Lunch Ideas for People Who Train
18 plates that work as lunch, with the protein, carbs and fat already worked out. Scale the carbohydrate first when a day needs more or less than the portions shown.
Chicken, Rice and Broccoli
The plate most lifters end up at eventually: lean protein, fast carbohydrate and a green vegetable, in proportions you can scale up or down without thinking.
- Calories
- 769
- Protein
- 72.4 g
- Carbs
- 81.3 g
- Fat
- 15.6 g
Lunch · Dinner
Beef and Sweet Potato Bowl
A heavier bowl for a training day. The sweet potato carries most of the carbohydrate and the beef does the rest of the work.
- Calories
- 745
- Protein
- 35.2 g
- Carbs
- 57.8 g
- Fat
- 41.8 g
Lunch · Dinner
Tuna Pasta
Store-cupboard food. Nothing here needs to be fresh, which makes it the plate that survives a week you did not shop for.
- Calories
- 713
- Protein
- 52.5 g
- Carbs
- 83.3 g
- Fat
- 17.7 g
Lunch · Dinner
Tofu and Black Bean Rice Bowl
Two plant proteins in one bowl, which is what it takes to reach a serious protein number without animal food.
- Calories
- 626
- Protein
- 33.4 g
- Carbs
- 87.9 g
- Fat
- 18.2 g
Lunch · Dinner
Lentil and Vegetable Bowl
Cheap, filling and high in fibre. Lentils carry both the protein and a large part of the carbohydrate, so the plate stays simple.
- Calories
- 544
- Protein
- 28.3 g
- Carbs
- 76.5 g
- Fat
- 15.4 g
Lunch · Dinner
Turkey and Rice Post-Training Plate
Built for the meal after a session: very lean protein, plenty of fast carbohydrate and almost no added fat.
- Calories
- 760
- Protein
- 71.4 g
- Carbs
- 104.3 g
- Fat
- 5.2 g
Post-Workout · Lunch · Dinner
Turkey and Sweet Potato Hash
One pan, and it reheats without turning into something else. Cook a double batch and the next two lunches are already done.
- Calories
- 584
- Protein
- 59.1 g
- Carbs
- 57.8 g
- Fat
- 14.4 g
Breakfast · Lunch
Chicken Thigh and Brown Rice Plate
Thigh instead of breast, so the plate carries its own fat and needs no oil added. It also tastes like something on day three of leftovers.
- Calories
- 645
- Protein
- 54.2 g
- Carbs
- 67.1 g
- Fat
- 17.6 g
Lunch · Dinner
Tilapia with Rice and Peppers
A very lean fish and a fast carbohydrate, which makes this an easy plate to put after a session. Cooks in the time the rice takes.
- Calories
- 610
- Protein
- 48.2 g
- Carbs
- 77.7 g
- Fat
- 11.5 g
Dinner · Lunch · Post-Workout
Turkey and Cheddar Sandwich
A packed lunch that survives a morning in a bag. The avocado is doing the job butter would, with a better fat profile.
- Calories
- 567
- Protein
- 53.3 g
- Carbs
- 39.1 g
- Fat
- 22.8 g
Lunch
Beef and Black Bean Chilli
Beans carry part of the protein and most of the fibre, so the beef does not have to be the whole meal. Makes four portions as easily as one.
- Calories
- 754
- Protein
- 43.4 g
- Carbs
- 60.1 g
- Fat
- 38.3 g
Lunch · Dinner
Tuna and Potato Salad
Eaten cold, which makes it a lunch you can build the night before. Cooked and cooled potato also sits easier than it does hot.
- Calories
- 597
- Protein
- 45.5 g
- Carbs
- 69.6 g
- Fat
- 15.8 g
Lunch
Chicken Pasta with Peppers
A large amount of carbohydrate in a plate nobody has to be talked into. Scale the pasta first when the day needs more or fewer calories.
- Calories
- 812
- Protein
- 71.5 g
- Carbs
- 84.5 g
- Fat
- 19.1 g
Lunch · Dinner
Chicken and Avocado Rice Bowl
The lean plate with the fat put back on purpose. Avocado is the easiest way to add fat to a bowl without adding a sauce nobody measures.
- Calories
- 812
- Protein
- 67.4 g
- Carbs
- 92.2 g
- Fat
- 17.8 g
Lunch · Dinner
Tofu and Broccoli Stir Fry
Fast, and it holds its texture better than most plant plates do. Press the tofu first if you want it to brown rather than steam.
- Calories
- 602
- Protein
- 31 g
- Carbs
- 78 g
- Fat
- 22.3 g
Lunch · Dinner
Black Bean and Sweet Potato Bowl
Cheap, and it holds together for a week in the fridge. The avocado goes on at the last minute rather than into the batch.
- Calories
- 601
- Protein
- 22.6 g
- Carbs
- 109.7 g
- Fat
- 10.2 g
Lunch · Dinner
Lentil Pasta Bowl
Lentils and pasta together get the protein up to somewhere a plant plate rarely reaches, without leaning on a powder to do it.
- Calories
- 734
- Protein
- 34 g
- Carbs
- 121.7 g
- Fat
- 12.9 g
Lunch · Dinner
Lentil and Potato Soup
The cheapest plate on this list by a distance, and the one that scales furthest. Freezes in portions without losing anything.
- Calories
- 662
- Protein
- 31.9 g
- Carbs
- 112.3 g
- Fat
- 11.5 g
Lunch · Dinner
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