A Mini – Meal Menu Sampler for Weight Conscious People

It can be little daunting to figure out how to eat all day and still lose weight, so we asked Anne Dubner, R.D., a nutritionist in private practice in Houston, to put together a sampling of daily menus to show how satisfying mini-meals can be.

The trick to losing weight on mini-meals, she says, is to listen to your stomach. Eat when you start feeling a little hungry—don’t wait until you’re famished—and stop as soon as your hunger goes away, not when you’re stuffed. That way you’ll stay steadily satisfied.

Day One

Breakfast: Half of a whole-wheat bagel with pureed roasted peppers mixed with reduced-fat or fat-free cream cheese, an eight-ounce glass of skim milk, and ½ cup of blueberries

Snack: the other half of the bagel with roasted peppers

Lunch: Half of a turkey club sandwich (made with turkey breast, sliced tomato, and lettuce) and a mixed garden salad with one tablespoon reduced-fat Russian dressing

Snack: The other half of the sandwich

Dinner: Two cups of pasta primavera (made with rotini pasta, frozen mixed vegetables, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and one tablespoon of olive oil) and a slice of Italian bread topped with one teaspoon of reduced-fat margarine mixed with one teaspoon of each of crushed fresh garlic and grated Parmesan Cheese

Snack: An oatmeal raisin cookie

Day Two

Breakfast: One slice of raisin bread with one tablespoon of peanut butter and a four-ounce glass of orange juice

Snack: A reduced-fat fig bar and an eight-ounce glass of skim milk

Lunch: Half of a chicken salad pita sandwich (made with low-fat, cubed cooked chicken, toasted walnuts, raisins, small grapes, and honey) and one cup of raw vegetables such as baby carrots and celery.

Snack: The other half of the sandwich

Dinner: Cheese quesadilla (made with a fat-free flour tortilla, one tablespoon each of shredded reduced-fat Cheddar and hot-pepper Monterey Jack cheese, 1 ½ teaspoons of chopped canned green chili peppers, 1 ½ teaspoons of sliced black olives, and salsa, chili powder, and sliced scallions to taste) with ½ cup of white rice mixed with two tablespoons of salsa

Snack: Eight ounces of nonfat flavored yogurt with three graham crackers

Day Three

Breakfast: An English muffin with scrambled egg substitute, and orange wedge, and an eight-ounce glass of skim milk

Snack: A sandwich made with half of a banana and one tablespoon of peanut butter

Lunch: A small Greek salad (made with chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet red peppers, and onions, with feta cheese and a dressing of lemon juice and olive oil with oregano and garlic) and a slice of Italian bread

Snack: Six crackers with tuna salad (made with tuna, one tablespoon of reduced-fat mayonnaise, and a squirt of lemon juice)

Dinner: Potato skins (made with one quartered baked potato, 1 cup of shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese, some scallions or chives, and paprika) with ½ cup of steamed broccoli

Snack: Three cups of reduced-fat popcorn sprinkled with two teaspoons of Parmesan cheese