Half the battle of weight loss is trying to incorporate a healthy diet into your everyday routine. The busier you are throughout the week, the less time you have to make substantial dinners, and then the harder it gets to eat healthy meals. After a busy day, who wants to come home and prep something that could take hours to cook, just so you can be on the path to weight loss?
What if we told you that there were easy meals you could make that wouldn't interfere with your relaxation time? We spoke with The Nutrition Twins, Lyssie Lakatos, RDN, CDN, CFT, and Tammy Lakatos Shames, RDN, CDN, CFT, authors of The Nutrition Twins' Veggie Cure and members of our Medical Expert Board, to help give you ideas on easy dinner recipes for weight loss to make during your busy week.
There's one for each night weeknight, so you can plan! For your morning pick-me-up, take a look at 5 Easy Coffee Recipes for Weight Loss.
Wild Blueberry Chicken Burgers
"While most burgers aren't great choices when you want to lose body fat, these sweet and savory juicy burgers can be whipped up quickly and are the perfect delicious ending to a stressful day," says The Nutrition Twins.
Each burger is loaded with 27 grams of satisfying protein to help keep you full for hours. Including the balsamic glaze and lettuce wrap, the meal only contains 150 calories.
As for the wild blueberries, The Nutrition Twins call them weight-loss superstars.
"They have the phytonutrient C3G which increases adiponectin to enhance fat burning, while also increasing leptin, to suppress appetite," they say.
If you need more to the meal, go ahead and add a whole wheat bun to replace the lettuce wrap and a heaping side of steamed vegetables to amp up the fiber, antioxidants, and satisfaction even more. This meal will not only be satisfying, but it will still encourage weight loss.
Get the recipe from The Nutrition Twins.
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Avocado and Lentil Vegan Tacos
"When you're craving Mexican food, you can whip up this meal in less time than it takes to drive to a Mexican restaurant, and you'll get only a fraction of the calories that you'd get from the restaurant meal," says The Nutrition Twins.
According to The Nutrition Twins, these tacos are low-fat and vegan. Research from the Journal of the American Nutrition Association shows that eating a low-fat, vegan diet increases weight loss and improves body composition, even more so than a Mediterranean diet. The lentils, avocado, and corn tortillas in this meal all play a part in fighting cravings thanks to their combination of blood-sugar stabilizing protein and fiber.
"Additionally, lentils are an amazing source of slow-digesting carbohydrates that keep you feeling full and satisfied longer than other foods, even reducing calorie intake at your next meal," says The Nutrition Twins. "These tacos also have a whopping 14 grams of fiber, which is 2 grams more than the average American gets in their entire day! Fiber slows digestion and promotes fullness, which research shows may reduce the calories you eat throughout the day."
Get the recipe from The Nutrition Twins.
Loaded Alfredo Pasta with Chicken and Vegetables
Pasta AND a creamy sauce? That sounds too good to be true for a meal to help with weight loss. However, there's a way around it.
"While most people think both pasta and Alfredo are taboo when they're trying to shed pounds, this tasty waistline-friendly version swaps out the cream, packs in blood-sugar stabilizing whole wheat pasta, low-calorie, fiber-loaded veggies, and satisfying protein," say The Nutrition Twins.
According to the Nutrition Twins, the antioxidant-packed cremini mushrooms provide anti-inflammatory benefits that help to protect against obesity. The fiber-rich broccoli fills you up with minimal calories.
"Most importantly, this meal satisfies pasta cravings that can come from feelings of deprivation after avoiding it, and that typically result in giving in to the cravings whole-heartedly and throwing in the towel on healthy eating completely," says The Nutrition Twins.
Get our recipe for Loaded Alfredo Pasta here.
Sheet Pan Salmon with Roasted Veggies
One-pan meals are a great go-to during busy weeks, and this recipe happens to be both easy and healthy.
"Simply toss everything on a sheet pan, roast it, and a low-calorie, satisfying ideal weight loss dinner is served," says The Nutrition Twins.
In just 300 calories, this recipe offers nearly 30 grams of satisfying protein and 8 grams of filling fiber. Adding the slow-digesting brown rice helps satisfies your carb cravings, so you won't be needing an energy "pick-me-up" and sugar an hour later.
The Nutrition Twins suggest that increasing veggie consumption means greater weight loss and greater hunger prevention, and this meal happens to be both veggie and fiber-packed.
They further suggest using the lemon liberally since lemon's polyphenols may help to suppress body fat accumulation and prevent obesity.
Get the recipe from The Nutrition Twins.
Chinese Sesame Tofu and Broccoli Recipe
Not only can you cook up this Chinese stir-fry recipe faster than you can get your Chinese take-out delivery, but this lightened-up version has less than half the calories of traditional Chinese take-out.
"Packed with the winning combination of 18 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber for ultimate satisfaction, this meal won't leave you hungry and raiding the pantry for a snack an hour later," says The Nutrition Twins.
In addition, the soy isoflavones found in tofu may help to reduce body fat. Research from NAD shows that broccoli's sulforaphane may help you to lose weight.
Get the recipe from The Nutrition Twins.
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