% fat-free popcorn

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1310.17, Protein: 61.15, Carbohydrates: 238.94 g, Fiber: 49.47 g, Fat: 21.55 g, Percent calories from fat: 14.81%, Saturated fat: 6.5 g, Cholesterol: 102.5 g, Sodium: 906.92 mg.

Sunday

Breakfast: Egg white omelet with 1/3 C egg whites, 3 shiitake mushrooms-chopped, sweet onion, 1 T non-fat cheddar cheese, 3 T red bell pepper, and 1 T mild salsa.

Snack: 4 oz strawberry all-natural yogurt

Lunch: 2 Joel’s healthy enchiladas, 1/3 C Joel’s chili 3,

Snack: 3 oz. baby carrots, ¾ C GoLean Crunch

Dinner: 3 oz. roasted skinless boneless chicken breast in ½ whole wheat pita with secret sauce, 1 C steamed corn.

Dessert: 1 cup low-fat chocolate frozen yogurt

Snack: 1 medium orange, 5 Ritz low sodium crackers

Dietary Summary: Calories: 1349.82, Protein: 74.99, Carbohydrates: 216.57 g, Fiber: 28.6 g, Fat: 20.99 g, Percent calories from fat: 13.83%, Saturated fat: 6.58 g, Cholesterol: 135.8 g, Sodium: 1078.01 mg.

As you can see, I eat a lot for someone on a calorie, fat, and sodium restricted diet. But, I lose weight consistently, I have good energy, and I am seldom hungry.

Here is my recap for the last two days.

Daily Dietary Recap-6/1/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1349.68	90.86 g	228.62 g	957 mg	11.55 g	7.55%

Daily Dietary Recap-5/31/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1389.53	92.68 g	234.55 g	718.14 mg	12.43 g	7.51%

What Every Dieter Should Know about Metabolism: Eating Strategies for Increasing our Metabolism

This is Part 3 in the series, What Every Dieter Should Know about Metabolism. Part 1, Metabolism Basics, can be found here, and Part 2, The Role of Muscle, can be found here.

Our metabolism burns the most calories for the automatic body functions of breathing, maintaining our body temperature and circulating blood. Physical activity is the second biggest burner. There is even a special term for the physical activity we do when we aren’t exercising, non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). This refers to all the physical activities we do in the course of daily living such as talking, walking, sitting and shifting, fidgeting, and any other forms of movement that aren’t sleeping or eating. The balance of our caloric expenditure comes from the food we eat and what we drink. Even though what and how we eat is the smallest of the calorie-burning activities, we can influence how much is burned by the physical activities we do with our choices. In other words, the choices we make about foods and eating can turn up our metabolic thermostat.

How We Eat

If we are trying to lose weight, or maintain our current weight, we are probably avoiding foods with lots of calories and little nutritional value, empty calories. The only way we can affect the calories we burn is to increase our physical activity and to make wise choices about both how we eat and what we eat. We want to eat in such a way as to get our metabolism in high gear and we can do that by our choice of foods and by our patterns of eating

Eat frequently: All foods are thermogenic (metabolism enhancing and calorie-burning) so every time we eat, it turns our metabolism up. Eating 5-6 small meals or healthy snacks throughout the day without exceeding your total calorie goal enhances the thermogenic effect. Research shows that people who eat small frequent meals burn more calories. Frequent eating and snacking also helps to stabilize your blood sugar and give you more energy throughout the day.

Time your meals: If you time your meals and snacks about 3 hours apart and start your day with a good breakfast and follow your workout with a substantial meal you will maximize your workout and keep your metabolism busy burning calories throughout the day.

Eat Enough: Starvation diets don’t work because the body goes into survival mode and throttles the metabolic engine down. We need to eat enough to keep the metabolism going, but enough to keep the intake-expenditure equation working in favor of weight loss. The Mayo Clinic has a calculator to help you determine what your safe level of calories for weight loss is based on your height, current weight, age, and gender.

Food choices: Natural unprocessed protein foods such as lean beef, turkey, chicken, fish, and egg whites have a high thermal effect. Whole grains and beans metabolize more slowly (and require more energy to digest) than highly processed foods. Good examples of these are sweet potatoes, oatmeal, whole grains, beans, brown rice, and even potatoes. Fibrous foods such as greens and salad vegetables have a high thermal effect as well.

Vitamins and Minerals: Some vitamins and minerals play an important role in the metabolism of food and without them your metabolism won’t operate at peak efficiency.

The B-vitamins, especially B12 help to regulate your resting metabolic rate (RMR).I take a high potency multivitamin high in B complex three times per day.

The antioxidant effect of Vitamin C is also important in keeping your metabolism tuned up. Our cells may progressively undergo oxidative stress as we age and this may slow down our metabolism. Antioxidants can help fight the free radicals that are responsible for this. Some research shows that inadequate levels of vitamin C can reduce the body’s ability to burn fat. Vitamin C is widely available, inexpensive, and excess amounts are excreted, so there is no reason not to supplement with this important vitamin.

Chromium taken in trace amounts (it’s included in my multivitamin) can help with weight loss by improving the metabolism of sugars and carbohydrates. It has also been found helpful for stabilizing blood sugar levels in hypoglycemic and diabetics.

Calcium, green tea, coffee, and some other foods also boost our metabolism. But, that’s getting into tomorrow’s topic, thermogenic foods.

Here is my recap for yesterday.

Daily Dietary Recap-5/29/2007
Calories	Protein	Carbohydrates	Sodium	Fat	% Calories from Fat
1204.56	88.76 g	187.41 g	1105.94 mg	11.91 g	8.9%