Looking for some great 500 calorie meals for weight loss?
You’ve come to right place :) I gotcha covered.
When eating to lose weight, a few things are of paramount importance:
You need to be in a calorie deficit (multiply your goal body weight x 11 for a good starting place).
You need adequate protein (1g/pound of your current body weight is a good starting place).
You need to optimize your food volume for a certain number of calories in order to remain satiated and control hunger while on a reduced calorie diet.
The first one above is your job: you need to establish your fat loss calorie intake and stick to it. You want to strive to be at least 80-90% compliant in terms of not exceeding your target calorie intake for at least 90 days. That means, you should not be exceeding your target calorie intake ANYMORE than 3-4 times/month for 3 months.
You are also going to want to track your calorie intake honestly, accurately, and precisely. You would be well advised to use a nutrition tracking app like Nutritionix Track (my favorite and the one I advise all my COACHING CLIENTS to use). For more information on accurate calorie tracking, see THIS ARTICLE to avoid common mistakes.
Now, number 2 and number 3 above...that’s what I can help you with: offering up moderate- calorie meals which optimize protein and food volume. 👊
Why 500 Calorie Meals For Weight Loss?
Good question. Frankly...I don’t have a great answer for ya’! :)
I settled on 500 calories (some of the meals I present below are actually less) because, for the vast majority (yourself probably included), this is enough calories in a meal to feel like an actual meal (not a snack), and these meals are also going to fit easily into a daily 3-4 meal & 1500-2000 calorie structure.
While there is no superior meal frequency or amount of calories you should be consuming per meal to lose weight-a lot of things can work-I tend to encourage my clients to consume 3-4 larger meals. Again, this is not for everyone and it’s personal preference. Some folks thrive on more frequent, smaller meals. Others thrive on fewer higher calorie meals.
It comes down to what’s sustainable for YOU.
Five 500 Calorie Meals For Weight Loss
Ok, now that we have the introductory information out of the way...let’s hop into the 500 calorie meals for weight loss.
I went ahead and provided short videos for each meal, the amounts of each food in each meal, and the total calories and macronutrient breakdown of each meal. After each video, I’ve provide some notes and tips for the recipes.
3 quick things to note before I get into the meals:
None of these meals are the least bit complicated to make. You don’t need to be a chef and these are not time-consuming to prepare.
YOU may need to adjust the amounts in the meals to fit YOUR individual calorie and macro goals AND (going back to what I said above) your meal frequency preferences.
Season the protein sources in these 500 calorie meals for weight loss with whatever no calorie spice/rub/seasoning you like (try different things out).
Macro-Friendly Breakfast Skillet
This is super simple to put together:
Preheat over to 400 degrees
Combine all ingredients (minus the cheese) into a skillet
Bake for about 13-15 minutes
Top with a slice of fat-free cheddar cheese and hot sauce of your choice (optional)
This little baby delivers over 60g of protein, 6g of fiber, and will keep you full for hours due to the large food volume. You cannot go wrong with this for breakfast or ANY time.
Turkey Sausage Omelet W/ Kodiak Waffle Topped W/ Greek Yogurt
This is another one of my “go to” powerhouse sub-500 calorie meals for weight loss. Coming in at 490 calories, 55g of protein, and 4.5g of fiber...you just can’t go wrong with this when it comes to staying full.
This is very basic as well:
Cook egg whites and turkey sausage crumbles in a skillet and make into an omelet or scramble
While the eggs are cooking, pop a KODIAK CAKE WAFFLE in the toaster oven.
Once eggs and waffle are cooked, top the eggs with a slice of fat-free cheddar cheese and top the waffle with one container (I like Fage Tru-Blend) of your favorite Greek yogurt.
Skillet Turkey Breast Over Hash Browns W/ Cheese & Sauce
This is a great sub-500 calorie meal for lunch or dinner and, once again, it’s super easy and quick to prepare. This also serves quite well as a post-workout meal due to the low fat content and higher amount of carbs.
Here are some notes:
Take basic deli turkey breast (I used Oscar Mayer) and cook up a little crispy in a skillet.
While your turkey is going, have your hash browns (I use pre-packaged Simply Potatoes) going in a toaster over at 400 degrees for about 13-15 minutes.
Once cooked, thrown in a bowl, top with a slice of fat-free cheddar, and pour on the 60 calorie sauce of your choice (I used A1 here).
Malibu Buffalo Surf & Turf Over Cauliflower Rice
Who doesn’t like surf & turf (meat & seafood)? Answer? No ONE. :)
This is great 400ish calorie meal which delivers a monster amount of protein (76g), a nice hit of fiber (and a veggie serving), and is flat out delicious. As with the other 500 calorie meals for weight loss presented, this is super easy to prep.
Here’s the deal:
Cook up the Malibu-seasoned (or any seasoning of your choice) chicken in an air fryer (you don’t have to but this is what I did). I used pre-cooked chicken strips and air fried for 8 minutes.
While the chicken is cooking, sauté the pre-cooked, Malibu-seasoned (or any seasoning) jumbo shrimp for a couple minutes until tender
As the surf & turf is finishing up, pop a 35 calorie packet of cauliflower rice in the microwave for 90-seconds (I use Full Green riced broccoli/cauliflower mix)
Mix up in a bowl and top with Frank’s no calorie wing sauce (or any no calorie sauce of your choosing)
Peanut Butter Cup High Protein Cereal
You didn’t think I’d forget about dessert/sweet treat did you? :)
This is incredible, macro-friendly, and will satisfy the sweetest of sweet teeth.
Who says you can’t have fun on a fat loss diet?
Here is the deal:
Mix 1 cup cashew milk, protein powder of your choice (I use MTS Whey), and PB2 powdered peanut butter together in a blender and blend.
Put measured cereal (I use chocolate frosted mini wheats) in a bowl
Pour the protein milk over cereal
Crush the goodness!
You’d never know something that tastes this good comes in at under 400 calories and offers 36g of protein and 7g of fiber!
Dieting Does NOT Need To Be Complicated, Time Consuming...and The Food Doesn’t Have To Be Boring!
Well, there you have it: Five 500 calorie meals for weight loss (sometimes under 500 calories:). Once again, before enjoying these meals, make sure you go back to the beginning of this article and calculate your weight loss calories correctly: you MUST be in the right calorie deficit to lose weight!
Want a bunch more of these 500 calorie meals for weight loss? Please check out my “recipes” highlight on my INSTAGRAM.
If you enjoyed this article, it would mean a lot to me if you shared it with your friends and family on your social media.
Enjoy the goodness and good luck on your weight loss journey!
*Want to level up your nutrition, training and fat loss? Want a GPS on your fitness journey? Want someone to take all the guesswork out of the equation and provide daily accountability? Check out my budget-friendly coaching program HERE*
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