7-Day Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan for a Healthy Gut

In past years, US News & World Report has ranked the Mediterranean diet as the best overall diet. Additionally, in 2024, the Mediterranean diet took the top spots for best diet for bone and joint health, best family-friendly diet, easiest diet to follow, best heart-healthy diet and best diet for healthy eating. Did.

The principles of the Mediterranean diet are simple: eat more fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fatty fish and whole grains while eating less saturated fat and added sugar. Research shows that following this diet reduces the risk of metabolic syndrome, obesity, type 2 diabetes, certain types of cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases.

Having a healthy gut microbiome also has many of these benefits. Data has shown that in addition to helping with constipation and digestion, good gut bacteria may help improve mood, sleep, and heart health.

Additionally, both a healthy microbiome and the Mediterranean diet have been linked to helping maintain a healthy weight.

To help you increase your good gut bacteria and reap the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet, we've created this seven-day meal plan filled with foods that follow both diets. Additionally, we set this meal plan at 1,500 calories, a level that will cause most people to lose weight, but adjustments to 1,200 and 2,000 calories are also listed if you need more or fewer calories. Feel free to modify it to suit your calorie needs.

Foods to Watch Out for

Contrary to what you may believe, you do not have to eat traditional foods from the Mediterranean region when following the Mediterranean diet. Foods from these groups can fit into this diet.

Mediterranean-diet foods:

• herbs and spices
• Fruit
• vegetables
• healthy fats, such as olive oil or avocado oil
• Nuts including natural nut butters
• Seeds (chia, pumpkin, flax and more)
• fish
• eggs
• Meat
• poultry
• Legumes (chickpeas, pinto beans, lentils and more)
• dairy, including cheese, yogurt, and kefir
• Whole grains (bulgur, farro, fonio, freekeh, couscous, rice and more)

Gut-Healthy Food:

Probiotics are foods that contain healthy gut bacteria, while prebiotics are foods that nourish the good gut bacteria. These foods are naturally high in but are not limited to these lists.

Probiotic Rich Foods:

• Curd
• kefir
• miso
• sour cabbage
• kimchi
• tempeh
• Kombucha

Prebiotic Rich Foods:

• Garlic
• Leeks, especially the green part
• asparagus
• artichoke
• bananas
• sea ​​kelp
• Jerusalem artichoke
• dandelion greens
• Soybean
• mushroom
• Oat

How to prepare your week's meals:

1. Bake banana protein muffins for breakfast on days two and three and breakfast on day four.
2. On the evening of day three, prepare two servings of Creamy Blueberry-Pecan Overnight Oatmeal for breakfast on days four and five.
3. Make Everything Bagel Crispy Chickpeas for breakfast on days 6 and 7.

day 1

Breakfast (249 calories)

AM Snack (211 calories)

• 3/4 cup blueberries
• 3 tablespoons roasted, unsalted cashews

Lunch (439 calories)

PM Snack (163 calories)

• 2 tbsp hummus
• 1 cup chopped cucumber
• 2 tbsp walnut halves

Dinner (429 calories)

Meal-Prep Tip: Save a serving of Charred Shrimp, Pesto and Quinoa Bowls for lunch tomorrow.

Daily Yoga: 1,491 calories, 67 g protein, 168 g carbohydrate, 29 g fiber, 70 g fat, 1,397 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Do not include cashews in your AM snack and hummus and walnuts in your PM snack.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 hard-boiled eggs to breakfast, increase to 1 cup blueberries and 1/3 cup cashews at breakfast, increase to ¼ cup hummus and ¼ cup walnuts at afternoon snack, add 2 servings of creamy dill yogurt sauce at dinner. .

second day

Breakfast (254 calories)

AM Snack (208 calories)

Lunch (429 calories)

PM Snack (101 calories)

Dinner (504 calories)

Meal-Prep Tip: Save a serving of Charred Shrimp, Pesto and Quinoa Bowls for lunch tomorrow.

Daily Yoga: 1,496 calories, 81 g protein, 177 g carbohydrate, 27 g fiber, 58 g fat, 1,533 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Skip the orange at breakfast, replace your AM snack with 1 cup of air-popped popcorn, and reduce your PM snack by ½ pear.

Make it 2,000 calories: Include 2 hard-boiled eggs at breakfast, add ¼ cup slivered almonds to the AM snack, and add 2 ounces of low-fat cheddar to the PM snack.

day 3

Breakfast (373 calories)

AM Snack (173 calories)

• 1 cup raspberries
• 1 ounce low-fat cheddar cheese
• 3 tbsp peeled pistachios

Lunch (353 calories)

PM Snack (200 Calories)

Dinner (408 calories)

Daily Yoga: 1,506 calories, 84 g protein, 164 g carbohydrate, 41 g fiber, 64 g fat, 1,916 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Eliminate the clementines at breakfast and reduce the kefir to half a cup, reduce the edamame to half a cup at the PM snack, and eliminate the baguette at dinner.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 scrambled eggs at breakfast, increase to 1 1/2 cups raspberries at the AM snack, add 2 servings of creamy dill yogurt sauce at lunch, increase to 2 cups edamame at the PM snack and up to 2 slices baguette at dinner. Increase.

day 4

Breakfast (291 calories)

AM Snack (176 calories)

• 1 medium apple
• 2 tbsp walnut halves

Lunch (430 calories)

PM Snack (193 calories)

Dinner (411 calories)

Meal-Prep Tip: Save one serving of Lentil Salad with Feta, Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Olives for lunch tomorrow.

Daily Yoga: 1,501 calories, 80 g protein, 162 g carbohydrate, 26 g fiber, 63 g fat, 1,394 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Decrease the AM snack by 1 tablespoon of walnuts, skip the chicken at dinner, and replace the PM snack with 1 small banana.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 tablespoons peanut butter to breakfast, increase it to ¼ cup walnuts in the AM snack, add 1 ounce of dark chocolate in the PM snack and increase to 4 ounces of chicken at dinner.

day 5

Breakfast (291 calories)

AM Snack (210 calories)

• 1 medium banana
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter

Lunch (368 calories)

PM Snack (206 calories)

• ¼ cup roasted, unsalted almonds

Dinner (414 calories)

Daily Yoga: 1,489 calories, 86 g protein, 147 g carbohydrate, 24 g fiber, 67 g fat, 1,580 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Skip peanut butter in the AM snack and replace the PM snack with ½ small pear.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 tablespoons peanut butter to breakfast, add ½ whole wheat pita to lunch, increase to 5 tablespoons almonds to PM breakfast and add 1 ounce dark chocolate to dinner.

day 6

Breakfast (311 calories)

AM Snack (301 calories)

• 1 large pear
• 22 roasted, unsalted almonds

Lunch (333 calories)

PM Snack (220 calories)

Dinner (330 calories)

Daily Yoga: 1,494 calories, 63 g protein, 168 g carbohydrate, 24 g fiber, 68 g fat, 2,384 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Avoid English muffins for breakfast, almonds for AM snack and reduce to ¼ pita at dinner.

Make it 2,000 calories: Increase to 1 whole English muffin at breakfast, add 1/2 cup kimchi and 2 tablespoons chopped peanuts at lunch, add 2 servings of chickpeas as a PM snack, and increase to 1 whole pita at dinner.

day 7

Breakfast (296 calories)

AM Snack (121 calories)

• 3/4 cup plain low-fat kefir
• 1 teaspoon chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon honey

Lunch (488 calories)

1 serving Crispy Smoked Tofu and Coleslaw Wraps

PM Snack (220 calories)

Dinner (383 calories)

Daily Yoga: 1,508 calories, 77 g protein, 141 g carbohydrate, 25 g fiber, 66 g fat, 2,473 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Eliminate the honey and chia seeds from the AM snack and reduce the kefir to ¼ cup and replace the PM snack with ½ cup air-popped popcorn.

Make it 2,000 calories: Include 1 large banana at breakfast, increase the AM snack to 1 cup kefir, 2 teaspoons chia seeds and 2 teaspoons honey, increase the PM snack to 2 servings of chickpeas and include 1 hard-boiled egg at dinner.