Many women don’t realize just how much protein they need to support their nutritional needs. In fact, most of us could benefit from eating a lot more protein than we currently do. That’s where this blog post comes in. I’m here to give you simple, tasty ideas for sneaking enough protein into your daily meals.
Whether you’re trying to build muscle mass, improve your workouts, or just stay healthy, these sample meal plans will help you easily hit over 140 grams of protein each day. Personally, even if you don’t have ANY of the aforementioned goals (which let’s be real – we all at least want to stay healthy) I still believe as women we should be aiming for 100+ grams of protein per day.
By shooting for 140, even if we are a little shy we’ll still be doing way better than most. Chances are you’ll at least hit 100, which is the ultimate goal I have set for myself. If you do end up hitting closer to 140, way to go! The general guideline is to get one gram per kilogram of body weight. Now, let’s discover some delicious ways to boost your protein intake with whole foods.
How to Make This Realistic
I’m a big of fan of making enough dinner each night to have leftovers for lunch the next day. Half the time, I just do that! No extra prepping or cooking required. In addition, the five days I’ve laid out here below I would very rarely actually eat five days in a row. That is because each lunch idea is different (for the purpose of providing you plenty of inspiration!) and if I’m prepping meal prep high protein wraps, chances are I’m making at least 2 of them and eating them back to back a couple of days for lunch. But, that seemed a bit boring to put in this guide so I’ve given you a fresh idea for each day. If you’re up for preparing something totally different each day, go for it. But I’d guess most of us are going to pick the lunch option that sounds the best among this list and make enough for at least 2-3 days worth of lunches. I mean, this is real life after all.
Same concept goes for the snack ideas. If you’ve bought a box of my newest favorite protein bars, then you probably aren’t going to just have one on Monday and then forget about them the rest of the week. Feel free to just have one daily each afternoon for the entire week straight to keep planning for snack time easy. You can always use the other snack ideas and meal ideas for the coming weeks!
A Few Things to Note
I don’t count my daily calories or calorie intake because I don’t think it’s great for my mental health (it can quickly become obsessive and takes a lot of energy) so I have no idea the total number of calories these meal plans equate to. I’m not claiming to have super low calorie high-protein diet ideas. What I do know is they are from mostly real, high-quality protein sources and keep me feeling energized and full all day. If you are trying to maintain a calorie deficit or lose body fat, skip the dessert options for fewer calories on the days that have those.
I also utilize a lot of animal protein and dairy products, so if you have an allergy or eat a vegetarian diet be mindful of that and look for alternative plant-based protein sources. It would be super hard for me to eat a plant-based diet so I didn’t even attempt to make this list applicable to that.
Everyone has individual needs so you may need more or less food than this. I would suggest using these as guides but check in with your hunger levels throughout the day and adjust as needed. Also, your lifestyle can affect how hungry you will be. I’m not a registered dietitian either, so if you have true concerns about how much protein you should be eating I would check with one. I workout about 4x a week (not super heavy, but some strength training mixed in with walks) so need more snacks on those days normally. I would assume active individuals would need more anyways. I’m not a fan of intermittent fasting, either. Everyone will have a different amount of protein they need, so this is more of just inspiration than a recommended diet plan.
Finally, I don’t really expect anyone to follow these plans exactly. I like reading these because I can pick and choose different food items from the plans to incorporate into my day when I’m stumped for protein recipe ideas. You can totally just use this post as inspiration for new food ideas and protein content to try to hit your protein goal. After all, your body composition goals can always benefit from more protein.
Snack Favorites I Mention
From the best plant-based protein powders to clean protein bars, here are a few options I’ll be mentioning throughout the plans that I genuinely love! Protein-rich foods can be hard to shop for, so I hope this post helps. Side note: any recipe that calls for mayo I love primal kitchen and for oils I stick to olive oil.
*If you make a purchase through my links, I may earn a small commission.
Five Full Days of Meal Plans
Listed below are the promised five complete days of a high-protein meal plan to achieve 140+grams of protein each day. I like to stick to lean meats, healthy foods, fresh fruits and veggies for my everyday diet. And no, we aren’t going to be drinking protein shakes every day to get our high-protein meals in! Thank goodness, right?!
I’ll list the daily totals at the top of each day’s plan for your convenience. Healthy eating was never easier. Let’s get into these tasty meals!
Day One Meal Plan
Today’s total is about 140 grams of protein!
Breakfast: 39.5 grams
3 Links of Aldi Never Any! Apple Maple Chicken Sausage (15grams)
3 Eggs (18 grams)
Half a Dave’s Killer Bread Bagel with butter or cream cheese (6.5 grams)
Lunch: 55 grams
2 Organic Hamburger Patties (half a pack of this ground beef, I put a slice of cheese on 1 of the patties) (55grams)
Carrots Sticks/Green Pepper Slices/Cucumbers with Ranch
Fruit of Choice
Snack: 12 grams
Good & Gather Chocolate Cashew Butter Protein Bar (12 grams)
Dinner: 33.5 grams
Homemade Chicken Pot Pie (26.5 grams – will depend on your serving size)
1/2 Cup Black Eyed Peas (7 grams)
Day Two Meal Plan
Today’s total is about 148 grams of protein!
Breakfast: 41 grams
Protein Smoothie – 1 Cup of Mixed Frozen Fruit, 1 Scoop of Protein Powder, 1 Spoonful of Peanut Butter, 1 Cup of Milk (41 grams)
Lunch: 40 grams
High Protein Pasta Salad (40 grams)
Fruit of Choice
Snack: 17 grams
Dry Roasted Edamame (14 grams)
Simple Mills Nutty Banana Bread Soft Baked Almond Flour Bar (3 grams)
Dinner: 50 grams
8 oz Steak seasoned with salt and black pepper (50 grams)
Roasted Broccoli and Sweet Potatoes
Day Three Meal Plan
Today’s total is about 140.5 grams of protein!
Breakfast: 36 grams
Healthy Protein Waffle topped with Berries (20 grams)
1 Packet of Bone Broth either added to your coffee/creamer or mixed with plain hot water
Lunch: 31 grams
Meal Prepped Southwest Chicken Wrap (31 grams)
Optional Fruit of Choice or Chips
Snack: 16 grams
Chomps Beef Sticks (10 grams)
Handful of Crunchy Chickpeas (6 grams)
Dinner: 42.5 grams
Honey Garlic Chicken Bites with a drizzle of lemon juice for extra flavor! (37.5 grams – each 1.5 servings of the chicken)
Quinoa, Rice, or another form of Whole Grains (5 grams)
Sheet Pan Veggies (Onion, Zucchini, Carrots, etc)
Dessert: 15 grams
Piece of Protein Fudge (15 grams)
Day Four Meal Plan
Today’s total is about 143 grams of protein!
Breakfast: 38 grams
Bacon, Egg, & Cheese English Muffin (25 grams)
One cup of Fairlife Milk (13 g protein)
Lunch: 30-40 grams
Some form of high protein salad – Use of these as a base or create your own – I like this one, this one, and this one. Then, add in a bit more protein and healthy fats if desired. You can add more chicken, black beans, edamame, cheese, etc. to get it up to around 35-40 grams of total protein. (40 grams)
Snack: 20 grams
Truvani The Only Bar Peanut Butter Flavor (8 grams)
2 Hard Boiled Eggs (12 grams)
Fruit of choice optional
Dinner: 30 grams
Gochujang-Glazed Salmon with Garlic Spinach (30 grams)
Half a cup of Lima beans (8 grams)
Dessert: 15 grams
High Protein Chocolate Pudding (No protein powder required!) (15 grams)
Day Five Meal Plan
Today’s total is about 142 grams of protein!
Breakfast: 26 grams
Greek Yogurt Fruit & Granola Parfait (14 grams)
2 Links of Chicken Sausage or 2 Scrambled Eggs (10-12 grams)
Lunch: 40 grams
Tuna or Chicken salad Toast or Sandwich (40 grams)
Snack: 13 grams
Cheese Stick (8 grams)
8 Brazil Nuts (5 grams)
Dinner: 41 grams
2 Ground Beef Stuffed Peppers (34 grams)
Healthy Refried Beans (7 grams)
Dessert: 22 grams
2 Peanut Butter Protein Cookies (22 grams)
Conclusion
Incorporating these high-protein meal plans into your daily routine can help you reach health benefits and weight loss goals without reducing your food intake. A high protein intake is essential for both women and men, helping with healthy cells, fat loss, muscle repair, immune system repair, and maintaining healthy skin and hair. Each of these meal plans provides over 140 grams of protein for the day, supporting muscle tissue growth and keeping you full longer, which can help with weight management, too!
By adding more protein to your diet, you can boost your overall health, energy levels, speed up your metabolism, and improve your physical performance. Whether you’re an athlete, a busy professional, or just looking to eat better, these meal plans are a great way to get the protein you need with a healthy diet to stay in tip-top shape.
Try adding some of these recipes to your weekly meal plan to enjoy the benefits of a protein-rich diet with essential nutrients. With a variety of healthy meal plan options to boost your daily protein intake, you’ll find it easy to keep up with that higher protein intake and stay on track with your activity level. Start trying these high-protein foods and see how more protein a day can make a difference in your life!
