Low-carb recipes_desktop
Low-carb foods
Is low carb right for you__desktop
Low-carb recipes _mobile

14-day low carb diet meal plan

By , medical review by

Not sure what to eat on a low carb diet? We have two simple ways for you to get started.

  1. You can sign up for the free two-week low carb challenge. There you will find a complete guide, including daily menus, easy shopping lists, daily emails to keep you on track, and more. Or…
  2. Just read on for some simple tips as well as a sample 14-day menu plan.

Low carb meal planning

DD+ MEMBERSHIP

Key takeaways

Helpful tips for cooking and meal preparation

Eating low carb, high-fat includes getting back to wholesome, real, minimally food. Some have even called it vintage eating. If you like to cook, you’ll find delicious meals below to make for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Not so sure about doing a lot of cooking? Here are some helpful tips to make it easier:

  1. Take a break from breakfast: If you’re not hungry, feel free to skip breakfast and just have coffee (with some milk if you want it).1 Many people find that within a few days of eating low carb, high-fat meals, cravings and hunger decrease significantly. This can make it easy to skip a meal, perhaps especially breakfast.2 Skipping a meal is cheap, fast, and might increase the diet’s effectiveness for weight loss and diabetes.3 See intermittent fasting
  2. Make bigger lots: cook two servings and save the second for lunch the next day. Now you only need to cook once per day!
  3. Freeze leftovers: Most of the recipes freeze well, too, so you can make up a casserole, divide it into smaller serving sizes and then freeze some to warm up later for a meal. Perhaps you don’t even have to cook every day?
  4. Repeat favorites: Crazy about scrambled eggs? Love steak? You can eat ’em everyday.4 We have more than 1000 low carb recipes with a huge variety of ingredients and flavours so you never will get bored. If, however, you find a couple of meals that you love and you find easy, feel free to eat them as often as you like. You will get the same results.5
  5. Basic no-cook plates: Away from a kitchen or not wanting to cook for a meal? Sliced deli meats, cheese, and vegetables with dip make an easy lunch.6 Or boil up a dozen eggs and keep them ready in the fridge to grab for lunch or snacks. A can of tuna or salmon, with some full fat mayonnaise and vegetable crudités, is a simple lunch.7 Smoked oysters, sardines, herring with raw veggies or a salad are other easy no-cook choices.

If you are looking for more detailed nutritional information, you can explore our evidence-based guides on eggs, red meat, and saturated fat to get started.

DD+ MEMBERSHIP

Who should NOT do a low carb diet?

A low carb diet is safe for almost everyone.8 Rapid weight loss or dramatic changes in blood sugar, however, may require extra support and knowledge for people in three specific situations:

  • Taking medication for diabetes: If you take insulin or other diabetes medications, learn more
  • Taking blood pressure medication? Learn more
  • Breastfeeding? If you are nursing a baby, learn more
Disclaimer: While a low carb diet has many proven benefits, it’s still controversial. Most importantly, you may need to adapt pre-existing medications (see above). Discuss any changes in medication and relevant lifestyle changes with your doctor. Full disclaimer

This diet plan is for adults with health issues, including obesity, that could benefit from a low carb diet.

Remember: water and salt

When eating a strict low carb diet, make sure you drink enough fluids – water and/or sparkling water are the best choices. Make sure you are getting enough salt, too. When you’re starting out, drink one to two cups of bouillon each day or add more salt to your food; doing so can minimize the initial “low carb flu”. 9


14-day low carb meal plan

Here’s the two-week low carb meal plan. A specific meal not to your liking? Make any changes you want by selecting from our 1,000+ low carb recipes (including vegetarian and dairy-free options).

DD+ MEMBERSHIP

Week 1

Here is your first week of delicious low carb recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You’ll save time planning, preparing, cooking, and cleaning up by making two dinner servings and refrigerating half to enjoy for lunch the next day.

We designed this meal plan to provide you with plenty of variety. However, feel free to swap out recipes based on your food preferences for meals that suit your lifestyle and cooking preferences. For example, if you find a breakfast you love — such as our keto egg and bacon casserole – go ahead and eat it every morning if you like.

Each day provides more than 100 grams of protein and less than 26 grams of net carbs.

Monday

Breakfast

Low carb blueberry smoothieLow carb blueberry smoothie

Lunch

Keto zucchini and walnut saladKeto zucchini and walnut salad

Dinner

Low carb moussakaLow carb moussaka

Tuesday

Breakfast

Fabulous low carb n'oatmealFabulous low carb n'oatmeal

Lunch

Keto Caprese omeletKeto Caprese omelet

Dinner

Broccoli and cauliflower gratin with sausageBroccoli and cauliflower gratin with sausage

Wednesday

Breakfast

Keto frittata with fresh spinachKeto frittata with fresh spinach

Lunch

Low carb rutabaga fritters with avocadoLow carb rutabaga fritters with avocado

Dinner

Zoodles with creamy salmon sauceZoodles with creamy salmon sauce

Thursday

Breakfast

Low carb coconut cream with berriesLow carb coconut cream with berries

Lunch

Salad in a jarSalad in a jar

Dinner

Creamy low carb Tuscan shrimpCreamy low carb Tuscan shrimp

Friday

Breakfast

Keto mushroom omeletKeto mushroom omelet

Lunch

Low carb fried kale and broccoli saladLow carb fried kale and broccoli salad

Dinner

Low carb eggplant pizzaLow carb eggplant pizza

Saturday

Breakfast

Low carb eggplant hash with eggsLow carb eggplant hash with eggs

Lunch

Keto quesadillasKeto quesadillas

Dinner

Creamy low carb cauliflower mushroom risottoCreamy low carb cauliflower mushroom risotto

Sunday

Breakfast

Keto pancakes with berries and whipped creamKeto pancakes with berries and whipped cream

Lunch

Jill's cheese-crusted keto omeletJill's cheese-crusted keto omelet

Dinner

Easy protein noodle low carb lasagnaEasy protein noodle low carb lasagna
DD+ MEMBERSHIP


Week 2

We hope you enjoyed your first week of our high-protein meal plan. Here is another week of new, equally tasty recipes for week two.

Each day provides more than 100 grams of protein and less than 25 grams of net carbs.

Monday

Breakfast

Low carb strawberry smoothieLow carb strawberry smoothie

Lunch

Smoked ham stuffed zucchini boatsSmoked ham stuffed zucchini boats

Dinner

Hamburger patties with onions and Brussels sproutsHamburger patties with onions and Brussels sprouts

Tuesday

Breakfast

Keto cauliflower hash brownsKeto cauliflower hash browns

Lunch

Low carb mushroom soup with Parma-ham chipsLow carb mushroom soup with Parma-ham chips

Dinner

Keto fried salmon with broccoli and cheeseKeto fried salmon with broccoli and cheese

Wednesday

Breakfast

Low carb chia puddingLow carb chia pudding

Lunch

Feta cheese stuffed bell peppersFeta cheese stuffed bell peppers

Dinner

Low carb curry chicken with cauliflower riceLow carb curry chicken with cauliflower rice

Thursday

Breakfast

Keto egg muffinsKeto egg muffins

Lunch

Low carb Hungarian Goulash soupLow carb Hungarian Goulash soup

Dinner

Zucchini fritters with beet saladZucchini fritters with beet salad

Friday

Breakfast

Boiled eggs with mayonnaiseBoiled eggs with mayonnaise

Lunch

Greek saladGreek salad

Dinner

Low carb zucchini pizza with pepperoniLow carb zucchini pizza with pepperoni

Saturday

Breakfast

Low carb coconut pancakesLow carb coconut pancakes

Lunch

Keto salmon-filled avocadosKeto salmon-filled avocados

Dinner

Stuffed low carb cabbage casseroleStuffed low carb cabbage casserole

Sunday

Lunch

Baked celery root with gorgonzolaBaked celery root with gorgonzola

Dinner

Keto Indian butter chickenKeto Indian butter chicken

Variety – hundreds of low carb recipes

Don’t like something specific in the 14-day plan above? Feel free to switch any meal to other low carb meals. We have hundreds of low carb recipes to choose from, here are some of the possibilities.
 

New low carb recipes

 

Low carb breakfasts

Low carb breakfasts
Low carb breakfasts 
No egg keto breakfasts
No egg keto breakfasts 
 

Low carb meals

Low carb recipes
Low carb recipes 
Quick keto meals in 20 minutes or less
Quick keto meals in 20 minutes or less 
 

More

A low carb diet for beginners
A low carb diet for beginners 
Low-carb foods
Low-carb foods 
 
 
 

Q&A

Here are a few common questions about this low carb diet plan. For more things that you may be wondering about, see our full low carb FAQ.

 

These recipes provide too much food for me. Do I have to eat all of it?

No. Our servings are in general designed to provide enough food for most people. If you feel satisfied and not hungry before finishing, it’s a great idea to stop. Especially if you want to lose weight, try to only eat when you’re hungry.10

Any leftovers can be shared with others or saved for later. If you regularly find our servings too large (perhaps if you’re a fairly small person), feel free to reduce the amounts in the recipes!

As long as you follow the meal plan and only eat when you are hungry, your chances of losing excess weight should be good.11 You probably don’t need to count calories on this diet.12 Reduced appetite is a common experience and you may even burn around 300 more calories per day.13

 

I’m still hungry after eating my meals. What should I do?
Feel free to add more of any low carb, high-fat food. The easiest way is to just add more protein or fat to your meal, like a double portion of steak, an extra hard-boiled egg, or a little extra butter, olive oil or mayonnaise.14 Top 10 ways to eat more fat
 
What if I’m hungry between meals? Can I snack?
 Many people stay satisfied on a low carb, high-fat diet, vastly decreasing the need for snacking.15 If you’re regularly hungry and need to snack, you may first want to make sure you’re reducing carbohydrates adequately. If so, you should probably eat more at the meals, more fat and enough protein.

However, if you really feel the need to snack occasionally, here’s our low carb snacks guide

 

I don’t eat meat or dairy. Can I still eat low carb?
 Yes. Just eat other low carb foods. You can even eat a vegetarian low carb diet, or a dairy-free low carb diet, or an egg-free low carb diet.

For more, have a look at our low carb foods guidelines

 

Can I drink alcohol on a low carb diet?
 Yes. But make sure to choose low carb drinks, like dry wine or whiskey. Full low carb alcohol guide

 
Full low carb diet FAQ

  1. It’s often claimed that eating breakfast is good for weight control. That appears to be false:

    British Medical Journal 2019: Effect of breakfast on weight and energy intake: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials [strong evidence]

    The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009: The effectiveness of breakfast recommendations on weight loss: a randomized controlled trial [moderate evidence] ↩

  2. Low carb diets tend to reduce feelings of hunger:

    Obesity Reviews 2014: Do ketogenic diets really suppress appetite? A systematic review and meta-analysis [strong evidence]

    Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases 2015: The effects of a low carbohydrate diet on appetite: a randomized controlled trial [moderate evidence]

    Obesity (Silver Spring) 2011: Change in food cravings, food preferences, and appetite during a low carbohydrate and low-fat diet. [moderate evidence]

    Skipping breakfast with ease is what practitioners experience with their patients and a very common report from people trying a low carb diet. This is based on clinical experience of low carb practitioners and was unanimously agreed upon by our low carb expert panel. You can learn more about our panel here [weak evidence] ↩

  3. Intermittent fasting can help people lose weight. Note that many of the studies on this investigate restricting calories to very low levels for a limited time, like one or more days per week (e.g. 400 calories per day). Actual fasting means restricting calories to close to zero for a time, so it may or may not be even more effective.

    JBI Database of Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports 2018: Intermittent fasting interventions for treatment of overweight and obesity in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis [strong evidence]

    Obesity Reviews 2017: Short‐term intermittent energy restriction interventions for weight management: a systematic review and meta‐analysis [strong evidence]

    Intermittent fasting and type 2 diabetes:

    JAMA Network Open 2018: Effect of intermittent compared with continuous energy restricted diet on glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomized noninferiority trial [moderate evidence]

    Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice 2016: The effects of intermittent compared to continuous energy restriction on glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes; a pragmatic pilot trial [moderate evidence]

    Diabetes Care 2013: Rapid improvement in diabetes after gastric bypass surgery: is it the diet or surgery? [weak evidence]

    BMJ Case Reports 2018: Therapeutic use of intermittent fasting for people with type 2 diabetes as an alternative to insulin [very weak evidence] ↩

  4. Do you worry about eating saturated fats or cholesterol? There’s no good reason to do so. While still a bit controversial, several modern systematic reviews find no benefit from avoiding saturated fats, or replacing them with unsaturated fats:

    Note that when including certain trials, some possibly inadequately controlled or not strictly randomised (the Finnish mental hospital study), there may be a small reduction in cardiovascular events from eating more unsaturated fats. Thus there is still some controversy surrounding this:

    Here’s a study investigating if eating eggs for breakfast every day has any negative effects on cholesterol levels. They found none, but the egg-eating group reported greater satiety:

    American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2015: The effect of a high-egg diet on cardiovascular risk factors in people with type 2 diabetes: the Diabetes and Egg (DIABEGG) study-a 3-mo randomized controlled trial [moderate evidence] ↩

  5. According to this study, there is no evidence that higher variety in diet is healthier:

    Circulation 2018: Dietary diversity: implications for obesity prevention in adult populations: a science advisory from the American Heart Association [overview article] ↩

  6. The evidence against eating red meat is very weak. Learn more

    American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2017: Total red meat intake of ≥0.5 servings/d does not negatively influence cardiovascular disease risk factors: a systemically searched meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials [strong evidence]
    ↩

  7. We hesitate slightly to recommend mayo. The reason is that most commercial brands are made with high omega-6 oils (like soybean, safflower, sunflower, cottonseed, corn oils) and a high intake of omega-6 fats might not be healthy. Learn more

    A safer option might be to make your own mayo. Here’s how. ↩

  8. The main fear about lower-carb and higher-fat diets have always been an increase in the risk of heart disease. However, interventional studies so far indicate that if anything the risk appears to decrease:

    For more health controversies regarding a low carb diet, have a look at this page:

    Low carb controversies ↩

  9. This is based on clinical experience of low carb practitioners and was unanimously agreed upon by our low carb expert panel. You can learn more about our panel here [weak evidence].

    But there’s also some support from this study that found only minor increases in side effects, while advising participants to drink bouillon:

    Nutrition & Metabolism 2008: The effect of a low carbohydrate, ketogenic diet versus a low-glycemic index diet on glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus [moderate evidence] ↩

  10. How to lose weight #2: Eat when hungry

    How to lose weight #4: Eat only when hungry ↩

  11. After a similar two-week program on our site, 86% of people completing the program reported losing weight:

    How much weight do people lose on low carb? ↩

  12. While calories count, you probably don’t have to count them for good results. Low carb diets tend to result in more weight loss, even though most studies of it do not advocate counting calories:

    British Journal of Nutrition 2016: Effects of low carbohydrate diets v. low-fat diets on body weight and cardiovascular risk factors: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. [strong evidence for more weight loss]

    New England Journal of Medicine 2008: Weight loss with a low carbohydrate, mediterranean, or low-fat diet [moderate evidence]

    Learn more here: Should you count calories on a low carb or keto diet? ↩

  13. Appetite tends to be somewhat suppressed on low carb diets:

    Obesity Reviews 2014: Do ketogenic diets really suppress appetite? A systematic review and meta-analysis [strong evidence]

    Low carb diets may increase metabolism by between 200 and 500 calories per day, at least under certain circumstances, potentially increasing fat burning:

    British Medical Journal 2018: Effects of a low carbohydrate diet on energy expenditure during weight loss maintenance: randomized trial [moderate evidence]

    Learn more
    ↩

  14. Eating enough protein might sometimes be even more satisfying than eating more fat:

    Advances in Nutrition 2015: Controversies surrounding high-protein diet intake: Satiating effect and kidney and bone health [overview article] ↩

  15. Obesity Reviews 2014: Do ketogenic diets really suppress appetite? A systematic review and meta-analysis [strong evidence] ↩