help me to eat better!!

intouch44 · 15-03-2011 7:16pm #1

hi all

i've read loadsa posts and there seems to be some very wise people lurking about so i'm hoping some of ye might help me out! i'm after putting on a stone and due to my height (5ft 1) it's very evident. i go through stages of disgust where i promise myself i'll start behaving tomorrow but usually by mid afternoon i'm stuffing my face with crap! my two main problems are lack of willpower and i am a very fussy eater so i'm very limited in my choices. i do take regular exercise and have started the c2 5k programme but i just can't stop eating.
i'd really appreciate if someone could take the time to suggest a meal plan for a day/week to give me a bit of guidance!

these are the main foods i eat: fruit, basic salad (cucumber, tomato, lettuce) bread (huge weakness!) chicken, tuna, fish, cereal, pizza (another major weakness!!) lots of water (quite limited i know)

i don't eat ANY veg, potatoes, rice, red meat.

if i could i'd eat bread, pizza and sweets the whole time (i am a binge eater) but as well as affecting my figure it's also draining my energy and my confidence.

any help would be appreciated i'm at my wits end!

didka · 16-03-2011 5:59am

you need to eat red meat twice weekly or take Iron supplement.
You need to eat oily fish - as salmon sardines or mackerel twice weekly or take high strength omega 3 oil daily.

you don't need allot of bread - but switching to wholegrain may be beneficial, plus limiting it

cucumber tomatoes lettuce count for fruit and veg portion - but you will get bored if you don't explore more options - what about peppers, radishes, courgettes?

you don't need pizza regularly - pizza style porttobelo mushrooms, pizza omelette or pizza on tortilla bread can be good substitute

You don't eat any dairy? you need to get your calcium somehow.

I am pro carbs, totally - but not pizza bread and serial. You need to try to add some wholegrain or more natural carbs – as oats for breakfast.

my suggestion for a day would be

oats for breakfast cooked with milk, or protein pancake
cheese sting with apple or pear for snack
wholgrain bread & protein and salad for lunch
few nuts with banana or another fruit for snack
stir fry with oily fish or steak with sweet potatoe mash or something like this with large salad for starter (balsamic vinegar for dressing, no oil).
if you eat early dinner - then another snack of fruit and small yoghurt.

Ice. · 16-03-2011 10:24am

didka wrote: »

you need to eat red meat twice weekly or take Iron supplement.

False

didka wrote: »

You need to eat oily fish - as salmon sardines or mackerel twice weekly or take high strength omega 3 oil daily.

False

didka wrote: »

You don't eat any dairy? you need to get your calcium somehow.

Dairy is a poor source of Calcium.

didka · 16-03-2011 10:36am

Ice what would be your suggestion to the poster question?

There is allot of conflicting info out there, that was my personal opinion on nutrients the poster could be lacking.

I would love to hear yours?

Plazaman · 16-03-2011 10:39am

Ice. wrote: »

False

False

Dairy is a poor source of Calcium.

Very helpful.

BlueIsland · 16-03-2011 12:39pm

This statement is actually one of my pet hates "I am a fussy eater". I am sorry but you need to eat veg....There are tonnes of different kinds out there and I dont believe for one minute that there is one person who dislikes every single one of the types...(apart from a five year old kid who says it as he/she is trying to be fed)....If you want results you gotta get by the "fussy eater" conundrum.

Dark Phoenix · 16-03-2011 2:02pm

Op your post sounds like it was written by me 4-6 weeks ago! I didn't have a big problem with weight but more my addiction to junk food, constant desk hunger and as I am a fussy eater I find it hard to find healthy things I like.

One thing that helped me hugely was an app on my phone which helps me track calories and shows what is in foods. For me this was such a wake up call. After seeing the calories in a takeaway, a chinese or a pizza I now have to ask myself do you want to eat this? If I do go for pizza its a goodfellas thin base and I eat half not the whole one!

I think one thing that helps is if you can make a list of what you do like and make sure you have a stock of it so you can eat it when hungry and keep some in work too. I've made simple changes and while my diet is not perfect its a lot better I am getting there. I switched from white bread to brown, I eat surf seeds or a kelkin rice and hazelnut snack instead of a bar of chocolate, I'll have a bag of treble crunch if I cant resist crisps instead of king or hunky dories. Its all less calories than before and its helping me wean myself off.

With cereal I started really reading boxes so now if I have some in the evening its a small bowl of something like flahavans hi8 (I don't like porridge so this is an alternative for me its full of oats and seeds and fruit and nuts)

Being a fussy eater I don't like a lot of veg so I found two or three I do like and I focus on getting those into me. I don't like salad so I don't eat it.

Best of luck with everything

BlueIsland · 16-03-2011 2:18pm

Dark Phoenix wrote: »

!

I didn't have a big problem with weight but more my addiction to junk food, constant desk hunger and as I am a fussy eater I find it hard to find healthy things I like.

One thing that helped me hugely was an app on my phone which helps me track calories and shows what is in foods. For me this was such a wake up call. After seeing the calories in a takeaway, a chinese or a pizza I now have to ask myself do you want to eat this? If I do go for pizza its a goodfellas thin base and I eat half not the whole one!

Being a fussy eater I don't like a lot of veg so I found two or three I do like and I focus on getting those into me. I don't like salad so I don't eat it.

Best of luck with everything

please stop using this bloody term fussy eater. you like unhealthy stuff. so do most people. giving it a term like fussy just makes it sound like it half not your fault!!!!!!!

Dark Phoenix · 16-03-2011 2:39pm

firstly, No I do not just like unhealthy stuff. I like a lot of healthy food too.

However there are a number of foods in both catagories that I simply do not like the taste of. I have met a good few people who are the same not everyone has a huge range of foods they enjoy. I have met people who like very few foods and yet are very healthy eaters.

I also have IBS so in a lot of cases I have to be fussy to avoid being ill - one bit of spicy food down my neck healthy or unhealthy and I will be ill.

I didn't realise using a phrase would cause such a reaction I was simply trying to help the OP. In no way was I trying to make it seem like I was trying to make anything not my fault I have made massive changes in my diet recently for the good of my health. A bit of encouragement rather than critiscism would go a long way sometimes.

didka · 16-03-2011 3:56pm

Dark Phoenix wrote: »

firstly, No I do not just like unhealthy stuff. I like a lot of healthy food too.

However there are a number of foods in both catagories that I simply do not like the taste of. I have met a good few people who are the same not everyone has a huge range of foods they enjoy. I have met people who like very few foods and yet are very healthy eaters.

I also have IBS so in a lot of cases I have to be fussy to avoid being ill - one bit of spicy food down my neck healthy or unhealthy and I will be ill.

I didn't realise using a phrase would cause such a reaction I was simply trying to help the OP. In no way was I trying to make it seem like I was trying to make anything not my fault I have made massive changes in my diet recently for the good of my health. A bit of encouragement rather than critiscism would go a long way sometimes.

BlueIsland did the same style unhelpful post in a question I asked earlier today, not one bit of useful suggestion - only empty words.

You are better off ignoring post like this and look at the people that have something constructive to say - wheather you agree with them or not.

It is wise to double/triple check any information you get on internet, most of the posters are not professionals.

It's ok to be fussy eater - you are not rubbish bin, you have the right to chose what to eat & like.

intouch44 · 17-03-2011 11:14am

Thanks for taking the time to reply everyone. dark Phoenix your post made a lot of sense- I think cutbacks and sensible choices are the way forward rather than cutting things out of my diet altogether cos I want to stick to this change of diet/lifestyle!

Compak · 17-03-2011 12:45pm

Ice. wrote: »

False

False

Dairy is a poor source of Calcium.

An informative post,

1. Yes. I would never recommend iron supplements off the cuff with haemochromatosis so significant in Ireland. Blood tests of your dr are a great idea before any new regimen so you can get an idea of the before and after on the inside as well.

2. She does need to intake adequate omega 3 intake, at least 1g EPA/DHA/ week. preferably double. The only true source is fish or algae.

3. Dairy is high in calcium and despite its less than ideal bioavailability, it makes a good source

17-03-2011 1:16pm

You say that binge eating is draining your energy and confidence. Maybe try some low GI foods. They'll keep you feeling full for longer and will really help with the sugar highs and lows that are probably causing your energy problems. Replacing bread with wholegrain bread is a start. I love oat cakes. They're about 40 kcals a go, with 0.2 grams of salt, so you can't eat many but they're very filling and you can put anything on them. You said you like tuna, I love a bit of tuna on an oat cake, or some cheese when I've been good with my other meals.

I have trouble sometimes fitting veg into my day, and I find I'm far more likely to eat veg if it's mixed up with other stuff. You said you like chicken and salad, so how about a chicken burrito? Start off with a tortilla, chicken and lettuce, bit of salsa. Then try incorporating some bell peppers (I find I don't like their texture so I dice them, less noticeable) into it, maybe some beans, (I haven't tried this), pretty much go through the supermarket and throw in whatever veg takes your fancy. I usually add some baby spinach leaves, they're good layered in with the lettuce and add some iron (which is good given your aversion to red meat). After a while you could even try grilling a small bit of steak, cutting it into strips, and replacing the chicken with it. Pasta with bolognese can be used for this too, as there's a lot you can add to bolognese without noticing it. Be careful with the pasta though, as your diet is already carbohydrate rich.

I also find tea to be a good way to keep my appetite in check. My problem is that it's not hunger that makes me eat, it's the need for a break and that I find the activity of eating so enjoyable. There's a thread on here already about green tea. Herbal teas give you something to do (brewing), put a taste in your mouth (enjoyment level satisfied) and then the action of drinking them gives you a break from whatever you were doing. You can get lovely fruit infusions that have more tang to them and are less of an acquired taste than green/white tea.

Ice. · 17-03-2011 1:25pm

Compak wrote: »

1. Yes. I would never recommend iron supplements off the cuff with haemochromatosis so significant in Ireland. Blood tests of your dr are a great idea before any new regimen so you can get an idea of the before and after on the inside as well.

Iron supplements can be toxic in high doses. Better to get it from diet. I agree that a blood test is necessary to determine iron levels.

Compak wrote: »

2. She does need to intake adequate omega 3 intake, at least 1g EPA/DHA/ week. preferably double. The only true source is fish or algae.

Fish are a second hand source. They get theirs from algae. The body converts ALA to EPA/DHA.

Compak wrote: »

3. Dairy is high in calcium and despite its less than ideal bioavailability, it makes a good source

Milk is a poor source. It comes with the added bonus of cholesterol and saturated fat and milk casein increases mucous production. All stuff that would be better avoided.

Compak · 17-03-2011 1:36pm

Ice. wrote: »

Iron supplements can be toxic in high doses. Better to get it from diet. I agree that a blood test is necessary to determine iron levels.

Fish are a second hand source. They get theirs from algae. The body converts ALA to EPA/DHA.

Milk is a poor source. It comes with the added bonus of cholesterol and saturated fat and milk casein increases mucous production. All stuff that would be better avoided.

The first hand source is EPA/DHA. this is what the body uses. Taking ALA the body has to convert firstly to EPA then DHA. This conversion process is so poor that the reusltant DHA amount can be less than an abysmal 10%.
The conversion process is dependent on nutrition and metabolic factors.

Don't buy into the charlatans of Udos/ Mc Keith. Plant sources are inferior and there is not one source of a reputable publication to refute this claim.

Ice. · 17-03-2011 2:15pm

Compak wrote: »

The first hand source is EPA/DHA. this is what the body uses. Taking ALA the body has to convert firstly to EPA then DHA. This conversion process is so poor that the reusltant DHA amount can be less than an abysmal 10%.
The conversion process is dependent on nutrition and metabolic factors.

EPA/DHA are not essential as the body can manufacture it's own unlike fish.

Compak wrote: »

Plant sources are inferior and there is not one source of a reputable publication to refute this claim.

If not for algae fish wouldn't have EPA/DHA.

Compak · 20-03-2011 8:58pm

Ice. wrote: »

EPA/DHA are not essential as the body can manufacture it's own unlike fish.

If not for algae fish wouldn't have EPA/DHA.

Im sorry your comments make no sense to me.

Yes algae is a great source supplying EPA/DHA. However as I stated ALA is a very inferior source.

EPA/DHA is essential as we do not have the correct desaturase enzymes to manufacture it. You could call them conditionally essential as you can provide ALA - all you are doing is making ALA essential then- but the conversion process is TERRIBLE.

help me to eat better!!

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