I failed miserably at the no bread/white death challenge. I'm extending it on top of the next challenge. Not ordering out/in.
Before I grocery shop, I wanted to throw out a question to you guys...
What are your favorite, healthy quick-fix meals/snacks?
I usually wind up just eating the same boring salad (spinach, carrots, mushrooms, baby tomatoes, cheese and oil/vinegar), cottage cheese or nuts. Do you guys have any favorite 5-10 minute meals?
Weigh in tonight (terrified that I don't get to do it naked in the AM after a good poop). We'll see what's been going on in this body this week.
Big Fat Curious Love,
Nanette
I like a kashi waffle with 1 tbsp natural peanut butter, and apple slices.
ReplyDeleteI rarely make anything from recipes. I grill up chicken thighs (boneless/skinless) on the Foreman with some simple spices (kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, rosemary) and keep them in a container in the refrigerator. I buy the Minute Rice cups of brown rice (each one would be two servings). Meals are a pile of kale + whatever other raw veggies I've got with a piece of chicken and some rice OR a small plain baked (microwaved) sweet potato). I recommend keeping it as simple as possible, Nanette. The less "exciting" and "new" your food, the more in control of it you are. What I eat is easy to prep and easy to keep on hand. Out of chicken or forgot to defrost/grill some? Can of tuna. You don't need cookbooks or recipes or interesting food. Boring is better!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Norma. I eat the same shit every day, probably 20 foods or less. Eggs, english muffins (fiber enriched), bananas, apples, oranges, grapes, greek yogurt, string cheese, peanut butter, chicken, brown rice, corn, turkey burgers, potatoes. I'm not saying that I have the widest variety of food choices, and I KNOW I'm missing out on a lot (cause I haaaate vegetables. I know, I'm terrible). But having the same groups of food keeps temptation away. None of these foods are likely to make me binge either.
ReplyDeleteI have fallen out of any sort of healthy home food habits. I'm trying to re-establish my routine foods and soli. I really appreciate the input!
ReplyDeleteYou definitely need to find your niche. Though I know where jillian and norma are coming from I am on the opposite side of the spectrum and food can NOT be routine day in and day out or it makes me want to run away. Spices, herbs, salsas, vinegars, avocado, nuts, sunflower seeds - these are all things that keep me wanting to eat healthy. Flavor infusers... its what makes me absolutely LOVe cabbage, kale, beans, spinach, salads, etc etc etc these days. Its been a huge SUPER time consuming transition but now a days its so second nature that with the proper preparations and planning, the majority of my meals now take less than 20 minutes to put together. You just gotta stick to it in order to make it a permanent change. Keep looking for your niche <3
ReplyDeleteIm a chicken and egg girl. I ALWAYS have chicken in my fridge. I grill or bake it up at the begining of the week. USE LOTS of spices. When I grill it, on one Ill use a citrus spice, on another a garlic herb, etc..... And I always have eggbeaters/eggs on hand. AND a bag of salad. I also love nuts and nut butters. I love to put some nut butters on apple wedges. fresh veggies too!!
ReplyDeleteI'm just saying, Nanette, with all the demands on your time between working, commuting, etc. -- your tight financial situation -- and your history -- I do not see you making the time to go on the hunt for various ingredients and then make the recipes and portion them out in containers and such. I had the luxury of not working and having my kids in school most of the day when I started not being fat, and *I* didn't want to make the time to do that, either.
ReplyDeleteThere's a reason why "keep it simple, stupid" works. This is not to say your foods can't be flavorful or made of ingredients you enjoy. I use a lot of hot sauce (old bodybuilder trick) and good spices on my chicken. As they saying goes, I like everything I eat, but I don't eat everything I like. The less complicated the process of planning, preparing, and packing, the more likely you are to get it done. There is also the need to make rules for yourself, and when faced with the temptation to get take-out or participate in an employer-provided snack fest, etc., you are responsible for reminding yourself, "I don't eat that."
I'm almost at five years of maintaining my loss and I still eat the same as I did, 95% of the time, during active loss. The same 15-20 foods made into meals, with some minor variations; e.g., sometimes the pile of greens is spinach, sometimes it's kale. Sometimes it's chicken thighs, sometimes it's chicken breasts. But that's about it. It's egg whites, an egg, and either a sweet potato or Ezekiel toast for breakfast. A whey protein smoothie after my workout. A salad with at least 4 vegetables, half an avocado + protein for lunch. A piece of fruit for snack in the afternoon, sometimes with peanut butter or some walnuts or almonds. A protein and a veggie for dinner. A gallon of water. Occasional Greek yogurt. Occasional string cheese. Protein + veggies, one to two fruits a day, dairy maybe 3x a week. I leave myself very little wiggle room for excuses to eat other stuff. The entertainment/excitement factor of food has been eliminated, and along with it,all the cravings and rationalizations as well.
There is no need to overstimulate your brain (where all the bad things happen) or your taste buds right now. Fuel your body and your brain will follow. Promise.
I love that "I like everything I eat but don't eat everything I like." I have been such a weakling for things that I like. The responsibility definitely is on my head to make sure what goes into my body is quality.
DeleteBought 2 bags of frozen chicken breasts... and a shit ton of disposable tupperware. I can get back on the Idaho routine.
I appreciate that you're always so real with me, Norma.
I'm reading your weigh-in post...where's the fucking protein, Nanette? Grains and fruit are SUGAR. Meat/fish/eggs/veggies = full...protein & fiber take longer to digest. Grains, even "healthy grains," are SUGAR to a body like mine and yours. Fruit...sure, it's good for you, but it can be counterproductive. A protein-heavy breakfast (4 egg whites + 1 whole egg, some veggies, and ONE slice of toast OR a small sweet potato) should carry you for 3.5-4 hours easily. If you need a cereal in the morning, PLAIN oatmeal with a scoop of protein powder mixed in, and maybe a few nuts...but I'd honestly recommend 100 ounces of lean quality protein per day, spread out 20g at a time over five small meals/snacks...as many raw vegs as you can stuff down...one piece of fruit but if you can avoid it, avoid it. I know that to the new-to-me reader I can come off as smug or snide; I assure you, I am not. I see myself in every stumble, every inability to resist, every "this little bite doesn't matter," and as your older, wiser, hindsight-is-20/20 type of online friend, I'm just calling it out from the perspective of experience. :)
DeleteI agree that less variety is better for weight loss. And simple is better. And yes, I refuse to eat anything I dislike. I have tried to like Ezekial bread, but I just hate it with a passion -- so I don't eat it.
ReplyDeleteTruthfully at your weight you should be able to eat quite a bit of calories, and still lose weight. I am not advocating eating junk ... but there is great power in the positive motivation of seeing weight loss on the scale. When I started at 216, I ate more calories than I do now and I still lost weight, and that gave me more initiative. Maybe instead of trying to be "perfect" build in a few more healthy snacks that you *really* like (avoiding trigger foods, whatever that is for you). It is better to do that, lose weight, and build on it, than overcomplicate it and wreck it all on a whole pizza later. I am no role model for weight loss. I still have 20 lbs to lose, and I am struggling with it. But I did get from obese to overweight, and in terms of long term health, that is a big win for me. Also, I am fitter than I was 10 years ago, and even fitter than I was when I weighed less.
Just my 2 cents.