7-Day Meal Plan for Pre-diabetes

Eating healthy with pre-diabetes is easy and delicious with this 7-day pre-diabetes diet plan, and works well as a type 2 diabetes meal plan, too. The meals and snacks that make this plan so simple and realistic to follow feature the best foods for diabetes (and preventing diabetes), like complex carbohydrates (think whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables), lean protein and healthy fats.

The carbohydrates are balanced throughout each day with each meal containing 2-3 carb servings (30-45 grams of carbohydrates) and each snack containing around 1-1 1/2 carb servings (15-25 grams of carbohydrates). To help keep your blood sugar from spiking too high too quickly, we limited refined carbohydrates (like white bread, white pasta and white rice) and have also cut down on saturated fats and sodium, which can negatively impact your health if you eat too much.

Related: Healthy Diabetes Recipes

What we definitely didn't skimp on is flavor. The meals and snacks in this plan feature fresh ingredients and plenty of herbs and spices that add flavor without adding extra sodium.

Managing pre-diabetes doesn't need to be difficult—choose a variety of nutritious foods, as we do in this meal plan, add in daily exercise, stay well-hydrated, get plenty of rest and manage your stress for a healthy, sustainable whole-health approach to managing and preventing diabetes.

1. Prep the Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls and store in an air-tight container (To buy: amazon.com, $29.99 for 5) to have as a ready-made lunch on Days 2 through 5. (Bonus: See the step-by-step guide for meal prepping this recipe plus two more diabetes-friendly recipes)
2. Make 5 servings of the Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats and store in leak-proof cotainers (To buy: amazon.com, $20 for 6) to have as grab-and-go breakfasts on Days 2 through 6.
3. Start the Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup early enough on Day 1 so that it's ready by dinner time.

Related: The Best 30-Day Diabetes Diet Plan

• 1 serving Everything Bagel Avocado Toast
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 nonfat plain Greek yogurt

• 20 pistachios

• 1 serving Veggie & Hummus Sandwich

If you'll be taking this sandwich to go, store it in a reusable silicone bag (To buy: amazon.com, $13 for 1).

• 1 medium apple, sliced and sprinkled with cinnamon

• 2 cups Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup topped with 2 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 slice whole-wheat bread, toasted and drizzled with 2 tsp. olive oil

Make Ahead Tip: Save 2 cups each of the Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup and store in an airtight container (To buy: amazon.com, $11 for 1) for Days 6 and 7.

Daily Total: 1,195 calories, 54 g protein, 148 g carbohydrates, 37 g fiber, 49 g sugar, 49 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 1,924 mg sodium

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

• 15 cherries

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

• 1 medium apple, sliced and sprinkled with cinnamon

• 2 1/2 cups Lentil & Roasted Vegetable Salad with Green Goddess Dressing topped with 1/2 cup croutons

Daily Total: 1,204 calories, 37 g protein, 176 g carbohydrates, 40 g fiber, 61 g sugar, 45 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 1,638 mg sodium

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

• 1 medium plum

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

• 1 medium orange

• 1 1/3 cups Chicken Sausage & Peppers
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice tossed with 1/2 tsp. each olive oil and no-salt-added Italian seasoning
• 2 cups mixed greens topped with 2 Tbsp. Italian vinaigrette dressing*

*When buying premade salad dressings, choose one made with olive oil or canola oil and without added sugars.

Make-Ahead Tip: Cook an extra 1/2 cup of brown rice to have for dinner on Day 7. You can substitute brown rice for the farro in the dinner recipe for Day 4, in which case, you can also cook an extra 2 cups of rice tonight to save yourself time tomorrow.

Daily Total: 1,195 calories, 45 g protein, 166 g carbohydrates, 35 g fiber, 54 g sugar, 44 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 1,678 mg sodium

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

• 15 cherries

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

• 1 medium orange

• 1 serving Lemon-Herb Salmon with Caponata & Farro*

*Don't have farro? You can substitute another whole grain you have on hand, like brown rice.

Daily Total: 1,209 calories, 58 g protein, 166 g carbohydrates, 36 g fiber, 60 g sugar, 40 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 1,422 mg sodium

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

• 1 plum

• 1 serving Chipotle-Lime Cauliflower Taco Bowls

• 20 cherries

• 1 serving Spaghetti Squash & Meatballs
• 1 1/2 cups mixed greens topped with 1 Tbsp. Italian vinaigrette dressing

Daily Total: 1,211 calories, 54 g protein, 160 g carbohydrates, 36 g fiber, 63 g sugar, 44 g fat, 9 g saturated fat, 1,635 mg sodium

• 1 serving Cinnamon-Roll Overnight Oats
• 1/2 cup raspberries
• 1 Tbsp. chopped pecans

• 25 cherries

• 2 cups Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup topped with 2 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese

• 1 medium orange

• 1 serving Apple-Glazed Chicken with Spinach
• 1/2 cup Steamed Butternut Squash tossed with 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, 1/2 tsp. thyme and a pinch each of salt and pepper.

Daily Total: 1,206 calories, 59 g protein, 180 g carbohydrates, 33 g total fiber, 87 g sugar, 35 g fat, 6 g saturated fat, 2,288 mg sodium

Make-Ahead Tip: Tonight's dinner is a slow-cooker recipe. Make sure you start it early enough in the day that it will be ready in time for dinner.

• 2 Blueberry-Pecan Pancakes
• 1/2 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup

• 1 medium orange

• 2 cups Slow-Cooker Vegetable Soup topped with 1 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese

• 1 medium apple

• 1 serving Mushroom-Sauced Pork Chops
• 1/2 cup cooked brown rice
• 3/4 cup Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

Daily Total: 1,203 calories, 59 g protein, 183 g carbohydrates, 29 g fiber, 77 g sugar, 31 g fat, 6 g saturated fat, 1,775 mg sodium

Congratulations on finishing this weekly meal plan for pre-diabetes. Whether you made every single meal in this plan or simply used it as a guide for healthy eating, we hope you found it inspirational, exciting and informational. If you liked this meal plan, check out our other healthy meal plans for diabetes and collection of delicious diabetes-friendly recipes.