5 Day Plan

Back home from a fabulous dive trip in Indonesia and whilst its been great to be cooked for and all the meals were delicious, I’m happy to be back in my own kitchen and in control of what I’m eating. I’m not good at limiting myself when it comes to buffet food so I have a few kgs to shed before my next vacation in just 2 weeks! The fridge was empty upon my return but the freezer was stocked so I was able to have the first couple of days back grazing on vegetable lasagna and baked fish with vegetables, but then it was time to shop for some healthy fresh fruits and veggies. 

True to form before I headed to the supermarket I made a menu plan for my weeks meals, its just me here so no need to take into account Mr E’s wishes. I spent just 1500 Thai Baht (30GBP / 46$ / 43 Euro) for my groceries which I think will give me enough food for at least 2 weeks.

So here’s my 5 day menu plan:-

	Breakfast	Snack	Dinner
Day 1	Mango, kiwi fruit and banana smoothie	Apple	3 Salads – Cauliflower tabouleh ; grilled veg red cabbage, carrot, beetroot & orange
Day 2	2 mini fritata, chopped fresh tomatoes with basil, saute’d spinach	Apple , Kiwi fruit	Brown lentils and brown  rice with aubergine tagine
Day 3	Beetroot, Pineapple & apple blend	Carrot, Banana	Black bean crockets with yellow pepper couli, cauliflower mash & steamed broccoli
Day 4	Muesli & banana with Orange juice	Carrot, pineapple	Spiced skinless duck breast with rocket, red cabbage, herb and apple salad
Day 5	Raspberry, banana and kiwi smoothie	Tabouleh salad	Pumpkin coconut curry, chana massala and onion bhajis

Day 1 Salads

Many nutritionists believe that the correct ratio of carbohydrate, protein and fats is 70:15:15 and I tend to agree, given that fruits and veggies are carbs. So the key to my menu is ensuring I get at least “5-a-day” of fruits and veggies, typically I will eat at least 6-8 portions, whilst limiting my intake of starchy carbs such as potatoes, pasta, grains and breads. 

Mini Fritatas with tomatoes and spinach

I’m going for lean low fat proteins in the form of pulses (lentils, beans & peas) which also have carbs and plenty of healthy benefits. OK so duck breast is not so lean but with all fat removed it’s still pretty good.

Walnut and Orange dressing

Then the fats – well this comes predominantly from nuts and seeds that I use in the salads and dressings, but also extra virgin olive oil which is high in monounsaturated and low in saturated fat. I used a bit of butter in my cooking too but by avoiding bread I’m not tempted to slather it with butter and top with a wedge of cheddar. Eggs have both LDL and HDL so are a good option too. My dairy intake is limited to the semi-skimmed milk or natural yoghurt I use in the smoothies or on the muesli.

I’m also avoiding sugar, which is pretty easy for me as I don’t purchase ready meals or pre-done sauces where unnecessary sugar can lurk. But this also means no cakes or biscuits and also NO ALCOHOL!!! Yes a dry 2 weeks are ahead, but I’m sure it will be worth it.

I’m on day 2 of my plan and so far so good, I’m feeling healthy, sleeping well, I’ve been for a 6km run, I’m drinking lots of water and enjoying cups of mint and lemon teas during the day… so fingers crossed I stick to the schedule. When I get to day 5 I’ll check what I have in the fridge and make a new menu plan for the next 5 days.