The Flexitarian Cyclist – Sample Meal Plan

Flexible meal plan

By definition, the flexitarian diet offers a lot of ways how to put together a meal plan. Almost nothing is off the menu. You will have a hard time finding two flexitarians with the same breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Despite the variety, it always helps to see a sample meal plan to visualize what the diet might look like. Here is what a flexitarian cyclist might eat in one week.

This sample meal plan includes meat or fish on 4 days, which leaves 3 meatless days. Dairy such as yoghurts and cheeses are included almost daily and eggs a few times per week too. There is plenty of plant-based protein such as beans, lentils, tofu, chickpeas, nuts, and seeds. And, of course, you’ll find a variety of fruits and vegetables multiple times per day. The size of these sample meals and the timing of the snack depends on your work and training schedule. If you’re training hard on a given day, it might be a good idea to add an extra snack or an energy bar for the ride.

Monday

1. Breakfast: Oats with almond milk, dried apple slices, vegan protein blend, peanut butter, raisins
2. Lunch: Mixed greens salad with pumpkin seeds, sweet potatoes, beets, and olive oil and vinegar dressing
3. Snack: Yoghurt with walnuts and frozen berries
4. Dinner: Tofu stir fry with a variety of veggies

Tuesday

1. Breakfast: Avocado toast with eggs
2. Lunch: Baked chicken, quinoa and roasted cauliflower
3. Snack: Wholewheat English muffin with banana, peanut butter
4. Dinner: Zucchini noodles with tomato sauce and white beans

Wednesday

1. Breakfast: Oats with cashew milk, coconut flakes, vegan protein blend, peanut butter
2. Lunch: Quinoa salad with dried cranberries, pecans and feta cheese
3. Snack: Sourdough bread with hummus and sliced fresh veggies
4. Dinner: Vegetarian chili with a mix of black and pinto beans

Thursday

1. Breakfast: Wholewheat bagel with peanut butter and banana
2. Lunch: Salad with greens, shrimp, corn, black beans and avocado
3. Snack: Smoothie made with cashew milk, spinach, peanut butter and frozen berries
4. Dinner: Bowl with chickpeas, cucumber, tomato, brown rice, and Mediterranean dressing

Friday

1. Breakfast: Oats with almond milk, vegan protein blend, peanut butter, dates
2. Lunch: Spinach, carrot, pepper, tuna salad with apple, cherries, cranberries, and pumpkin seeds
3. Snack: Yoghurt with pecan nuts and frozen berries
4. Dinner: Lentil soup with wholegrain bread and hard cheese

Saturday

1. Breakfast: Strawberry ricotta pancakes with dark chocolate
2. Lunch: Bowl with edamame, greens, brown rice, and Asian dressing
3. Snack: Smoothie made with almond milk, spinach, peanut butter and frozen berries
4. Dinner: Grilled salmon, baked sweet potato and green beans

Sunday

1. Breakfast: Omelettes with bell peppers, mushrooms, and cheddar cheese
2. Lunch: Black bean burgers with avocado and sweet potato fries
3. Snack: Carrot sticks with almond butter and dark chocolate pieces
4. Dinner: Kale Caesar salad with lentils and tomato soup

Hopefully, this gives you a decent idea about what going flexitarian would mean day to day. The last article in this series will be all about helping you decide whether this approach is right for you and what you should be looking out for as a cyclist.