How many calories should each meal contain?

The plan uses roughly 500 calories for breakfast, 600 calories for lunch, 1000 calories for dinner and 400 calories for the snack, which adds up to about 2500 calories a day across four meals.

How do you calculate your basal metabolic rate?

The article uses Mifflin's formula. For women: (10 x weight in kg) + (6.25 x height in cm) - (5 x age in years) - 161. For men: (10 x weight in kg) + (6.25 x height in cm) - (5 x age in years) + 5. The result is then multiplied by your activity factor (PAL).

How much protein does this 2500-calorie menu provide?

For an 80-kilogram person who trains 3–5 days a week, the article uses 1.8 g of protein per kilogram of body weight, which equals 144 g of protein or 576 calories – about 23 E% of 2500 calories.

How do you adjust the plan to lose or gain weight?

Once you know your maintenance level, reduce by 500 calories a day to lose weight, or add an extra 500 calories a day to gain weight.

What can you do if protein powder makes you bloated?

The bloating may be a reaction to lactose. In that case the article suggests choosing a protein powder based on protein isolate, which is protein in concentrated form and completely without lactose.

Should food be weighed raw or cooked?

Weigh the food items before they are fried or boiled.

Varied Daily Menus for Muscle Growth – 2500 Calories per Day! | Hardworkout Magazine

Key takeaways

- The menu plan divides 2500 calories across four meals: roughly 500 kcal at breakfast, 600 kcal at lunch, 1000 kcal at dinner and 400 kcal as a snack.

- A quick estimate of daily calorie needs is body weight in kilograms multiplied by 30 calories.

- People who train a lot need more protein than the general recommendation of 10–20 E%, with recommendations ranging from 1.2 to 2 g of protein per kilogram of body weight.

- The macronutrient split in this menu is approximately 50 E% carbohydrate (312 g), 23 E% protein (144 g) and 27 E% fat (75 g).

- Reducing intake by 500 calories a day gives weight loss, while adding 500 calories a day gives weight gain, once BMR has been multiplied by the relevant activity factor (PAL).

These daily menus are based on you eating approximately 2500 calories and 4 meals a day. You can calculate your calorie needs in a simple way by multiplying your weight in kilograms by 30 calories. So if you weigh, for example, 65 kilograms, the calculation would be: 80 x 30 kcal = 2400 calories.

If you want to make a more accurate calculation that also takes into account your activity level, you can see at the bottom of the article. You can also read more about the distribution of the various macronutrients further down in the article.

Here you get various options for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack

Each of the suggestions corresponds to approximately the same amount of calories, but varies slightly in the distribution of macronutrients (proteins, carbohydrates, and fats).

Breakfast options (approx. 500 calories)

- Oatmeal (100 g oats, 400 ml almond milk, 10 g chia seeds) topped with 100 g berries

- 3 slices of whole grain bread, omelet made from 3 eggs, 100 g vegetables (e.g. tomato, bell pepper, spinach)

- 50 g [granola without sugar](https://hardworkout.no/hjemmelaget-granola-perfekt-til-frokost-eller-som-mellommaltid/) or 50 g oats with 300 g milk, 100 g berries, and 30 g cashews/almonds

- Oat pancakes (80 g oats, 1 egg, 300 g almond milk, 10 g chia seeds) topped with 100 g berries

- Chia pudding with granola and berries (The pudding is made the night before and placed in the refrigerator: 50 g chia seeds, 300 g milk, 1 tbsp agave syrup/honey, 1 tsp vanilla powder. Topped with 30 g granola/oats and 100 g berries)

Recipe for homemade whole grain bread can be found [here!](https://hardworkout.no/hjemmebakt-grovbrod-i-jerngryte-rikt-pa-fiber-mettende-og-god-pa-smak/)

![whole grain blood pressure diet](https://hardworkout.no/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/fullkorn-225x150.jpeg)

Lunch options (approx. 600 calories)

- 4 slices of whole grain bread, omelet made from 3 eggs, 100 g vegetables (e.g. tomato, bell pepper, spinach)

- Oat pancakes (100 g oats, 1 egg, 300 g almond milk, 10 g chia seeds) topped with 100 g berries

- Chicken salad (200 g chicken breast, 1/2 avocado (60 g), 200 g vegetables, and 70 g barley or 70 g whole grain pasta) Feel free to use soy sauce or balsamic vinegar as dressing.

- Smoothie (400 g berries/fruits, kale, 30 g oats, 20 g protein powder with e.g. strawberry flavor) + 1 slice of whole grain bread with mackerel in tomato (90 g, e.g. King Oscar)

- Chicken wrap (1 whole grain tortilla, 150 g chicken breast, 1 avocado (120 g), 1 tbsp Drømmelett, and 100 g vegetables, e.g. tomato, bell pepper, spinach)

Dinner options (approx. 1000 calories)

[Pasta dish with shrimp and prawns](https://hardworkout.no/kjottfri-mandag-provd-denne-pastaretten-med-scampi-og-reker/)

Increase the amount of pasta by 45 g to get approximately 1000 calories for this meal. 130 g red fish, 700 g sweet potato, 300 g vegetables, and half an avocado (60 g)

See recipe tips here: Oven-baked trout – [Fish dinner that almost makes itself!](https://hardworkout.no/ovnsbakt-orret-fiskemiddag-som-nesten-lager-seg-selv/) 200 g ground beef or minced meat, 150 g whole grain pasta or rice, 300 g vegetables.

You can try this dish: [Stuffed zucchini for dinner - Healthy, tasty, and easy!](https://hardworkout.no/fylt-squash-til-middag-sunt-godt-og-enkelt/)

Add 150 g whole grain pasta or rice to get approximately 1000 calories for this meal. - Gratinated Tortillas (200 g chicken fillet or minced meat, 2 large whole grain tortillas, 1 can chopped tomatoes, 200 g vegetables, 1 avocado (120 g), 2 tbsp Drømmelett, 2 tbsp salsa sauce, and optional spices)

- [Homemade pizza](https://hardworkout.no/hjemmelaget-pizza-du-kan-spise-bade-i-ukedagene-og-i-helgene/) – The recipe is for two pizzas!

Tips for dinner vegetables: Asparagus, cabbage, mushrooms, onion, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower, bell pepper, kale, spinach, celery, and spring onion.

![make pizza](https://hardworkout.no/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/AdobeStock101163334-225x150.jpeg)

Snack options (approx. 400 calories)

- 1 Protein shake (40 g), 1 large banana (130 g), 200 g berries, 15 g almonds

Smoothie (400 g berries/fruits, 30 g oats, 20 g protein powder with e.g. strawberry flavor)

You can see various protein powders we recommend here: [Protein powder top 10 – Best in test 2024!](/magazine/protein-powder-best-in-test-2026-top-10-protein-powders) - [Energy shake](https://hardworkout.no/energishaken-du-ma-prove/) (The recipe corresponds to about 800 kcal, so you can halve the amount to have it as a snack.)

- Omelette (3 eggs, with 150 g potato and 100 g vegetables, e.g. tomato, bell pepper, spinach)

- 50 g [sugar-free granola](https://hardworkout.no/hjemmelaget-granola-perfekt-til-frokost-eller-som-mellommaltid/) or 50 g oats with 200 g low-fat vanilla quark, 100 g berries, and 10 g cashews/almonds

![healthy smoothies](https://hardworkout.no/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/imgonline-com-ua-compressed-Tr95U2LA41eYm-225x150.jpg)

How can you swap between carbohydrate and protein sources?

You can easily vary between the different protein and carbohydrate sources for all meals, just adjust the amount.

Equivalent calorie amounts in:

- 100 g brown basmati rice or white rice

- 420 g sweet potato

- 400 g potato

- 100 g whole grain pasta

- 2 large whole grain tortillas

Equivalent calorie amounts in fish/meat:

Approximately the same calorie amount in 200 g chicken fillet, 200 g minced meat, 200 g beef (e.g. sirloin), 130 g red fish, and 300 g white fish.

An example of the setup of the various meals for a whole week can be found [here](https://hardworkout.no/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Eksempelukesmeny2500.pdf).

How should 2500 calories be split between carbohydrate, protein and fat?

Macronutrients contain different amounts of calories:

- Carbohydrates (1 g) = 4 calories

- Proteins (1 g) = 4 calories

- Fat (1 g) = 9 calories

The general recommendations for macronutrients state that we should consume 10-20 E% proteins, 25-40 E% fat, and 45-60 E% carbohydrates.

How much protein do you need if you train regularly?

But a person who trains a lot will need more protein than this, and the recommendations vary between 1.2-2 g of protein per kilogram of body weight.

Given that this person weighs 80 kilograms and trains 3-5 days a week, we have chosen 1.8 g of protein per kilogram of body weight = 144 g / 576 calories from protein (which corresponds to 23 E% of 2500 calories).