These Smart Start menus are a good road map to putting it all together. You can follow them exactly or use them as an example and make adjustments.
Breakfast
1 poached egg,
1 slice whole wheat toast
1 cup fresh strawberries.
Total 217 calories
Mid-Morning Snack
Small Latte With Skim Milk
Get your creamy coffee fix as a healthy snack instead of part of your meal to save calories, and order your latte with skim milk and without sugary flavored syrups to cut even more. Hot beverages are satiating, and lattes are mostly milk, which is a good source of protein and calcium, a nutrient many people are lacking.
1 cup = 100 calories
lunch
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Chicken Lettuce Wraps are a popular item on restaurant menus. This scrumptious lighter version you can make at home has all the punch of the original but with far fewer calories and much less fat and sodium.
Calories: 298 Total Fat: 9 g Saturated Fat: 2 g Cholesterol: 80 mg Sodium: 495 mg Total Carbohydrate: 34 g Dietary Fiber: 5 g Protein: 27 g
Afternoon Snack
One Half-Cup of Cottage Cheese With Cucumbers
One-percent cottage cheese has about 84 calories in a half-cup serving. Pair it with a serving of crunchy cucumbers slices at 8 calories each, and you have yourself one delicious healthy snack that’s high in nutrition. Cottage cheese is a good source of protein, and cucumbers are rich in water, which means they fill you up without a lot of calories.
Total = 92 calories
Edamame Lo Mein
This one is a keeper from a nutritional point of view. It has red or orange veggies, legumes, whole grains, and enough protein to be a main dish. This also vegetarian recipe also calls for low-sodium soy sauce, which keeps your salt intake down. If you’re new to edamame, look for bagged, shelled, raw edamame in the freezer section of many grocery stores for easy preparation.
Calories: 417, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 569mg, Dietary Fiber: 13g, Total Fat: 13g, Carbs: 60g,
Cholesterol: 0mg, Protein: 18g Carb Choices: 3
After Dinner Snack
Kale Chips
These crispy, crunchy chips are great way to get your family to eat a powerhouse veggie. Words of warning — they’re incredibly addictive!
Calories: 35, Total Fat: 0.5 g, Saturated Fat: 0 g Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 150 mg, Total Carbohydrate: 7 g Dietary Fiber: 1 g, Protein: 2 g Total Daily Calories = 1,159
