Below are the 5 basic principles that guided the creation of the Shape Up menu:

1. Variety: A diet composed of a variety of foods is more interesting for all our senses and provides all the nutrients essential to good overall health.
2. Unprocessed food: Unprocessed food should be used whenever possible to limit sodium, sugar, and salt intake. However, when processed food must be used, healthier options can be chosen in the form of products lower in fat or sodium.
3. Respect for products: Natural products are often of higher quality. Try to alter these products as little as possible by using the appropriate cooking methods.
4. Good taste: To be enjoyable, healthy food has to taste good! It’s important to be creative when developing recipes.
5. Culinary identity: Chefs and their teams must adapt everything in the menu to fit the overall food service. Culinary identity is essential for a team to make new recipes their own and embrace healthy cooking.

The cycle menu is available in the Food Service Handbook and is intended for Shape Up member camps with food services. It takes a step-by-step approach to make gradual and lasting changes to summer camp food services. It can be used for inspiration and adapted to local needs and requirements.

Recipes and templates are available on the Shape Up website.