If your goal is to lose weight, a meal plan can be a useful way to help.
Many people choose to take on a calorie-controlled diet to help them lose weight and manage their food intake. But it’s important to make sure it’s the right option for you first.
There are different types of vegetarian diets, but all vegetarians avoid eating meat, poultry, and fish. The most common type is a lacto ovo vegetarian diet, which includes dairy foods and eggs, and our menu plan is based on this.
With careful planning a vegetarian diet can be nutritionally adequate whatever your age.
Our 1,800 calorie vegetarian meal plan is both calorie and carb counted for your convenience, and contains at least five portions of fruit and veg per day.
Across the week we’ve calculated an average of around 1,800kcal per day to help you reach your goals. This meal plan is aimed at men who’d like to achieve gradual weight loss.
This is because the guideline daily amount for women is 2,000 calories a day compared to 2,500 for men. This means 1,800 calories for women is unlikely to achieve your desired weight loss goal.
We’ve included the value for fibre to help you make sure you are meeting your nutritional requirements. We know lots of people in the UK aren’t eating enough fibre, so it’s important to try and include good sources in your diet every day.
The recipes within this plan serve anywhere from 1-6 people. You can either reduce the quantities to serve as many people as needed or look at the chef’s tips to see if the recipe can be made in bulk and frozen for a later date. This will also help reduce waste.
Before you begin this meal plan
If you want to lose weight and keep it off, research shows that the best diet is one you can stick to. So, think about how the meal plan would fit in with your daily life and diabetes management. It is not easy starting the journey to losing weight, but remember there is support out there to help you.
Before starting any healthy eating programme, please read how to choose your meal plan to make sure you follow the plan that's right for you.
Please speak to your diabetes health care team before making significant changes to your diet.
This is especially important if you treat your diabetes with insulin or other diabetes medications that increase the risk of hypos. Reducing your carbohydrate intake and changes to your body weight may mean your medication needs adjusting.
Important points about this meal plan
- This meal plan has taken nutritional information from our recipes and the sixth edition of Carbs and Cals, unless otherwise stated.
- A mix of whole milk and semi-skimmed has been used, but please use whichever you prefer. Any dairy alternative should be unsweetened and fortified with calcium.
- These meal plans meet your recommended amount of fibre across the week. It's important to note that children under 16 years of age need less fibre than adults.
- These meal plans outline daily food intake, but it’s still important to remember to drink regular fluids. This includes plain water, plain milk, and tea or coffee without added sugar.
Disclaimer: every effort has been taken to make these meal plans as accurate as possible, but there will be some variation in nutritional values. Speak to a dietitian or your diabetes healthcare team if you have questions about your individual dietary needs.
Your 1,800-calorie vegetarian meal plan
You can also download our 1,800 calorie vegetarian meal plan as a pdf (PDF, 86KB), which contains a full breakdown of the nutritional information per day.
Monday
Breakfast: Porridge made with uncooked oats, 250ml whole milk and a pear
Lunch: Cheese omelette paired with salad made of four cherry tomatoes, rocket leaves, cucumber and 20g of walnuts
Dinner: Roasted cauliflower, paneer and chickpea curry with boiled spinach
Pudding: 125g plain Greek-style yogurt and 80g raspberries
Snacks: 30g portion of almonds, portion of blueberries, healthy hummus with sliced peppers and a portion of spicy roasted chickpeas
Milk: 225ml semi-skimmed milk
Tuesday
Breakfast: No added sugar muesli with 200ml semi-skimmed milk and dried apricots
Lunch: Small jacket potato and half a tin of baked beans
Dinner: Mediterranean pasta salad with mixed salad leaves, sliced peppers and sliced boiled beetroot
Pudding: Rhubarb and ginger sponge with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Snacks: One apple and smooth peanut butter, plain Greek-style yogurt and raspberries, 20g portion of walnuts
Milk: 225ml whole milk
Wednesday
Breakfast: Two slices of rye bread with half an avocado, tomato and halloumi
Lunch: Mulligatawny soup with a wholemeal pitta bread
Dinner: Bean and mushroom enchiladas with rocket leaves
Pudding: Cantaloupe melon and 125g Greek yogurt
Snacks: One oatcake with smooth peanut butter, a fruit and nut bar, 10g plain walnuts
Milk: 225ml semi-skimmed milk
Thursday
Breakfast: Two wheat biscuits with 200ml semi-skimmed milk and a medium banana
Lunch: Two servings of warm lentil and goat’s cheese salad with a tablespoon of linseeds
Dinner: Aubergine and courgette parmesan bake with cooked couscous and broccoli
Pudding: One slice of malt loaf with vegetable oil-based spread
Snacks: 30g dried apricots, 30g almonds, 80g blueberries, 125g Greek yogurt and an orange
Milk: 225ml whole milk
Friday
Breakfast: Two poached eggs on two slices of medium granary toast, with vegetable oil-based spread
Lunch: Roast butternut squash and red lentil soup
Dinner: Portobello mushroom burgers and a baked sweet potato
Pudding: Warm exotic fruit salad and 125g Greek yogurt
Snacks: 10g walnuts, a banana, crispbread with cottage cheese and cherry tomatoes, three squares of dark chocolate and 80g raspberries
Milk: 225ml semi-skimmed milk
Saturday
Breakfast: No added sugar muesli with semi-skimmed milk and blueberries
Lunch: Goat’s cheese and roast vegetable ciabatta sandwich
Dinner: Vegetable chow mein
Pudding: Apple strudel and a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Snacks: One apple, portion of spicy roasted chickpeas, 125g plain Greek yogurt with cantaloupe melon and a tablespoon of linseeds*, 30g portion of walnuts
Milk: 225ml whole milk
Sunday
Breakfast: Banana porridge made with uncooked oats, whole milk, and a sliced medium banana
Lunch: A wholemeal pitta egg mayonnaise made with two boiled eggs and a tablespoon of light mayo, paired with tomato and cucumber
Dinner: Vegetable and chickpea tagine with cooked couscous and cooked spinach
Pudding: 30g plain walnuts
Snacks: One slice of malt loaf and an orange, cantaloupe melon and 125g Greek yogurt, three squares of dark chocolate and 40g raspberries
Milk: 225ml semi-skimmed milk
*This contains a source of Omega 3. Omega 3 fats are good for your health and are found in oily fish. Linseeds, pumpkin and chia seeds, nuts (especially walnuts), seeded breads and leafy green vegetables are all good vegetarian sources. When you need to use oil for cooking, try rapeseed or flaxseed oil, which are both rich in omega 3.
How much weight will I lose on this meal plan?
How much you lose from following this meal plan will vary depending on your age, weight, body composition, how active you are and more. Losing one to two pounds a week is a safe and realistic target for most people.
This BMI calculator is a useful tool that can tell you whether your current weight is within the healthy range and whether you need to consider losing some weight.
It is important to set yourself realistic goals for weight loss. Speaking to your healthcare team may be helpful starting point in setting a target that is achievable and can be maintained in the long term to help improve your health and diabetes management. Even small amounts of weight loss (around 5% body weight) can make a real difference.
It’s also important to combine a healthy diet with physical activity. This can increase the number of calories you burn each day, as well as having many other benefits to your physical and mental health.
Read more about exercise and diabetes.
