Vitamin rich meal plan

Living a hectic life and trying to include all the vitamins you need in your diet can be tricky. For instance, if your job requires a lot of travelling, eating a bag of crisps on your journey is a lot easier than tucking into a nutritious salad.

However, the key is in the prep. If you struggle to eat breakfast in the morning, simply go to bed earlier the night before and get up an hour earlier the following day. Make extra for dinner and have the leftovers for lunch. Or keep healthier snack alternatives in the places you spend the most to avoid the temptation of buying junk food.

To give your body a big nutritional boost, you need a diet rich in vitamins and minerals. Here’s a taster of how a perfectly balanced one-day meal plan should look like.

Meal	Recipe	Meal benefits
Breakfast	Porridge with 200ml of milk and 80g of blackberries	Milk can provide you with calcium and vitamin B2 to promote healthy bones, skin and eyes. The oats from the porridge will be a great for a long day at the office as they provide slow-releasing carbohydrates, as well as fibre. Blackberries will also promote healthy skin and immune system, containing vitamin C and E.
Snack	A small packet / one small cup of cashews	Cashews are a great way to hit your iron intake for the day, with just one handful equating to one-quarter of your NRV
Lunch	Baked sweet potato with ¾ of a cup of black beans, half an avocado and a spoonful of salsa	Sweet potatoes are brimming with nutrients – including vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, potassium, fibre, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6 and phosphorus. Black beans are also a great source of fibre as well as protein. The avocado is a good fat with carbohydrates, vitamin K, vitamin E, B-vitamins and vitamin C. The salsa is there to give the dish a bit of punch, but also provides a welcome dose of vitamin C too.
Snack	A banana	Filled with magnesium to help promote healthy nerves and muscles. You’ll also get plenty of vitamin B6, which enables your body to use and store protein and carbohydrates more effectively. Bananas are also a great source of energy, giving your body a sixth of your NRV of potassium.
Dinner	A stir-fry with 100g tofu, edamame beans, mung bean sprouts, brown rice, low-fat soy sauce and sriracha	Tofu and edamame beans offer a protein punch for vegan diets. Brown rice is a healthier alternative to white rice or noodles, giving you a slow release of energy throughout the day. The mung bean sprouts are low in calories and will give your body fibre, B vitamins, vitamin C and vitamin K.