High-Protein Weekly Meal Planner Printable

What’s different from the standard version

The standard Weekly Meal Planner has 5 columns: Day, Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snacks, and Notes. This high-protein version adds:

• A Protein (g) column next to each meal slot — write your estimated grams
• A Daily Protein Total row at the bottom of each day
• A Weekly Protein Average in the bottom-right corner

Everything else is identical: same Monday–Sunday layout, same landscape orientation, same Notes column. If you don’t need protein tracking, the standard Weekly Meal Planner is a cleaner option.

How to use this planner — 2 real scenarios

Hitting a daily protein target during a strength training phase

You’re working out 4 days a week and aiming for 150g of protein daily. Each Sunday evening, you plan the week’s meals with protein estimates. By mid-afternoon on any given day, you can glance at the running total and know whether dinner needs to be protein-heavy (grilled chicken, salmon) or if you have room for a lighter meal (pasta, stir-fry). The weekly average row at the bottom tells you if you’re consistently meeting your target or only managing it on training days — a pattern that’s invisible without tracking.

Ensuring adequate protein during post-surgery recovery

Your doctor recommended higher protein intake during recovery. You’re not obsessively counting grams, but you want each meal to include a meaningful protein source. The protein column works as a visual checklist: if you see three empty protein cells in a row, that’s your cue to add eggs, yogurt, or beans to the next meal. The daily total doesn’t need to be exact — just seeing “85g” versus “40g” is enough to adjust.

Example fill-out

Monday:

• Breakfast: 3-egg omelet with cheese and spinach — 28g protein
• Lunch: Chicken breast wrap with hummus — 35g
• Dinner: Ground turkey stir-fry with broccoli and rice — 32g
• Snacks: Greek yogurt (15g) + protein shake (25g) — 40g
• Daily total: 135g (target: 150g — close enough for a Monday)

Tuesday:

• Breakfast: Overnight oats with protein powder and peanut butter — 30g
• Lunch: Leftover turkey stir-fry — 30g
• Dinner: Baked salmon fillet with quinoa and green beans — 38g
• Snacks: Cottage cheese + almonds — 22g
• Daily total: 120g (below target — add a Greek yogurt before bed)

Common mistakes with protein-focused meal planning

1. Trying to load all your protein into one meal. Your body absorbs and uses protein more effectively when it’s distributed across the day. Aim for 25–40g per meal rather than one massive 80g dinner.

2. Ignoring snack protein. Two simple snacks — Greek yogurt and a handful of almonds — add 30g of protein with zero cooking. Don’t leave that potential on the table.

3. Tracking to the exact gram. This is a planning tool, not a lab instrument. Estimates within 5g are plenty accurate. Whether your chicken breast is 28g or 33g doesn’t change your weekly outcome.

4. Forgetting that protein needs are personal. This planner doesn’t prescribe a target. Set your own based on your goals and consult a registered dietitian for personalized guidance.