Low-carb meal plan | Weight loss plan (2024)

What is a low-carb diet?

A common misconception is that all carbohydrates need to be eliminated from the diet to see the benefits of a low-carb diet. A very low-carb diet is commonly referred to as a ketogenic or keto diet.

A keto diet is high in fat and eliminates carbs almost entirely. By doing this, the body is deprived of its primary energy source, glucose. The body is then forced to find new ways of making energy.

It breaks down fatty acids from fat stores and dietary fat intake, creating ketones. The brain can then use ketones for energy instead of glucose. This process is called ketosis.

While this may sound ideal, the keto diet can be challenging to follow effectively in the long term.

As it’s much more restrictive, it often makes eating in social situations challenging. Research shows that too much restriction means we’re more likely to ‘slip up’, which will temporarily take us out of ketosis.

Overall, a moderately low-carb diet (around 30% of calories) is easier to sustain long-term for most people.

As well as reducing your overall carb intake, replace refined carbs (e.g. white bread and white rice) with high-fibre, complex carbs (e.g. oats and sweet potato) where possible.

Reducing your intake of ultra-processed foods (e.g. biscuits and cakes) will also help you avoid refined carbs and reduce sweet cravings.

When adapting to a new way of eating, it can be tricky to know how your plate should look. Here are two examples of how your plate might look, depending on whether you’re including complex carbohydrates.

Low carb and weight loss

A study comparing the weight loss over two years between low-fat, low-carb, and Mediterranean diets demonstrated that all diets produce short-term weight loss, with low-carb producing the most.

At the 2-year mark, the low-carb group had maintained weight loss significantly more than the low-fat group.

Likewise, many studies have shown that low-carb diets result in rapid weight loss in the first 6 – 12 months.Low-carb leads to weight loss because protein and fat are more filling than carbs.

A higher intake of protein and fat also helps to keep our blood glucose (sugar) levels stable throughout the day.

This increase in satiety and reduction in blood glucose fluctuations reduces overall hunger and therefore lowers our overall food intake throughout the day.

A low-carb diet and diabetes

A low-carb diet has also been shown to be beneficial for blood sugar (glucose) control, which is especially important for people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Whether you’re living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, it’s essential to eat a healthy, balanced diet and be aware of different foods’ effects on your blood sugar (glucose) levels.

Type 1 diabetes is when your immune system attacks insulin-producing cells, producing very high blood sugar levels. Type 2 diabetes, however, is a lifestyle disease and can be prevented.

A healthy low-carb diet, alongside physical activity, can play a large part in achieving remission and reducing the risk of developing diabetes complications.

Maintaining stable blood glucose levels is vital to prevent complications associated with diabetes.

As carbs have the most significant impact on our blood glucose levels, reducing our intake of carbohydrate-containing foods will reduce the amount of glucose entering the bloodstream in the first place.

This explains why a low-carb diet, rather than a low-fat diet,has always been involved in preventing and treating type 2 diabetes.

Example low-carb meal plan

As we have discussed, a low-carb diet helps achieve various health goals, from weight loss to preventing and managing type 2 diabetes.

Devised by qualified dietitians and nutritionists, here is a 7-day low-carb meal plan.

It’s packed with healthy low-carb recipes, which will keep you feeling fuller for longer and reduce cravings without manually tracking your carbohydrate intake. These meals are naturally lower in carbs and free from refined substitutes.

To access the low-carb recipes and for information on portion sizes and instruction videos, click on the recipe’s name.

This diet plan includes some simple ‘quick prep’ sections that shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes throughout the week.

Meal prep at the start of the week can help save time if you’re busy during the week. For example, you can pre-prep the courgette frittata slices and lemon salad dressing (olive oil and lemon juice) to save time.

Eating lower-carb is effective for weight loss because it’s much easier to maintain long-term, compared with low-calorie or low fat.

This is because you can enjoy satisfying foods like cheese, full-fat yogurt, and nuts and not feel hungry.

Therefore, to make this meal plan work for you, feel free to make any swaps to suit your preferences or dietary requirements.

If you make any swaps, aim to include plenty of leafy green or non-starchy vegetables (e.g. spaghetti squash and bell peppers).

Aim to include complex carbohydrates such as legumes and enjoy sugary foods occasionally rather than regularly.

Not all of the recipes in this low-carb meal plan are suitable for vegetarians, but we have many vegetarian and vegan healthy low-carb recipes on our website, so feel free to swap them in.

Remember to create a shopping list before your weekly shop so you don’t forget any ingredients.

Plus, having a shopping list makes it easier to refrain from buying less healthy foods and highly-processed snacks that are purposefully marketed to be appealing.