Meal Plan Builder · Training Guide
NewKind Training guide · for new nutritionists

Meal Plan Builder

What the tool works out for you, the rules it follows, and a guided practice run to do before your first real client.

1. The idea in one minute

You enter the client. The builder works out their calorie, protein, carb and fat targets, builds a week of real meals from our approved recipes, and sizes every portion to hit those targets. Your job is to check it fits the person: their taste, their routine, their cooking days. Then tick the checklist and download the PDF.

The tool doesMaths, targets, portions, recipe choice, diet and allergy rules, warnings.
You doCorrect client details, taste and preferences, swaps, notes, final check.
Nothing is savedDownload the PDF before closing the tab. The PDF can be reopened to edit.

2. The five steps

1 · ClientYour name, individual or couple, month, age, sex, height, weight, activity, diet and non-veg days, allergies, purpose, conditions, foods to include or avoid, cuisine, cheat meals, early-morning drink.
2 · TargetsBMI, maintenance calories, target weight and the daily calorie, protein, carb and fat targets. You can override calories or protein; more than 20% off the rule gets flagged.
3 · Meal planA full week, already fitted. Click any item to change its portion or swap it. Week averages sit above the table. Or choose Start from blank and build it yourself.
4 · RecommendationsA guidelines template for the program plus up to six automatic health-condition tips. Edit anything.
5 · PDFPick the cover, add a note for the client, check the preview and download. Couples get one PDF each.

3. How the targets are worked out

BMIweight (kg) ÷ height (m)². Under 18.5 underweight, 18.5–24.9 normal, 25–29.9 overweight, 30+ obese.
BMRMifflin-St Jeor: 10 × kg + 6.25 × cm − 5 × age, then +5 for men or −161 for women.
MaintenanceBMR × activity: 1.2 sedentary · 1.375 light · 1.55 normal exercise · 1.725 heavy weight training.
Target weightSuggested at 0.5 kg a week over the chosen months, never below BMI 22. Weight gain: 0.25 kg a week, up to BMI 21. You can type your own.
Calories1 kg of fat ≈ 7,700 kcal, so 0.5 kg a week = 550 kcal a day less. Loss capped at 1 kg a week. Never below 1,200 kcal (women) or 1,500 kcal (men). Rounded to the nearest 50.
Protein1 g per kg of current weight. 1.2 g/kg for GLP-1 support. 1.5 g/kg for heavy weight training. Rounded to the nearest 5 g.
Fat25% of calories for weight loss, 30% for everyone else. Grams = calories × % ÷ 9.
CarbsWhatever is left: (calories − protein × 4 − fat × 9) ÷ 4.
Worked example · Ananya (the training client) Woman, 32 y, 165 cm, 74 kg, light activity, weight loss over 3 months. BMR 740 + 1,031 − 160 − 161 = 1,450 → × 1.375 = 1,994 kcal maintenance. Target 67.5 kg ≈ 0.5 kg a week → −550 kcal → 1,450 kcal. Protein 74 g → 75 g. Fat 25% → 40 g. Carbs → about 197 g.

4. How the week is built

Lunch and dinner are always a real meal, one of these:

Roti or rice + dal + sabzi + salad
Roti or rice + a curry (chicken, fish, egg, paneer, tofu)
A one-bowl meal + salad
Grilled protein + salad + sautéed veggies
Soup + grilled protein + salad
Roti + dal + a dry protein + salad
  • Breakfast is a breakfast dish (with yogurt or eggs if it’s low in protein), or eggs or paneer with toast.
  • Snack is a fruit with nuts or a healthy snack. Early morning is a drink with soaked nuts (can be switched off).
  • Morning drink: lukewarm water by default; methi (fenugreek) water for PCOS and diabetes, as its fibre can modestly lower blood sugar after meals; lemon water in pregnancy, never methi. Nuts alternate: 1 Brazil nut (selenium, no more than 1–2 a day) or 4 walnut halves (omega-3).
  • Each day tries 8 combinations, fits the portions, and keeps the one closest to target with the fewest repeats. Regenerate gives a new set.
  • Non-veg days get a non-veg main at lunch or dinner. Other days are vegetarian.
  • Month 2, 3… Upload last months’ PDFs under Previous months’ plans so their dishes are used less.

5. Portions

  • Household measures only: rotis by the piece, dal and sabzi in ½-cup steps, chicken, fish and paneer in 25 g steps (raw weight, never below 50 g).
  • Limits: up to 4 rotis, 2 cups of rice or dal, 200 g chicken or fish, 150 g paneer per serving.
  • Oil: about 1 tsp per serving in curries and sabzis, up to 8 g for tawa dishes, no more than 4 tsp a day.
  • Fit all portions to targets resizes portions (not dishes) after you swap or add items. It overwrites portions you set by hand.
  • Day totals are teal when on target and rose when you should check them.

6. Rules the tool won’t break

DietStrict in generated plans. If you add non-veg to a veg client or a veg day by hand, you get a warning popup, a rose label on the item, and it’s listed before download.
AllergiesStrict. Items with the allergen are never used and are hidden from the swap list.
Include / avoidIncluded foods appear at least twice a week. Avoided foods are never used.
DiabetesHigh-GI recipes are blocked, fat 30%, carbs kept similar across breakfast, lunch and dinner.
PCOSFat 30% so carbs are lower; low-GI and cycle tips.
GLP-1Protein 1.2 g/kg; protein-first, hydration and small-meal tips.
PregnancyNo weight loss. From the 2nd trimester, add 350 kcal a day to maintenance, plus 9.5 g protein a day (2nd trimester) or 22 g (3rd). No fish, liver, raw papaya, raw sprouts or caffeine. Targets show the healthy weight-gain range for her pre-pregnancy BMI. Plan with her doctor.
BreastfeedingAdd 600 kcal and 17 g protein a day while the baby is 0–6 months, or 520 kcal and 13 g from 6–12 months. No weight loss for the first 2 months; after that, at most 0.5 kg a week and never below 1,800 kcal a day.
Cheat mealCounts as 500 kcal (19 g protein, 56 g carbs, 22 g fat); the rest of the day is sized to what’s left.
CouplesSame dishes, separate portions. A veg partner gets paneer or tofu in place of chicken or fish. Edits apply only to the person you’re viewing.
Safety flagsPregnancy, under 18 or over 65, BMI under 18.5, and diabetes on insulin or sulfonylureas: build with the doctor.

7. Before you download

The checklist on the right of every step must be fully ticked. One item ticks itself: week averages within 20% of targets. If it won’t tick, the plan is off target; fix it in the meal plan. The others you tick yourself after checking:

  • Client details are correct
  • Targets look right
  • Previous months’ plans checked so meals don’t repeat too much
  • Food items match the client’s taste and preferences
  • Meals fit the client’s cooking days
  • Couples: both plans match where they should
  • Health tips and recommendations reviewed
  • Cover template, client note and your name on the PDF

8. Handy features

  • Edit a downloaded plan (home page): reopen a PDF from the builder exactly where you left it.
  • Start from blank (meal plan): an empty week to build by hand with + Add.
  • Previous months’ plans (meal plan): upload past PDFs so the new plan repeats less. A name check flags the wrong client.
  • Recipes Repository: the client-facing recipe website, in English, Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. Send any recipe as an image on WhatsApp.

9. Guided training

Open Learn in the builder and press Start training. A guided tour shows each part of the tool, then walks you through Ananya’s plan step by step (non-veg on Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun). These are the things you’ll try along the way.

Start training. Ananya’s week opens, already fitted.
Open Targets. Find 1,450 kcal and 75 g protein. Do they match section 3?
Change a portion. Click a roti line and press + or −. Watch the day total move.
Swap a dish. Click a dal and pick a different one from the list.
Add an item. Use + Add under a meal to add a salad or curd.
Fit portions. Press Fit all portions to targets and see the days turn teal again.
Spot the warning. On Tuesday (a veg day) try to add Grilled Chicken. Read the warning, then press Cancel.
Regenerate. Get a fresh week and compare the meals.
Go blank and back. Switch to Start from blank, add one breakfast, then switch back to Recommended plan.
Open Recommendations. Read the tips and change one line.
Clear the checklist. Tick every item on the right.
Download the PDF. Open it and check every page reads well.

10. Quick answers

A dish the client wants isn’t there. Ask an admin to add it to the recipe library. Only library items can go in a plan.
The week-average box won’t tick. Look at the week totals above the table. Press Fit all portions, or swap a heavy dish for a lighter one.
The client’s weight changed this month. Enter the new weight on the Client step; targets recalculate. Then upload last month’s PDF and generate.
I closed the tab. Plans aren’t saved. Reopen the downloaded PDF with Edit a downloaded plan.
A couple eats together. Both get the same dishes; only portions differ. Change one partner only by viewing their plan.

NewKind · Meal Plan Builder training guide. Full formulas and references are in the NewKind Nutrition Blueprint.