Jumpstart your new year with this five-day portion-focused meal plan from NYU expert nutritionist Lisa Young’s new book, “Finally Full, Finally Slim.”
Day one
Breakfast: Greek yogurt parfait
Serve 1 cup low-fat Greek yogurt (plain or vanilla) in a bowl or jar and top with a generous handful of pomegranate seeds, half an apple (diced) and a spoonful of slivered almonds or hemp seeds.
Lunch: Black bean burrito bowl with farro
Mix 1 cup of cooked farro with a palm-size portion of black beans, ¹/₂ cup of chopped bell peppers, ¹/₂ cup of cherry tomatoes and a big handful of spinach. Top with a hearty scoop of salsa and a tablespoon of shredded, part-skim mozzarella cheese. Toss with a tablespoon of balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
Snack: An apple with 1 to 2 teaspoons of nut butter
Dinner: Salmon with roasted veggies
Grill 5 ounces of salmon — about the size of two decks of cards. Toss ³/₄ cup each of Brussels sprouts and cauliflower, plus 1 sweet potato cut into 1 ¹/₂-inch chunks in 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Roast the veggies in a 400-degree oven and top with a dash of salt and pepper.
Day two
Breakfast: Apple-berry oatmeal
Top a half-cup of steel-cut oats (cooked in low-fat milk or unsweetened milk alternative) with ¹/₂ cup of blueberries and half a chopped apple. Top with cinnamon, vanilla extract and a sprinkle of chia seeds.
Lunch: Butternut-squash soup with barley and walnut salad
Warm up a coffee-mug size amount of low-sodium butternut-squash soup in the microwave or on the stove-top. (Look for the kind with little to no added sugar.) Serve it with two handfuls of salad greens topped with ¹/₂ cup of cooked barley, 2 tablespoons of chopped walnuts and a squeeze of lemon, plus a tablespoon of olive oil and your favorite type of vinegar.
Snack: Several cups of air-popped popcorn or a cup of fruit salad topped with 1 tablespoon of slivered almonds.
Dinner: Stir-fry
Grill 3 to 4 ounces of chicken breast. Saute 1 ¹/₂ cups of sauteed asparagus, carrots and broccoli in a tablespoon of olive oil or sesame oil. Add chicken, plus garlic, ginger and low-sodium soy sauce for extra flavor. Serve over a cup of wild rice.
Day three
Breakfast: Avocado toast
Melt one or two slices of part-skim Swiss cheese onto 1 or 2 slices of sprouted, whole-grain toast. Mash up ¹/₄ cup of ripe avocado with sliced tomato and parsley. Top toast with avocado mash and a pinch of salt and pepper. Enjoy with an orange or half of a grapefruit.
Lunch: Salmon salad
Load up a bowl with 2 handfuls of arugula. Top with half of a roasted acorn squash and 3 ounces of canned or grilled salmon, plus a generous handful of pomegranate seeds and another handful of cooked white beans. Dress with 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
Snack: A golf ball-size helping of hummus with baby carrots, jicama or sliced red pepper.
Dinner: Zucchini noodles and pasta with turkey meatballs or grilled tempeh
Mix a generous handful of cooked pasta with a generous handful of zoodles (zucchini noodles), sauteed in 1 tablespoon of olive oil for 2 minutes over high heat. Top with 4 turkey meatballs, 1 cup of sauteed or steamed cauliflower, 1 cup of sauteed or steamed broccoli and ¹/₂ cup of low-sugar marinara pasta sauce.
Day four
Breakfast: Veggie omelet
Coat skillet with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, heat to medium, then pour in 2 beaten eggs. Add a fistful of raw spinach, plus ¹/₄ cup each of sliced artichoke hearts and chopped mushrooms (sauteed in 1 teaspoon of olive oil), and cook, flipping in half once the eggs are set.
Lunch: Open-faced turkey sandwich
Toast a slice of whole-grain bread and spread with 2 small spoonfuls of Dijon mustard. Top with 2 or 3 slices of turkey, half of a sliced apple and a fistful of arugula.
Snack: Peanut butter spread over a banana and frozen
Dinner: Tuna niçoise salad
Put two handfuls of arugula in a bowl and top with a can of drained tuna, a handful of cherry tomatoes, 1 small potato (boiled and sliced thinly), a palm-sized amount of olives and fresh-squeezed lemon juice to taste.
![<strong>Quick tip:</strong> Make takeout work for you. Get your favorite indulgent takeout order, but also order a hefty vegetable dish. Cut the two dishes in half and either share or save the other half for leftovers. “One [half] is your favorite dish, like orange chicken, and one [half] is a healthy dish, like steamed vegetables,” Young says.](https://gamestartup.netlify.app/host-https-vip.nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2018/12/Weight-Loss-Side-Takeout-1a.jpg?quality=90&strip=all)
Day five
Breakfast: Whole-grain waffle
Toast 1 frozen whole-grain waffle and spread a spoonful of almond butter on it. Top with 1 cup of sliced strawberries.
Lunch: Cauliflower bowl
In ¹/₂ tablespoon of olive oil, saute 1 cup of riced cauliflower over high heat. In a separate pan, use the other ¹/₂ tablespoon of oil to saute a cup of mixed veggies such as snap peas, carrots, broccoli and onions, plus a deck-of-cards-sized portion of chicken. Finish with 2 teaspoons of low-sodium soy sauce or teriyaki sauce and serve over cauliflower rice.
Snack: Cored and halved apple, baked at 350 degrees for 10 minutes with cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg to taste, plus 1 tablespoon of walnuts.
Dinner: Skirt steak or tempeh
Grill a deck-of-cards-sized piece of steak or tempeh. Toss ¹/₂ cup of sweet potatoes (cut into dice-sized cubes) with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and roast in a 400-degree oven. Then serve with a handful of kale leaves massaged with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, plus a tablespoon of dried cranberries. Serve next to your grilled protein.
