Shamrock

I noticed with the cold weather here my diet changed as it does every year.In the spring and summer I eat salad with or as a meal.Now I'm eating less salads and exchanged them for warm meals. So meat ,pasta,potatoes,cheese,soup, stew consumption goes up.Along with my weight.Now I need a plan to fight the weight battle.I just reduced my weight to 197 from a high of 227.So what do people really eat.Here are 2 random days of what I ate.Fri and Thurs ,Can't remember what I ate before that HMM.Thought this might be helpful and interesting to see what people eat.I asked a friend what he ate in the old country for breakfast,his reply,'' depends what we had for dinner the night before''.Thurs breakfast -2 eggs peppers and onion, coffee. lunch - chicken, sweet potatoe, mixed veg. Snack - 5pm oat breakfast bar, coffee.. Dinner - 7 pm ham and swiss sandwich whole wheat bread lemon flavor club soda.1130 pm - 4 triscuits with cheese 1non alcohol beer. this week I'm on a 3-11pm shift.I also drink water through out the day. Fri Breakfast - plain oatmal with a sprinkle of Kashi blueberry clusters for crunch and flavor,coffee. lunch - 2 slices roast beef gravey and mixed veg ,snack - 5pm oat breakfast bar, water.dinner - 7pm turkey sandwich mayo and franks hot sauce ,orange club soda,1130 pm - 2 slices of pizza 1 non alcohol beer.I fought the urge to eat the pizza and lost.

capejohn

I count my sugar and carb intake. 15 grams of suger and 120 grams of carbs max. daily. I try to use things like Truvia as a sugar substitute as opposed to the pink and blue packaged stuff. My sandwiches are made with lettuce in place of bread. There are lots of ways to eat things we like without fattening up. Deep fried chili dog Twinkee is not on the food list any more.

Bikey Mikey

Dump the late night snacks. If you feel you need to eat a snack later in the evening, have an apple. Eat a balanced diet.

Artkansas 

If you want something warm to swap out for the salads, try steamed veggies. I use frozen veggies, put them in a metal strainer and place the strainer above the water in a boiling saucepan. I cover the saucepan and heat for about 5 minutes. Tasty, filling and low cal.

Get yourself to a library and check out their food section and study up to educate yourself on proper diet.

GeorgeBMac

Personally, I think dietary habits and personal taste preferences are largely determined by cultural expectations: If you expect something to taste good, it probably will (and vice-versa)...

And, commensurate with that is the expectation that we will change our eating habits when the cold arrives... That we switch from fresh stuff to more of a meat and potatoes (and gravy!) routine.
... What would happen if you served fresh vege's at Thanksgiving instead of turkey? I suspect you dinner partners would end up in a restaurant to get a "REAL" Thanksgiving meal...

I think a lot of that is based on long standing historical precedents -- where you ate the fresh stuff in summer as it was pulled from the local farm or garden. And, in winter you shifted over to eat those walking bags of protein we call "cows".

But, today, none on that is necessary: I can still buy corn-on-the-cob and tomatoes in December. While it is true that they are not as fresh and tasty as what I can buy in August, they are still available, still good and still nutritious....

In short, I think a lot of dietary shifts that we experience in the winter months are based more in our heads than in our gut or in our grocery stores...

WC89

Sadly, I tend to eat more hot meals, more satisfying meals, and more junk food every yr from Thanksgiving to about the 1st wk of January, usually adding about 10 lbs in the process Since being back on the road bike this past July, after 12 yrs off (the road bike), I'm hoping for different results this winter. The road bike has me down 8 lbs from where I usually am this time of yr and I like it. Being much leaner now, in my tight road jerseys and bib shorts motivates me to keep it that way all winter, I'm hoping. Probably will still gain a little weight (with fewer miles due to colder temps, less daylight, and nibbling on more fun food), just hoping to minimize the damage to maybe 5 lbs.

Dudelsack 

These days, I replace Twinkies with Los Submarinos, and Hostess Cupcakes with Little Debbie Cakes. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

david58

This will be an interesting holiday stretch. But this year we are looking to avoid the taters, breads, etc, and stick with meat, veggies, and fruit. We will give ourselves "meals off" on the holiday feast days, but really can't allow ourselves to retreat into wintertime comfort food by the fire. Our indulgence is beer, which we allow ourselves several nights in a week. For me, the key is to be on the bike as much as possible - even if just for the commute (16.5 miles each day). That commute is worth a lot of calories each week, and if I am careful I won't out-eat the workouts. Tougher for my wife, who still isn't able to get back on a bike - she has to be very vigilant, and the holiday time is her favorite time to cook (sweet potatoes layered with walnuts and apples, drowned in molasses and rum.....I digress...). And I'm starting overweight - trying to lose another 25 before summer is in full swing. Like I said, it will be interesting.

qcpmsame 

My wife and I eat several meals of either broiled or stir fried, in very light, olive or canola oil, vegetables. Add some chicken breast fillets or maybe some oven baked egg plant and you have a warm, satisfying meal. No deep frying or thick gravies to add the cholesterol and fat levels. I avoid salt because of my kidney failure so no salt in cooking and other seasonings on the safe list are used. Add some chicken or fish pieces to a salad so it has a warm/hot portion to it. I mainly use sodium, fat and calories as a guideline for being safe or healthy to eat. Best of luck in keeping the weight loss, it is a tough battle, especially this time of the year.

Bill

AzTallRider

Keep eating like a Jersey cliche', Shamrock <insert a no-offense-intended happy face here>, and you will put that weight back on in a hurry. Rather than swinging so wildly from the extreme of salads, to the opposite extreme of a starch heavy diet, find an eating lifestyle that works for you all year 'round! But to answer your question:

Typical work day:
6:00: Coffee
9:00: Chobani yogurt
Noon: lunch out (for socializing), where I do my best to find something healthy, like a chicken fajitas burrito in a wheat tortilla, or a roast beef sandwich on whole wheat, with oil and vinegar.
2ish: Some nuts or dried Edamame
6ish: If I cook during the week, it will either be Vegetarian Chili that covers 2-3 days, or I will grill meat and veggies (e.g.; corn if available, peppers, onions, zucchini). Wife makes meat sauce one day a week, and I usually skip the pasta and just eat the meat sauce. If I eat out during the week, it's typically Mexican (Carne Asada in tacos or burrito).
Rest of Evening: Snack on dried fruit, nuts, seeds and corn chips

I don't drink soda, sticking almost exclusively to water (and coffee). I try to stay away from white flour products (not easy) and also potatoes. I try to get my carbs from veggies, and a fair amount comes from corn (e.g.; tortillas, chips). We grow a lot of corn in this country, huh? My favorite meals are typically meat and veggies. I ate at Outback a couple of days ago (violating my no-chain-restaurant rule) and had a steak, steamed veggies and a small draft beer.

Weekends vary a lot. Yesterday I had a small machaca and egg burrito for a late breakfast, then nothing until about 5:00, when I had some pork potstickers and half glass of wine at a favorite hangout. Later I snacked: oatmeal-raisan cookie and some chips and dried fruit. Oh, and I splurged and had an (organic) ice-cream bar.

Thanksgiving I will cook the typical starch heavy, coma inducing turkey with traditional side dishes.

I don't "eat clean" all the time. There is usually a takeout pizza for the family once a week, though I also get (baked and grilled) wings with it, which is my focus on those nights. Protein!

Phil_gretz

In winter, we substitute home made soups: Chicken, Turkey, Lentil, Split Pea, Carrot-Ginger, Potato-Leek, Mushroom...(my wife's a superb cook).

Whole/raw fruits and vegetables. Eliminate needless carbs. No refined sugar. No alcohol. No enriched flours. No snacking after 7pm - drink water instead. Small dinner portions.

I have no weight fluctuations year round.

qcpmsame 

ATR,
My way and much better stated than I tried to clumsily put forth. One thing to add for me is portion size control and "seconds" or afters. I have learned to eat small portions, reasonably sized, and If I feel full, I stop. No rationalization by me to slip in something. Thanksgiving I will enjoy some white turkey meat (I enjoy helping my wife fix and stuff the 21 # turkey we use to feed the entire group we have here) and a small spoon of stuffing/dressing, Momma Stamberg's cranberry relish and a piece of pecan birthday pid from today's doings. Simple, delish, and I can ride without exploding.

OP, just keep eating what has brought you this far, I am not letting the kidney demon get me nor am I going to regain the 40 # I have lost since July.

Bill

BlazingPedals

One of my rules-of-thumb is that anything eaten within 2-3 hours of bedtime will go straight to my waist. I've tested this on numerous occasions, and it seem to hold true in any season, regardless of when my bedtime is.

AzTallRider

One thing I do, which drives my wife totally crazy, is to take very small bites when I'm snacking. I eat a lot of raisins, and rather than pop a bunch in my mouth, I eat each one, individually, in two or more bites. It gives a lot more fulfillment 'bang' for your calorie 'buck'.

AzTallRider

Of course it's also when your muscles are rebuilding, so it all depends on where you stand from a caloric balance standpoint. But I believe there is scientific basis for the fact that what you eat early in the day is less likely to be converted to fat.

bruce19

I have been concerned about my winter eating habits. Not because I suspect I will eat more/worse but because my activity will be less. So I guess I will just try to eat well but in moderation. One thing I have discovered is that if I try new foods long enough I actually adjust and begin to like them. Well, most of them.

Shamrock

I know what a half glass of wine is but what is a pork potsticker,We don't have them in NJ or I don't get out enough.

Bikey Mikey

Pork Potstickers


Google is your friend.

bruce19

As a guy born and raised in Hackensack I can tell you that you definitely have pot stickers. AKA...Chinese Dumplings.