A Primal Blueprint Sample Menu
Last Wednesday I published The Primal Blueprint Carbohydrate Curve. In it I provided my recommendations for daily carbohydrate consumption. I received a lot of great feedback from readers. A couple readers, namely Patrick and Heather, requested sample menus to give them an idea of what a single day that comes in at around 100 grams of carbs looks like. I’ve done similar posts in the past (2 Minute Salad and My Daily Diet) but I thought I’d offer up something a little different this time. In this variation of eating like Grok in the modern world I’ve included pics that closely approximate what I eat on an average day, followed by FitDay macronutrient breakdowns (Click on the images to see a larger version. You may have to scroll down the page a bit to view the enlarged versions.)
Breakfast
A typical breakfast for me is a cup of coffee with cream and sugar and an omelet. Sometimes I’ll throw in a little cheese, but most days I go without it. The veggies change as well from day to day.
If it isn’t an omelet it might be some leftovers from the night before, or one of my balanced meal replacement shakes (link to my store).
Also, I don’t eat breakfast every day of the week. If I’m hungry I eat. Otherwise I don’t. You’ll find this is a common theme for me throughout the day.
Lunch
The following is a variation of my Big Ass Salad. This is where I load up on all kinds of colorful vegetables. The veggies comprise the bulk of the meal and vary from day to day. Mushrooms, bell peppers, red onions, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, cucumber and snow peas are some of my favorites. I also make sure to get some protein with this meal – some leftover chicken or steak from the night before, or canned salmon are regulars. This is usually my largest meal of the day and I always look forward to it. There are nearly endless permutations. Experiment until you find something you absolutely love. This will help ensure you keep coming back for more.
Snack
If I’m hungry mid to late afternoon and dinner looks to be a ways off I’ll often grab a handful of nuts. Macadamias, walnuts and pine nuts are great, but I usually reach for almonds.
Dinner
For dinner it has to be a good cut of meat and a heaping side of veggies. Of course, this changes from day to day as well. Salmon, chicken (with the skin on!) and a nice rib eye are regulars, but I’ll often do lamb, pork or some other fish as well. If it isn’t Brussels sprouts it’s broccoli, squash, cabbage, the occasional sweet potato, or a stir fry with a good mix of veggies.
After Dinner
Occasionally I’ll have some fruit with a glass of wine to wind down the day. Or if I’m beginning an overnight stint of Intermittent Fasting I’ll skip it altogether.
Totals
Let’s take a look at the totals. If I ate all three large meals and the snack and the berries and the wine I’m still just over 2,500 calories. Truth be told I rarely eat all of this in a single day; unless I’ve been especially active.
But what we are really interested in is the carbs. This sample menu came in at 115 g of carbs which leaves us with plenty of wiggle room. This is the take home message: You can enjoy copious amounts of fruits and veggies and still never crack 150 g. It’s important that you let that sink in. What this means is that you don’t have to count carbs like I have done here if all you are trying to do is maintain your body composition. Even if you are attempting to speed up weight loss by keeping your daily carb intake to below 100 g you can see that it can be done with very little effort or thought as long as you stick to nuts/seeds, fruits, veggies, and meat.
Further Reading:
Dear Mark: Post Workout Fasting
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Posted By: Mark Sisson
I recently switched from fitday to livestrong’s “my plate” which is far easier to use.
Hey Mark!
What is the name of the program you used to depict us the meals and the nutritional value of each food (cals,fats,prots etc.). Where can I download it?
Thanks
I am an Atkins eater and we were taught to use Net Carbs but I found that I consume way more dairy than I think I should although I’m still under 25 Net carbs a day. I use a great site – better than FITDAY – it’s called FATSECRET.com – it’s a lot easier to use than FITDAY. And trust me – I’m a lifelong dieter so I’ve tried them all! It breaks it all down for you just like Fitday but again it’s easier to use and offers a lot more. I’ve decided to go Primal and get rid of the dairy to see if maybe NOW I’ll lose weight. I’ve been doing ATkins for 11 weeks now perfectly and I’ve lost a total of 7 lbs. which is very discouraging. I know that grains and sugar are toxic and they make me feel horrible. For the first time in 11 weeks I had a bite of sugar…it was a small bite of banana cream pie and OMG! it was beyond sweet and I was up all night and my stomach…yikes! It’s just not worth it anymore when you feel so clean w/out it. It’s amazing how fast ones’ body can react to what you eat. I was lightheaded and just did not feel right. Crazy! The best thing about not eating those things is that I finally stopped being hungry and thinking about food 24/7…it’s a miracle! I can go an entire day w/out eating b/c I am simply not hungry and yet I still don’t drop a fricking lb! I even had my lab work done to see if it was my hormones or my thyroid and they came back perfect! Rats! I’m 46 so maybe it’s just age but I refuse to believe that. Then I read somewhere that it can literally take your body months – 4-6 months for your body to let go of the fat it’s holding onto b/c your cells want to stay the same size that they are so they replace the fat you’ve lost w/water until your body just can’t hold the water anymore and then all of sudden you lose the weight in what appears to be overnight. Here’s hoping! Unfortunately, I’m impatient and figure if I drop the dairy I might be able to finally see some weight loss. Wish me luck! I will say that after reading all here that I’m concerned that it may not work b/c realistically I’m totally under 80 carbs a day and I’m still not losing – so what on earth could it possibly be? I eat no sugar no grains, no fake sugar – olive oil, olives, veggies, coconut oil, meat, eggs fish, an occassional berry or 10 – maybe some nuts every once in a while, cheese, heavy cream(4 tlbs in my coffee), sour cream – I swear it’s gotta be the dairy?? I’m at about 1200-1500 calories a day and I eat 5%-10% carbs, 60%-70% fats and 20%-30% proteins – so what could it be? Mark any suggestions?
Starving your body by not eating is definitely not going to help you lose weight. It will throw off your metabolism.
Let me clarify that last part – I do NOT eat sugar, fake sugar, grains or anything WHITE or beans/legumes…I DO eat Olive oil, olives, tons of veggies, coconut oil, meat, eggs, fish, berries- very occassionally otherwise no fruit and occassionally some nuts – maybe an ounce but not often, cheese, heavy cream (4 tbls in my coffee every day- my only treat) and sour cream…Again, Mark? Any suggestions as to why I’m not losing b/c I’m totally primal but for the dang dairy! I think it’s the dairy and if I cut it I’ll finally start losing.
Hey Mark, where do you usually find your potassium in this whole mix?
I have been eating like this for about 2 weeks. Boiled eggs, fruit, coffee for breakfast. Salad with salmon for lunch and a protein and veggies for dinner. I eat fruit or veggies in between and I’VE NOT LOST ONE OUNCE! I was thinking of following your plan , but if I’m not losing weight doing what I am now, I’m afraid yours is not much different and that I still won’t lose.
Two weeks is nothin’. I dropped a lot in the first week and plateaued for the next two. Your body does take some time to adapt to the program. Once you get over week 4, weight loss does accelerate a little more.
This is great, thanks Mark.
Check out my new cooking blog for some more primal recipes.
http://sarahsprimalkitchen.blogspot.com/
Thanks, hope you like it and try some recipes out.
If anyone is looking for more recipes, here is my Primal cooking blog. I frequently add new posts with step by step recipes and pictures.
http://sarahsprimalkitchen.blogspot.com/
Hope you try some out.
oops didn’t mean to post again, thought it didn’t go through earlier.
What about the breakdown of extra animal proteins that acidify your system and taxes your kidneys? Those issues are usually brought up when you read about vegan diets and anti-high-protein diets.
Hows you diet work for lowering cholesterol?
This website is known as a stroll-by way of for all of the info you needed about this and didn?t know who to ask. Glimpse right here, and you?ll definitely uncover it.
Hi Mark
Ive stumbled upon your website just wanting to know where to start and recipes for beginners?
Hello I have a few questions one is I have diabetes which they say to eat more veggies and so on but I also have IBS and mine can be diarrhea. So I cannot eat alot of veggies like cabbage, corn and onions, peppers without having issues. Is there a way to follow what you recommend without alot of veggies? I like them they do not like me. I have started taking some probiotics and that has helped alot but for my diabetes I would like to follow more of their diet if there is a way that will not cause me such cramping and bathroom time. Thanks
I was curious… I live in northern Chile and quinoa is a staple here… how does this fit in with the primal diet? It is very high in carbs but it is also very high in complete protein.
in my part of the world, i can not find organic, freerange meat 95% of the time and i can never find grass-fed meat. all the fresh fish is either from farms or from polluted water. we do have free-range organic eggs and milk, but i doubt if the chickens and cows are grass-fed. we do not have raw milk. we have canned mackeral and sardines. in this case, what do you suggest? to eat regular chicken and beef?
So where are you getting the 0.7 – 1gr of protein per pound? I lift regularly & I find getting the recommended dose of protein to be quite difficult.
Hi Mark,
I follow a similar meal plan, but I’m a little worried I’m taking in too much protein for my weight.
I take in around 100g of protein a day, but I weigh 137 lbs and have a body fat percentage of 23%.
Is this too much protein?
Thanks very much!
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Whoever sent this is a jerk
Question on protein utilization:
I’ve read lots of material on diet and exercise and I remember reading that we humans can only metabolize about 50 grams of protein maximum per meal. There is also the warning that too much protein can be toxic, such as the kidneys or liver producing something akin to amonia. So, is this true or not?
I’m 43 yrs old 269 lb former Division 1 Defensive Lineman. I ran casino marketing for the last 15yrs in Vegas. I’ve drank 2 bottles of vodka a day 4 days a week and ate 7 meals a day with 3 being gourmet. I’ve partied very hard for 20 years in Vegas.
I just retired moved to the country to take my life back. I have chronic gout my uric acid has been 11 for years. I developed hives when I eat Processed food or Gatorade I take allegro daily.
I just started Crossfit 3 weeks ago and my trainer lives by Primal diet and lifestyle. I want to live and be healthy but I can’t eat very much except grains, fruit and some veggies.
I’m desperate to find a diet that will work for me but I can’t eat purines my gout cripples me and the pills allpurinol I take are tough on my liver that has been abused.
I’m begging for help I left a very good living to get healthy and have a real life with my new wife I don’t drink or party I’ve started a new life but need guidance on diet. Gout and primal?
The only problem with fit day is that it miscalculates vegetable carbs.
For example it thinks 100g broccoli had 6.6g when its more like 1.5g. Unless there is some carb loaded broccoli floating around that I am unaware of. I really struggle to get over 30g carbs in my diet. Then i end up knackered after two weeks or so.
What program did you use to calculate the calories, carbs and fat percentages?
nevermind … I read the post again. It’s fitday.com …
I went on a 33 day water fast recently for spiritual purposes. I had lost 45 lbs which was a nice side effect. A good portion of that weight was fat and few lbs of muscle. After I broke my fast with easily digestible foods in small meals, I switched over to PB to maintain weight.
Obviously, I gained some weight, but I didn’t explode like everyone said I would. I gained back 5 lbs and have been maintaining that weight with PB. My muscles are growing back nicely and I’m getting back to my prefasted strength. I actually look better now with 5 extra pounds than I did after my fast.
CW states that water fasting only drops water weight, retains fat, and consumes muscle. While true, you do lose some muscle during a long term fast, you burn a lot more fat. CW also states that fasting more than a week is dangerous. I fasted while working an active 45 hour work week where I’m on my feet most of the day. It also says that a high fat low carb diet with no grains or legumes is bad for your health, yet I feel better than ever on PB than I did on SAD or SKD(standard Korean diet). Mark, I love your program and I hope all of us MDA followers can continue to prove Common Wisdom wrong.
Mark,
You mention time and time again in your posts that you can eat as much fruits and vegetables as you please and stay low carb. Do you mean only low carb fruits specifically? I usually have a banana (30g) and an orange (30g) and then steamed vegetables (30g). This already puts me at 90 without any extras from my fats and other foods. Will I have to cut out my fruits to hit my “sweet spot” of under 80-100g?