Your Inch-Dropping 7-Day 1500-Calorie Meal Plan

Whether you need to lose weight for health reasons, or you just want to shift a few pounds that have crept upon you, sticking to a regular calorie intake can help.

We have put together a 1500-calorie meal plan that will ensure that you get all of the vitamins, min-erals and calories that you need to stay healthy whilst still losing weight.

Depending on your current weight and your prior calorie intake, you could lose up to 2 pounds a week when reducing to 1500 calories a day.

Monday

Here at Remember Stuff we like to keep things as simple as possible on Mondays to ease us into the week. This simple but effective meal plan from diet.com will give your weekly weight-loss a head start.

Breakfast

• 1 packet high fiber oatmeal
• 2 hard boiled egg whites
• 1 cup cut fruit or 1 piece of fruit

Lunch - Tuna Sandwich (2 slices of 100% whole wheat light bread, 4 ounces of tuna fish, 1 tablespoon of light mayo)

• light string cheese
• 1/2 cup baby carrots
• 2 tablespoons hummus

Dinner - Chicken and Broccoli Pasta

• Chicken and broccoli
• 4 ounces chicken
• 1/2 cup broccoli
• 1 cup whole wheat pasta
• 2 cups garden salad
• 2 tablespoons light balsamic

Snacks

• Laughing Cow Cheese Wedge
• 19 Special K Crackers
• 6 ounces light yogurt
• 1 mini bag microwave popcorn

Total Calories 1,514

Tuesday

This fresh and tasty meal plan from About Help will give you a whole new outlook on dieting, as it is packed full of healthy meals and tasty treats.

Breakfast

• One slice of 100-percent whole grain toast with one tablespoon almond butter
• One hard-boiled egg
• One orange
• One cup plain coffee or tea as a beverage

Lunch

• Two slices 100-percent whole grain bread, two ounces sliced roast beef, one slice Swiss cheese, and one tablespoon mustard
• One-half cup sliced carrots
• One cup nonfat milk as a beverage

Dinner

• One three-ounce chicken breast fillet with two tablespoons salsa
• One cup cooked broccoli with lemon juice
• One-half cup cooked black beans
• One 100-percent whole wheat dinner roll with one teaspoon butter
• One small glass white wine as a beverage

Snacks

• One nectarine
• Several glasses of water
• Three-fourths cup plain yogurt with one tablespoon honey
• One-half cup blueberries
• Ten pecan halves
• One cup 100-percent grapefruit juice

Total Calories 1,498

Wednesday

This super healthy 1500 calories meal plan from Discover Good Nutrition will keep you on track and ward off the temptation of a mid-week treat.

Breakfast

• 1 cup of nonfat cottage cheese
• 1 cup of strawberries
• Sprinkle with cinnamon

Lunch - A large salad made up of:

• Leafy greens (lettuce, spinach)
• 1 cup of chopped mixed vegetables (carrots, peppers, tomato)
• 3 ounces of grilled chicken breast
• ½ cup of cooked white beans
• 2 tablespoons of reduced-calorie salad dressing
• 1 tangerine

Dinner

• 8 ounces of grilled salmon with lemon
• 2 cups of steamed green beans with garlic
• ½ cup of cooked brown rice
• Mixed leafy greens salad
• 2 tablespoons of reduced calorie salad dressing

Snacks

• 1 ounce of soy nuts
• Carrot and celery sticks

Total Calories 1500

Thursday

Woman Magazine has some great 1500 calorie or fewer recipes in their healthy eating section and we think that this one is just perfect.

Breakfast

• Two boiled eggs with two slices of toasted whole-wheat bread
• 7 ounce glass of strained orange juice

Lunch

• Betty Crocker Chicken BLT Salad

Dinner

• Sage and Onion Toad in the Hole

Snacks

• 1 packet of Original Pop-Chips
• 1 Satsuma orange
• 1 small container of low-fat yogurt

Total Calories 1,378

Friday

To finish off your working week, this Family Circle meal plan is packed full of great flavors and ex-citing dishes that are far from boring diet staples.

Breakfast

• 1 poached egg over a half of a whole wheat English muffin with 1 cup of sliced fennel sautéed in 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sliced basil and cracked black pepper.
• Serve with fresh peppermint tea (crush fresh leaves and steep in hot water).

Lunch

• 1 cup of cooked Israeli couscous tossed with 2 pitted and chopped dried plums
• 1/4 cup of diced red bell pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced red onion
• 1 tablespoon homemade vinaigrette
• 1 table-spoon toasted pine nuts.

Dinner

• 1 reduced-fat wholewheat tortilla, filled with 3 ounces of grilled shrimp
• 2 tablespoons of mashed avocado
• 1/4 cup of fresh bell pepper salsa (diced red bell peppers, red onion, and chili pepper with lime juice), and 1 cup of baby arugula.
• Follow with a cup of fresh peppermint tea.

Snacks

• 1 cup plain, nonfat Greek-style yogurt with 2 tablespoons roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds and 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 large wedge of cantaloupe melon with 2 slices (about 2 ounces) lower-sodium ham
• The oils in peppermint tea help to calm the digestive system. Drink it with, or after your meal

Total Calories, 1,501

Saturday

Treat yourself to a glass of wine and a spicy meal to make your Saturday night extra special.

Breakfast

• Acacia Breakfast Bowl
• 1 cup of pure orange juice

Lunch

• Easy Southwestern Veggie Wraps
• 1 ounce of natural yogurt with 1 cup of blueberries

Dinner

• Skinny Mexican Chicken Casserole, taken from Betty Crocker’s 1500 Calorie-a-day Cook-book, served with a simple baby leaf salad without dressing.
• Glass of wine

Snacks

• 1 banana
• 1 miniature box of raisins
• 1 brown rice cake with 1 Tbsp. sugar-free jam

Total Calories: 1,484

Sunday

We love this 1500 calorie meal plan from Fitness Magazine as it offers lots of variety and will leave you feeling fulfilled after every meal.

Breakfast

• Banana & Honey Smoothie
• 1 cup light vanilla soy milk
• 1 small banana
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1 tablespoon flaxseeds, ground

To Make: Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Lunch

• Tuna, Red Grapes & Walnuts on Greens
• 2 cups spring greens
• 3 ounces chunk light tuna
• 3 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup red grapes, cut in half
• 2 tablespoons low-fat vinaigrette dressing

To make: Top greens with tuna, walnuts, and grapes. Drizzle with vinaigrette.

Dinner

• Garlic-Basil Shrimp & Zucchini Pasta
• 1 cup whole-wheat pasta noodles
• 3 ounces frozen precooked and shelled shrimp, thawed
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

To Make: Cook pasta. Mix hot noodles with remaining ingredients

• Root Beer Float
• 1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt
• 12 ounces diet root beer

Snacks

• 1 cup of strawberries
• 7 almonds
• 1/4 apple

Total Calories 1,485

If you have been inspired by our suggested recipes, you can use the Remember Stuff search function to look for more low-calorie recipes that will keep your total intake1500 or less. Who says diet-ing has to be boring?