Speedwagon98

Awhile ago, I decided I needed to eat healthier. At first, I made a resolution to change the entire way I eat, which ended up failing, because I was trying to do too much at once. This time around, I decided to deal with one meal at a time.

First, I decided to ditch the sugar coated candy for breakfast route, along with the I'm late I think I'll grab a greasy fast food breakfast route. I tried eating regular oatmeal(not the instant stuff, but the whole rolled oats stuff), and find it most bland. Searched for some better ways to make it, and now I look forward to my morning oatmeal+blueberry+craisin+cinammon bowl every morning. Not a bit of added sugar, and it tastes most wonderful!

So, on to the second part. I need to start doing healthier lunches or dinner. Looking for suggestions that are easy and quick to make. If it isn't either, I'm likely to end up doing some crap that I'm trying to give up. And I'm only making this for myself. Also, my grandmother and uncle have both gotten diabetes, so I believe that any attempt to curb the everything-has-sugar-added foods now is probably a grand idea. I don't want to have to watch what I eat, I want to want good foods.

Any suggestions?

hemprider

Fruit, fast and easy as it gets

trigger

Lunch is easy ....

Good whole grain bread with hummus and tomato, or avocado. If you eat meat a slice or two of lean chicken or turkey and mustard, etc. Be careful about amounts, go easy on the condiments and experiment with toppings. Cucumber makes a nice crunchy addition, and you buy alfalfa or onion sprouts very cheaply and toss them in as well.

Low sodium soups.

Rice cakes or Wasa crackers with light cream cheese or hummus.

Big plate of peppers, cucumbers, broccoli, zucchini etc ... with some hummus or low cal / low fat dressing.

Veggie burger with salsa on WW bun.

....LOTS of ideas out there. Just make sure your ingredients are whole grain, low fat, etc, and don't go crazy with the condiments. Have fruit to deal with a sweet tooth, and drink lots of water and / or herbal tea. Try drinking a full glass of water before you eat to help you feel full.

Good luck!

Speedwagon98

I hadn't thought about cucumbers! I rather like them too, just never crossed my mind! I don't know that I've ever had hummus... what is it?

jviking

I try to eat soup at least once a day...

Oh also the best breakfast in the world is a little bit of Vanilla yogurt (I hate all types of yogurt but for some reason love vanilla, tastes like whipped cream to me) + frozen fruit (it takes literally 2 min to defrost once you put it in the yogurt and it doesn't get rotten, there is a really good "tropical blend" at trader joes with mangos and blueberries and raspberries) + just a little plain granola on top.

Also if you're a coffee drinker, try tea!!!!! Green tea is crap, get white tea... it tastes just like black tea but has less caffeine and more antioxidants than green. Another great tea for riding is Mate, its caffeine free and is amazing for your respiratory system

jviking

Its AMAZING! It's blended chick peas with tahini and loads of garlic. Theres lots of different types, but I love ones with red peppers

CbadRider

Hummus is made from ground chickpeas. It's pretty tasty stuff.

You can cook up a batch of protein on the weekend (chicken, salmon, beef) and use it for various lunches during the week: sandwiches, salads, mixed with pasta, etc.

ericgu

You might want to try reading "eat this not that". That gives you some great substitutions.

canam73

I throw salsa on a lot of stuff. Very few calories and it can make a smaller meal seem more filling. And if you can handle the spicey stuff it acts as an appetite suppressor.

Another tip is to skip starch with dinner and eat 2 veggies. A lot of restaurants will allow it if you ask so it's a good way to keep it light when eating out.

Try finding something like mini carrots that you find agreeable for a snack and keep them handy for when you just have to eat something. In fact that's probably the biggest thing: just having healthy stuff available all the time and not having candy crap around will make it way easier to stay on track.

Good luck.

tadawdy

I care about my health as much as the next guy, but just the like the next guy (and the guy behind him) I am lazy. I eat much better when there's something quick and healthy in the fridge.

In the fall and winter, my gf and I always have a pot of a tasty low-sodium soup on hand. Lentils are cheap and nutritious, and make a great base. Butternut squash soup is also delicious.

As for the oatmeal: have you tried steel-cut oats? They are different from rolled. They come out like a thick porridge, with a slightly nutty flavor. I find them more satisfying and tastier. If you want to try them, don't but them in the cereal aisle. Branded as McCann's (I think), they're about 7x more expensive. I buy them in bulk at Whole Foods. Even with the WF premium, they're plenty cheap. Make a big pot, have it all week.

Machka 

Lunch:

-- large whole wheat bun or a couple slices of whole wheat bread
-- sliced chicken from deli or canned tuna
-- low fat cheese slice
-- lettuce, tomato, cucumber

Mazaev

What's really helped me lately is having a bunch of veggies around the house to make quick stir-fries. Just toss some cut-up bell pepper, cauliflower, mushrooms, frozen string beans or asparagus with a tablespoon of olive oil in the pan. Add some deli turkey or frozen seafood mix for protein, then throw on some cilantro, scallions and garlic, some pepper, and throw in some sauce. I've found some AMAZINGLY tasty sauces at Trader Joe's lately (yellow curry, satay peanut), or some soy/wasabi mixes and it fills you up for half the day with very few calories, lots of fiber, vitamins, protein and not much fat; most of it from the olive oil, which is the good kind, and a little from the sauce which is insignificant if you limit the sauce but supplement it with some salsa or chilli sauce.

Also, there's a thread on here about green smoothies. I've been in love with them since discovering it and they make for a great combination post-recovery drink / meal replacement. Scoop or two of protein powder, banana, some other fruits, wheat germ, and fill the rest with various veggies. I've been using frozen wild blueberry to mask any bitter veggie flavors and combined with the protein mix flavouring, it's like greenish-purple milk shake that's awesome for you.

I'd also suggest googling various food that you're eating followed by "calories". Like "aparagus calories". There are several sites that have listing of nutritional info for various foods which can be really helpful to keep yourself concious of precisely what you're putting in yourself. After a while, it really makes you question whether eating that donut os worth it and I've found it a great help mentally (although I admit it's a bit easy to become obsessive over).

palookabutt

And, if you get tired of raw cucumbers, pickles are a tasty version.

DesnaePhoto

Read "The Schwarzbein Principle". She explains how your body works. ANd how various foods influence the balance of things inside your body. She explains the chemistry at a level that elementary kids can understand it.

jviking

Ok, so I heard that you burn more calories chewing celery than you actually consume??? Cuz if so... eat that!

captnfantastic

consider eating nuts when you are hungry inbetween meals. They are very good for you and because of their high protein they can stop the hunger feeling better than fruit or other carbs can. I like almonds and mixed nuts. I keep them in my car so i dont hit the burger king drive thrus

trigger

Eggs - poached, or in omlettes with mushrooms, pepper etc.

Get a vegetable steamer (or rice cooker, or the pots that let you do this) and steam a ton of veggies for dinner - carrots, broccoli, new potatoes, green beans, brussel sprouts etc. Fill 3/4 of your plate with veggies, and the rest with protein. Get used to eating vegetables without condiments on them. They taste good, seriously. Add a little parmesean cheese if you must.

Pat

There are very few foods that are really intrinsically bad for you if A) you do not eat them often and B) you do not eat much when you do indulge.

One thing to do is to get a guide that gives you the nutritional break down: calories, g fat, g carb, g protein of common foods and the g saturated fat, g trans fats and g fiber and maybe the glycemic index. You can make your own calculations on what is worth eating.

One mistake many people make with diets is to make them a kind of privation. Once they lose the weight, they go off the diet and gain it all back and more. The thing to do is undergo a lifestyle change. You need a diet that you can live with.

canam73

Big +1 on that. If you do not have a specific weight loss goal (like looking good for a class reunion in 6 weeks or something) the easiest thing to do is set your target weight and figure out what your nutritional needs would be at that weight. Then, start eating that way. It might take a while, but eventually you will get there. If you want to speed things up a bit, cut some carbs out or add some extra work out time, but there is really no reason go on a silly diet that is unmaintainable in the long term.

hemprider

This kind of thinking is totally ass backwards, if a food is bad for you when you over indulge its still gonna be bad when you under indulge. The only difference is your gonna get sicker slower. If you can't totally over indulge on a food without having problems then you shouldn't eat the food.

You can ingest small amounts of poison and not die or get sick, does that make it something you would want to ingest on a daily basis?

Tundra_Man 

My favorite way to make oatmeal is to add a tablespoon of natural peanut butter, a little bit of honey and a pinch of salt. I just finished my bowl an hour ago and talking about it I'm craving more!

Doesn't help with your lunch question, but might give you a little breakfast variety.

GirlAnachronism

Definitely, and it really helps if you have access to fresh, local vegetables. Find out if there's a farmer's market near you and figure out what's in season. Seriously, the stuff you get at the farmer's market, when it's in season, is like an entirely different food from the crap you find at the grocery store. So it's lots of squash, apples, and dried fruit for me right now

Also, I like to put lemon and vinegar on veggies, or a little bit of plain yogurt. Then again, I put vinegar or yogurt (not at the same time!) on just about everything...

Lamp-Shade

There are so many ways to make oatmeal its ridiculous. Some of my favorites-
Sweet:
PB&H
Topped with a thick layer of your favorite yogurt
Almond butter and maple syrup
Mash a banana in a cup until its a cream, smear that on top, then cover that with cinnamon
Rasberries, blueberries, blackberries, and cranberries popped in the pot as its finishing up. They will get all warm and gooey. It's like a forest made whoopy in your bowl.
Put instant coffee, sweetener, and top with creamer (goes good with the five pots of coffee you end up drinking anyways.)
Savory:
1. Stir in two eggs as its finishing, wait a minute, pour into bowl, then crack an egg on top and let it sit until done. Top with either
A. Tomato sauce that includes basil, oregano, garlic, black pepper, and a smidge of dill.
B. A good tamari, finely diced green onions, black pepper, a smidge of chili powder
C. Cheese (C is for Cheese.)
D. Butter, Salt, Pepper, like grits.
2. Make with milk only and top with sea salt (Really subtle sweet and savory).
3. Mix with leftover chicken and chicken broth, some veggies, and make sure you have garlic, chili, and ginger on hand. Kind of like Scotland meets Congee.

canam73

Vitamin A becomes toxic at a certain point. Does that mean we should all swear off carrots, squash, sweet potatoes and cantaloupe? I believe there are other vitamins and minerals that our body needs in trace amounts that turn into poison at higher levels. Salt comes to mind. So no to salty foods too?

Our bodies do require some cholesterol. Should we "totally over indulge" there?

Hmmm....ass backwards?

hemprider

The items you list contain beta carotene not vitamin A, beta carotene is converted to vitamin A but your body will never make more then enough therefore its impossible to overdose on vitamin A from natural sources. If you take a supplement pill that's a whole different story.

Vitamins are only toxic when you supplement with pills, people don't overdose from vitamins in plant foods...

I personally think salt is a poison and do not use it at all.


Cholesterol from natural plant sources will never cause problems when you over indulge.


Thanks for proving my point