7-Day Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan for a Healthy Gut, Created by a Registered Dietitian (2024)

You’ll be amazed at how deliciously you can support your gut health!

Reviewed by dietitian Maria Laura Haddad-Garcia

In recent years, the US News & World Report has ranked the Mediterranean diet as the best overall diet. Additionally, in 2024, the Mediterranean diet took first place for best diet for bone and joint health, best family diet, easiest diet to follow, best heart-healthy diet and the best diet plan for healthy eating.

The principles of the Mediterranean diet are simple: eat more fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fatty fish and whole grains while eating less saturated fat and added sugars. Research shows that following this diet reduces the risk of metabolic syndrome, obesity, type 2 diabetes, certain types of cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases.

Having a healthy gut microbiome also has many of these same benefits. Data has shown that in addition to helping with constipation and digestion, good gut bacteria can help improve mood, sleep and heart health.

Additionally, a healthy microbiome and the Mediterranean diet are associated with maintaining a healthy weight.

To help you increase your good gut bacteria and reap the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet, we’ve created this seven-day eating plan filled with foods that follow both diets. Additionally, we set this meal plan at 1,500 calories, a level that will allow most to lose weight, but adjustments for 1,200 and 2,000 calories are also listed if you need more or fewer calories. Feel free to modify it according to your caloric needs.

Foods to Focus on

Contrary to popular belief, it is not necessary to eat traditional foods from the Mediterranean region when following the Mediterranean diet. Foods from these groups can fit this diet.

Foods of the Mediterranean diet:

• Herbs and spices

• Fruits

• Vegetables

• Healthy fats, like olive oil or avocado oil

• Nuts, including natural nut butters

• Seeds (chia, pumpkin, flax and more)

• Fish

• Eggs

• Meat

• Poultry

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• Legumes (chickpeas, pinto beans, lentils and more)

• Dairy products, including cheese, yogurt and kefir

• Whole grains (bulgur, farro, fonio, freekeh, couscous, rice and more)

Gut-healthy foods:

Probiotics are foods that contain healthy gut bacteria, while prebiotics are foods that feed good gut bacteria. These foods are naturally rich in each, but are not limited to these lists.

Foods rich in probiotics:

• Yogurt

• Kefir

• Miso

• Sauerkraut

• Kimchi

• Tempeh

• Kombucha

Foods rich in prebiotics:

How to prepare your meals for the week:

1. Make banana protein muffins for breakfast on days 2 and 3 and for snack on day 4.

2. On the evening of Day 3, prepare two servings of Creamy Blueberry Pecan Oatmeal for breakfast on Days 4 and 5.

3. Make Everything Bagel Crispy Chickpeas for snacking on days 6 and 7.

Day 1

Breakfast (249 calories)

Morning snack (211 calories)

Lunch (439 calories)

Evening snack (163 calories)

Dinner (429 calories)

Meal preparation tip: Save a portion of the charred shrimp, pesto and quinoa bowls for tomorrow’s lunch.

Daily totals: 1,491 calories, 67 g protein, 168 g carbohydrates, 29 g fiber, 70 g fat, 1,397 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the cashews from the morning snack and the hummus and nuts from the afternoon snack.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 hard-boiled eggs at breakfast, increase to 1 cup blueberries and 1/3 cup cashews at morning snack, increase to ¼ cup hummus and ¼ cup nuts at afternoon snack , add 2 servings of creamy dill yogurt sauce to dinner.

Day 2

Breakfast (254 calories)

Morning snack (208 calories)

Lunch (429 calories)

Evening snack (101 calories)

Dinner (504 calories)

Meal preparation tip: Save a portion of the charred shrimp, pesto and quinoa bowls for tomorrow’s lunch.

Daily totals: 1,496 calories, 81 g protein, 177 g carbohydrates, 27 g fiber, 58 g fat, 1,533 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the orange at breakfast, replace the morning snack with 1 cup of air-popped popcorn, and reduce it to ½ pear at the evening snack.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 hard-boiled eggs to breakfast, add ¼ cup of flaked almonds to the morning snack, and add 2 ounces of low-fat cheddar to the evening snack.

Day 3

Breakfast (373 calories)

Morning snack (173 calories)

Lunch (353 calories)

Evening snack (200 calories)

Dinner (408 calories)

Daily totals: 1,506 calories, 84 g protein, 164 g carbohydrates, 41 g fiber, 64 g fat, 1,916 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the clementines and reduce to ½ cup of kefir at breakfast, reduce to ½ cup of edamame as an afternoon snack, and omit the baguette at dinner.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 scrambled eggs at breakfast, increase to 1 ½ cups raspberries at morning snack, add 2 servings of creamy dill yogurt sauce at lunch, increase to 2 cups edamame at morning snack afternoon and increase to 2 slices of baguette at dinner.

Day 4

Breakfast (291 calories)

Morning snack (176 calories)

Lunch (430 calories)

Evening snack (193 calories)

Dinner (411 calories)

Meal preparation tip: Save a portion of lentil salad with feta, tomatoes, cucumbers and olives for tomorrow’s lunch.

Daily totals: 1,501 calories, 80 g protein, 162 g carbohydrates, 26 g fiber, 63 g fat, 1,394 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Reduce nuts to 1 tablespoon at morning snack, omit chicken at dinner, and replace evening snack with 1 small banana.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 tablespoons of peanut butter at breakfast, increase to ¼ cup nuts at morning snack, add 1 ounce of dark chocolate at evening snack, and increase to 4 ounces of chicken at dinner.

Day 5

Breakfast (291 calories)

Morning snack (210 calories)

Lunch (368 calories)

Evening snack (206 calories)

Dinner (414 calories)

Daily totals: 1,489 calories, 86 g protein, 147 g carbohydrates, 24 g fiber, 67 g fat, 1,580 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the peanut butter from the morning snack and replace the evening snack with ½ small pear.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 2 tablespoons of peanut butter to breakfast, add ½ whole wheat pita to lunch, increase to 5 tablespoons of almonds to afternoon snack, and add 1 ounce of dark chocolate to dinner.

Day 6

Breakfast (311 calories)

Morning snack (301 calories)

Lunch (333 calories)

Evening snack (220 calories)

Dinner (330 calories)

Daily totals: 1,494 calories, 63 g protein, 168 g carbohydrates, 24 g fiber, 68 g fat, 2,384 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the English muffin at breakfast, the almonds at morning snack, and reduce them to ¼ pita at dinner.

Make it 2,000 calories: Increase to 1 whole English muffin at breakfast, add 1/2 cup kimchi and 2 tablespoons chopped peanuts at lunch, increase to 2 servings of chickpeas at afternoon snack and 1 whole pita at dinner.

Day 7

Breakfast (296 calories)

Morning snack (121 calories)

Lunch (488 calories)

1 serving of crispy smoked tofu and coleslaw wraps

Evening snack (220 calories)

Dinner (383 calories)

Daily totals: 1,508 calories, 77 g protein, 141 g carbohydrates, 25 g fiber, 66 g fat, 2,473 mg sodium

Make it 1,200 calories: Omit the honey and chia seeds from the morning snack and reduce them to ¼ cup kefir and replace the evening snack with 1/2 cup air-popped popcorn.

Make it 2,000 calories: Add 1 large banana to breakfast, increase to 1 cup of kefir, 2 teaspoons of chia seeds and 2 teaspoons of honey to morning snack, increase to 2 servings of chickpeas to breakfast snack afternoon and add 1 hard-boiled egg to dinner.

Read the original article on Eating Well.