7-Day Meal Plan for Diabetes, Created by a Dietitian

This healthy 1,200-calorie meal plan for diabetes is a delicious, easy way to balance your blood sugar.

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.

Christa Brown is a registered dietitian and business owner with a practice focus on diabetes management and content development for brands and fitness influencers. She is a licensed dietitian with a Master of Science in Nutrition Education and a certification in gut health by the Institute of Integrative Nutrition.

Eating healthy with diabetes is easy and delicious with this seven-day diabetes diet plan, and works well as a type 2 diabetes meal plan, too. The meals and snacks that make this plan so simple and realistic to follow feature the best foods for diabetes, like complex carbohydrates (think whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables), lean protein and healthy fats.

The carbohydrates are balanced throughout each day with each meal containing 2-3 carb servings (30-45 grams of carbohydrates) and each snack containing around 1-1 1/2 carb servings (15-25 g of carbohydrates). To help keep your blood sugar from spiking too high too quickly, we limited refined carbohydrates (like white bread, white pasta and white rice) and have also cut down on saturated fats and sodium, which can negatively impact your health if you eat too much.

What we definitely didn't skimp on is flavor. The meals and snacks in this plan feature fresh ingredients and plenty of herbs and spices that add flavor without adding extra sodium.

Managing diabetes doesn't need to be difficult—choose a variety of nutritious foods, as we do in this meal plan, add in daily exercise, stay well-hydrated, get plenty of rest and manage your stress for a healthy, sustainable whole-health approach to managing diabetes.

How We Create Meal Plans

Registered dietitians thoughtfully create EatingWell’s meal plans to be easy-to-follow and delicious. Each meal plan meets specific parameters depending on the health condition and/or lifestyle goal it is targeting and is analyzed for accuracy using the nutrition database, ESHA Food Processor. As nutritional needs differ from person to person, we encourage you to use these plans as inspiration and adjust as you see fit.

7-Day Diabetes Diet Plan

How to Meal-Prep Your Week of Meals:

1. Prep the Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls and store in an air-tight container to have as a ready-made lunch on Days 2 through 5. (Bonus: See the step-by-step guide for meal prepping this recipe plus two more diabetes-friendly recipes)
2. Make five servings of the Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats and store in leakproof containers to have as grab-and-go breakfasts on Days 2 through 6.
3. Start the Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup early enough on Day 1 so that it's ready by dinner time.

Day 1

Breakfast (281 calories, 33 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Everything Bagel Avocado Toast
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 nonfat plain Greek yogurt

A.M. Snack (66 calories, 3 g carbohydrates)

• 20 pistachios

Lunch (325 calories, 40 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Veggie & Hummus Sandwich

If you'll be taking this sandwich to go, store it in a reusable silicone bag.

P.M. Snack (95 calories, 25 g carbohydrates)

• 1 medium apple, sliced and sprinkled with cinnamon

Dinner (428 calories, 47 g carbohydrates)

• 2 cups Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup topped with 2 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 slice whole-wheat bread, toasted and drizzled with 2 tsp. olive oil

Make Ahead Tip: Save 2 cups each of the Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup and store in an airtight container for Days 6 and 7.

Daily Total: 1,195 calories, 54 g protein, 148 g carbohydrates, 37 g fiber, 49 g sugar, 49 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 1,924 mg sodium

Day 2

Breakfast (276 calories, 43 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

A.M. Snack (77 calories, 20 g carbohydrates)

• 15 cherries

Lunch (344 calories, 47 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

P.M. Snack (95 calories, 25 g carbohydrates)

• 1 medium apple, sliced and sprinkled with cinnamon

Dinner (411 calories, 41 g carbohydrates)

• 2 1/2 cups Lentil & Roasted Vegetable Salad with Green Goddess Dressing topped with 1/2 cup croutons

Daily Total: 1,204 calories, 37 g protein, 176 g carbohydrates, 40 g fiber, 61 g sugar, 45 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 1,638 mg sodium

Day 3

Breakfast (276 calories, 43 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

A.M. Snack (30 calories, 8 g carbohydrates)

• 1 medium plum

Lunch (344 calories, 47 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

P.M. Snack (62 calories, 15 g carbohydrates)

• 1 medium orange

Dinner (483 calories, 53 g carbohydrates)

• 1 1/3 cups Chicken Sausage & Peppers
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice tossed with 1/2 tsp. each olive oil and no-salt-added Italian seasoning
• 2 cups mixed greens topped with 2 Tbsp. Italian vinaigrette dressing*

*When buying premade salad dressings, choose one made with olive oil or canola oil and without added sugars.

Make-Ahead Tip: Cook an extra 1/2 cup of brown rice to have for dinner on Day 7. You can substitute brown rice for the farro in the dinner recipe for Day 4, in which case, you can also cook an extra 2 cups of rice tonight to save yourself time tomorrow.

Daily Total: 1,195 calories, 45 g protein, 166 g carbohydrates, 35 g fiber, 54 g sugar, 44 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 1,678 mg sodium

Day 4

Breakfast (276 calories, 43 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

A.M. Snack (77 calories, 20 g carbohydrates)

• 15 cherries

Lunch (344 calories, 47 g carbohydrates)

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls