Putting It All Together

Your 7-day healthy-eating weight-loss plan

To be successful at weight loss in the long run, you need to change your daily habits and use strategies that allow you to adapt to a variety of situations, as we outline in our January, 2007 story "3 Secrets to a Successful Diet." Still, when you're just starting out, some of you might find it helpful to have a day-by-day plan showing you exactly what to eat. We asked Connie Guttersen, Ph.D., R.D., author of the best-selling Sonoma Diet and Sonoma Diet Cookbook and a consultant to the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in Napa, California, to develop a seven-day diet of delicious and satisfying meals. Each day provides 1,500 to 1,700 calories. Recipes are supplied for some of the meals; click on the highlighted dishes for all the details. If you don't like a particular food, feel free to swap dishes around or to have a favorite meal more than once.

Day 1

Breakfast
cup steel-cut oatmeal and 1 cup nonfat or 1% milk
cup berries

Lunch
2 cups tomato soup
3 cups greens with 2 tablespoons olive oil-based dressing
cup lowfat cottage cheese
1 piece fruit

Dinner
Cilantro Chicken With Peanuts
cup red or wild rice
1 cup roasted red bell peppers with 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Snacks
10 almonds
1 ounce cheese with 1 cup sliced raw veggies



Day 2

Breakfast
Omelet (combine two eggs and your favorite veggies)
1 slice of whole-grain toast with 1 tablespoon peanut or almond butter

Lunch
3 ounces herb-rubbed chicken, served with 2 cups baby salad greens, canned white beans, pine nuts, artichoke hearts, and 1 tablespoons dressing made with extra-virgin olive oil
whole-wheat pita
1 apple


Dinner
Marinated Flank Steak
1 cups sauteed broccoli, roasted peppers, and ounce goat cheese
cup wild rice

Snacks
cup fruit
1 ounce part-skim mozzarella cheese


Day 3

Breakfast
1 scrambled egg
1 slice Canadian bacon
1 piece whole-grain toast

Lunch
cup multigrain penne pasta tossed with broccoli, garlic, and olive oil. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper, Parmesan cheese, or both
2 cups salad greens tossed with 1 tablespoons of dressing made with olive oil
1 piece fruit

Dinner
Broiled Spice-Rubbed Salmon
cup quinoa
2 tomatoes roasted in the oven, drizzled with olive oil, and sprinkled with parsley and ground pepper

Snacks
10 almonds
cup lowfat cottage cheese and cup berries


Day 4

Breakfast
1 cup whole-grain cereal
1 cup lowfat milk
cup berries

Lunch
Spinach Panini

Dinner
Indian-Style Curried Chicken
1 cup sauteed vegetables
cup brown rice or multigrain pasta
Snack
cup hummus with 1 cup raw veggies


Day 5

Breakfast
Omelet (made with two eggs and your favorite veggies)
1 slice of whole-grain toast with 1 tablespoon peanut or almond butter

Lunch
1 whole-wheat wrap with greens, lowfat vanilla yogurt, and grilled chicken (you can use chicken left over from previous day)
1 piece fruit

Dinner
Grilled Beef With Chimichurri Sauce
1 cup roasted green beans
cup wild or red rice

Snacks
1 piece fruit
1 ounce part-skim mozzarella cheese


Day 6

Breakfast
Omelet (made with two eggs and your favorite veggies)
1 slice whole-grain toast

Lunch
Thai Roast Beef Lettuce Rolls
1 ounce peanuts
cup buckwheat noodles
1 piece fruit with a few tablespoons of plain yogurt for dipping

Dinner
Pork Chop With Black-Bean Salsa
3 cups spinach with 1 tablespoons olive oil-vinaigrette

Snacks
1 piece fruit
4 whole-wheat crackers spread with goat cheese
1 tablespoon hummus with raw veggies


Day 7

Breakfast
Wrap (2 scrambled eggs, your favorite veggies, and 2 tablespoons shredded cheese wrapped in a whole-wheat tortilla)

Lunch
2 cups minestrone soup
3 cups mixed greens with 1 tablespoon olive-oil dressing
1 piece fruit

Dinner
Broiled Halibut With Balsamic Glaze
1 cup roasted vegetables
cup quinoa

Snacks
cup soy nuts
1 piece fruit
6 ounces lowfat yogurt or 1 ounce part-skim mozzarella cheese