Mediterranean Meal Plan to Help Lose Belly Fat

Trim your waistline and enjoy the delicious flavors of the Mediterranean in this healthy meal plan that helps you lose belly fat.

Emily Lachtrupp is a registered dietitian experienced in nutritional counseling, recipe analysis and meal plans. She's worked with clients who struggle with diabetes, weight loss, digestive issues and more. In her spare time, you can find her enjoying all that Vermont has to offer with her family and her dog, Winston.

Victoria Seaver is a registered dietitian and Editorial Director for EatingWell.com. She completed her undergraduate degree in nutrition, dietetics and food science and her masters degree and dietetic internship at the University of Vermont. Victoria has been a part of the EatingWell.com team since 2015.

Losing belly fat can come with some serious health benefits, beyond just boosting your confidence. Having a larger midsection usually means there's more visceral fat (the type of fat that surrounds your organs), which research shows can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes and inflammation. Decreasing the amount of visceral fat means your risk for developing those diseases goes down. The good news is that you don't need to follow any crazy fad diets to lose this weight. A healthy balanced diet will do the trick, like the Mediterranean diet.

In this healthy meal plan, we combine research-backed flat-belly foods—like peanuts, avocado, artichokes and chickpeas—with 2020's best diet, the Mediterranean diet, to help you reduce your waistline while reaping the health benefits (and flavors!) of the Mediterranean. This flat-belly diet plan incorporates fat-burning foods and is set at 1,200 calories a day to promote a healthy weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds a week, with modifications to bump up the calories to 1,500 or 2,000 calories a day, depending on your calorie needs. Although weight loss plays an important role, lifestyle factors like quality sleep, exercise and stress reduction can also help lower belly fat.

Mediterranean Foods to Eat More of for a Flat Belly:

• Beans and lentils: Fiber-packed legumes, especially chickpeas, are a frequent flier in this healthy diet.
• Whole grains: Oatmeal, quinoa, brown rice and whole-wheat pasta and breads are high in fiber and far more nutritious than their refined-grain counterparts.
• Nuts and seeds: All varieties of nuts and seeds are an easy and delicious feature in the Mediterranean diet.
• Fish: Seafood, especially fatty fish like salmon, anchovies and sardines, packs in the protein and heath benefits.
• Healthy fats: Unsaturated fats like olive oil, avocado and olives add flavor and help fight inflammation.

How to Meal-Prep Your Week of Meals:

1. Make the Parmesan & Vegetable Muffin-Tin Omelets to have for breakfast throughout the week. For easy clean-up, use these reusable silicone muffin cups. Pack up the egg cups in a reusable silicone bag to take to-go.
2. Prepare the Brussels Sprouts Salad with Crunchy Chickpeas to have for lunch on Days 2 through 5. Store these healthy lunches in an air-tight meal-prep container to keep fresh. Store dressing separately in a leak-proof container and wait to add till ready to eat to prevent wilting.

Day 1

Breakfast (229 calories)

• 1 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped walnuts

A.M. Snack (77 calories)

• 1 small apple