I’ve been standing at the kitchen counter going through the crisper drawer, going over the contents, and my stomach is basically making the case for me: our garden gave us one more zucchini and a bag of peaches that we have no plan for. I’ve eaten summer vegetables this same way a lot of years now, and it’s exactly why I put this week of meals together — it turns the last of the late-summer produce into food that quietly keeps protein high, without feeling like a test.
I should be honest about where my head used to be. I used to think my mornings had to produce the perfect overnight oats, my plate was supposed to be a food-scale calculation, and one grilled chicken breast didn’t count unless I’d tracked it to the tenth of a gram. Then one day I got tired of being a number. I’ve got a lot of clients who arrived at my office the same way — which, if I’m being honest, is usually me. So when I built this plan, the brief I wrote myself was simple: real meals I’d cook over and over, leftovers built into the next day, and room for one evening out.
Why I keep coming back to protein
I’ve eaten this way for several years now, and the change isn’t dramatic — and that’s the point. I reach for fewer chips after lunch. I don’t swing as hard for a treat in the afternoon. If I used this to say I’m in a good place, that’s a small gain coming out of a past I don’t want back. Protein is what I put in the bowl first, not the thing I add as a refill. That’s it. 80/20 is enough.
If you want a way to plan your own week, think about your number in simple pieces. I plan about 120 grams of protein a day. Across three meals, that’s about 30 grams per plate. Add a snack and it’s another 10 to 30 grams. You don’t need a scale and an app to start, and if your number is different, you just adjust the math.
How the week works
Monday through Friday, breakfasts and lunches are built for one person; the dinners are for a family of four — which is basically us, no exaggeration. Plenty of these recipes split cleanly to give you two nights of dinner or a next-day lunch. My own cooking usually comes out that way too.
Aim for at least 1500 calories most days. There’s real wiggle room in there for coffee, fruit, snacks and a glass of wine. It’s not a one-size-fits-all number — your age, weight and goals all move it, and if you have a condition, or you want to add a lot of protein for a reason, your nutritionist or dietitian is the right person to ask. If you have kidney or liver disease, gout, a metabolic disorder, or reduced kidney function in later life, protein can be a constraint, not a goal. Talk to your doctor before you raise it a lot. And for WW friends: their 0-point foods list changes every year, so I build this around current points, and every recipe I link on my site is attached to the WW recipe builder — the points update themselves. Honest about where I am with the updates: the most recent 2018 onward has been getting refreshed, but the recipe builder covers anything I haven’t caught up on yet.
Your week, day by day
These are a guide, not a cage. Swap any meal for something you already love and the week holds together.
Week of August 24–30
Monday (8/24) — 1,445 calories, 120 g protein
- Breakfast: Meal Prep Breakfast Taco Scramble
- Lunch: Tuna White Bean Salad
- Dinner: Lasagna Roll Ups with Cottage Cheese, plus Arugula Salad
Tuesday (8/25) — 1,342 calories, 129 g protein
- Breakfast: Meal Prep Breakfast Taco Scramble
- Lunch: Tuna White Bean Salad
- Dinner: Slow Cooker Birria Tacos with Cilantro Lime Cauliflower Rice (make the recipe twice — it covers tonight and Wednesday’s leftovers)
Wednesday (8/26) — 1,222 calories, 127 g protein
- Breakfast: Meal Prep Breakfast Taco Scramble
- Lunch: Chicken Salad with Lemon and Dill on 1 slice whole grain bread
- Dinner: leftover Slow Cooker Birria Tacos from Tuesday
Thursday (8/27) — 1,181 calories, 126 g protein
- Breakfast: Meal Prep Breakfast Taco Scramble
- Lunch: Chicken Salad with Lemon and Dill on 1 slice whole grain bread
- Dinner: Quick Garlic-Lime Marinated Pork Chops with Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes and Grilled Zucchini
Friday (8/28) — 1,227 calories, 123.5 g protein
- Breakfast: Strawberry Banana Smoothie
- Lunch: Chicken Salad with Lemon and Dill on 1 slice whole grain bread
- Dinner: Fish Florentine and Orzo with Zucchini and Tomato
Saturday (8/29) — 675 calories, 51 g protein
- Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs plus 1 egg white with 2 slices bacon, 1 slice whole grain toast and 1 cup strawberries
- Lunch: Chicken Summer Rolls
- Dinner: out to eat
Saturday reads low on purpose. Dinner happens at a restaurant, so anything you want to add — a side, some fruit, a snack — bumps this right into the same band as the rest of the week.
Sunday (8/30) — 1,439 calories, 125 g protein
- Breakfast: Warm Peach Crisp Yogurt Bowls (double the recipe — it feeds us all morning)
- Lunch: Ahi Tuna Poke Stacks (double the recipe)
- Dinner: Buffalo Turkey Burgers with Blue Cheese Broccoli Slaw and Rainbow Potato Salad
A couple of notes before the list. Cooking volumes here are straightforward: the whole plan is built on the grocery list below, plus whatever high-protein snacks you keep in the house. And the week reads the way a supermarket does — rotisserie chicken, an 18-pack of large eggs, 93% lean ground chicken. If you shop in Canada, the UK or Europe, nearly everything converts; a few names shift and that’s expected.
The whole week is a normal week of home cooking: a slow cooker, an instant pot and the pans already in your cupboard cover every single dish.
The grocery list
Everything you need for the whole week, in the order I find it in a store. Add high-protein snacks on top if you still need to hit your number.
Produce
- 1 medium banana
- 4 medium peaches
- 1 (1-pound) package fresh strawberries
- 1 medium and 1 large lemon
- 7 medium limes
- 2 medium (6-ounce) Hass avocados
- 1 large head garlic
- 1 small shallot
- 2 medium cucumbers
- 1 small and 2 medium zucchini
- 1 small bunch celery
- 1 small carrot
- 1 pound baby gold or red potatoes
- 1 1/2 pounds multi-color potatoes
- 2 pounds Russet potatoes
- 1 small and 1 medium red bell pepper
- 2 medium heads cauliflower
- 1 small package tri-color coleslaw mix
- 1 small package broccoli slaw mix
- 1 (1-pound) clamshell or bag of baby arugula
- 1 (1-pound) clamshell or bag of baby spinach
- 1 large bunch scallions (about 9)
- 1 small bunch or container fresh dill
- 1 small bunch or container fresh mint
- 1 small bunch or container fresh basil
- 1 large bunch fresh cilantro
- 1 small bunch fresh Italian parsley
- 1 small plum tomato
- 1 small red onion
- 1 small and 1 medium yellow onion
Meat, Poultry and Fish
- 1 package center-cut bacon
- 1 rotisserie chicken
- 1 pound 93% lean ground chicken
- 1 pound 99% lean ground turkey
- 1 1/4 pounds 93% lean ground turkey
- 1 1/2 pounds raw sushi grade tuna
- 1 1/4 pounds (4) thick skinless white firm fish fillets — grouper, flounder, bass or halibut
- 1 1/4 pounds (4) boneless pork chops
- 2 1/2 pounds beef pot roast or chuck roast
Condiments and Spices
- extra virgin olive oil
- canola oil
- cooking spray
- olive oil spray, or a Misto-style oil mister
- kosher salt — Diamond Crystal is what I use
- pepper grinder or fresh peppercorns
- adobo seasoning salt
- garlic powder
- cumin
- chili powder
- paprika
- oregano
- vanilla extract (optional, for the smoothie)
- cinnamon
- Dijon mustard
- soy sauce, regular or reduced sodium
- Sambal Oelek
- hoisin sauce
- sesame oil
- Sriracha
- rice vinegar
- white vinegar
- furikake or sesame seeds
- mayonnaise — regular, light or olive-oil
- onion powder
- bay leaves
- red wine vinegar
- parsley
- basil
- yellow mustard
- Frank’s RedHot sauce
Dairy and Refrigerated
- 1 18-pack large eggs
- 1 pint liquid egg whites
- 1 small box butter
- 1 small tub whipped butter
- 1 (32-ounce) container high-protein vanilla yogurt — Oikos Pro is what I like
- 1 (16-ounce) container low-fat cottage cheese — Good Culture is the one I grab
- 1 (5.3-ounce) container 2% plain Greek yogurt
- 1 small container light sour cream
- 1 (8-ounce) container low-fat milk, or a protein dairy-free milk
- 1 pint low-fat buttermilk
- 1 (8-ounce) carton half and half
- 1 small bottle of light blue cheese dressing, or the ingredients for your own
- 1 (8-ounce) block of reduced-fat cream cheese
- 1 (8-ounce) package shredded reduced-fat Mexican cheese blend
- 1 (8-ounce) package shredded part-skim mozzarella
- 1 (8-ounce) package shredded Monterey Jack (or Oaxaca or queso chihuahua)
- 1 package sliced reduced-fat cheddar
- 1 medium wedge fresh Parmesan
Grains
- 1 small package granola
- 1 small loaf sliced whole grain bread
- 1 package whole grain hamburger buns
- 1 medium package corn tortillas (16 of them)
- 1 package lasagna noodles — not the no-boil kind
- 1 package orzo
- 1 package seasoned whole wheat breadcrumbs
- 1 small package dry short grain brown rice (or 2 cups pre-cooked)
Canned and Jarred
- 1 small jar dill pickle spears
- 1 small jar capers
- 1 small jar salsa
- 1 small jar pesto
- 1 (4-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can crushed tomatoes — fire roasted, if you can find it
- 1 jar marinara, or the ingredients to make your own
- 2 (3-ounce) packets of tuna in water
- 1 (15.5-ounce) can navy beans
- 1 small can or jar chipotle peppers in adobo (guajillo, ancho or arbol chiles work in the tacos too)
- 1 (32-ounce) carton beef broth
Frozen and Pantry
- 1 small bag frozen strawberries
- 1 small package ground flax (flax meal)
- 1 package (8-inch) round rice paper sheets
- 1 single-serve package unflavored or vanilla protein powder
- monk fruit sweetener, or the sweetener of your choice for the smoothie
- 1 small package brown sugar
Anything marked can go gluten free if you want it to. The list reads long, but most of it is shelf-stable and will carry over into next week.
FAQ
Do I really need to hit every protein number?
No. They’re starting points, not limits. A few grams over or under is exactly where an 80/20 plan lives. Add protein to what you’re already eating and the rest takes care of itself.
Can I do this if I’m vegetarian?
The plan leans on eggs, beans, fish, chicken and dairy, so you’d be swapping the fish and meat days. The egg, bean and dairy recipes carry through as is. Or look at the white bean and chicken salad recipes as a starting template: the salad logic (beans, greens, a strong dressing, a crunchy topping) holds for any build.
Is one Saturday at 51 grams of protein going to undo the week?
No — and that’s the lesson I keep relearning. A week, not a day, is where change comes from. Eat the dinner out, add a side or a snack, and you’re back inside the band the rest of the week sits in.
a note from Hazel: I keep rewriting this kind of plan because I hate tracking chicken to the tenth of a gram. Most weeks I end up with one night out at a taco shop, cleaning up a leftover plate, and a non-event. That’s the version that sticks.
If you’re new to planning a week at once, start with my weekend meal prep reset — it’s the only version I’ve kept running for years — and if protein is the piece that keeps slipping, start building a high-protein habit the gentle way. Both are the closer, more honest versions of this.