Whole foods?

[ShrekDawg]

Okay so I've been trying to eat healthier for a while (okay, haven't really been trying, simply want to eat healthier) but it doesn't seem to be working. It's like too daunting and hard to start and I am too addicted to sugar...

SO.

I came up with this great new idea today...

Maybe I could simply try eating only whole foods for a week?

Would that be harder? Finding and eating enough variety of whole foods and especially no processed foods at all might be hard.. maybe start just less processed foods?

But my diet has gotten progressively worse. I've eaten a lot of tortilla chips and ice cream lately and fast food. Lots of worst of the worst type stuff.

But enough rambling and complaining about my diet.

I guess what I would like to know are what are some examples of whole foods besides the common ones? And what are some good recipes?

Because all I can think of is like salads and peppers, tomatoes, carrots, etc., basically just the veggies & fruits they sell at the grocery store and that gets boring... are there any other foods I'm missing here? Or even just recipes to use said boring foods so they are not boring. Or perhaps I shouldn't be buying from the grocery store either?

But let's just work on healthier for now and I can find a farm stand later lol

I did manage to eat a salad today though and buy lots of kale, spinach, blueberries, and strawberries.

But I want more I guess.

Like for example, can you make your own pasta sauce? Obviously pasta is processed as are a lot of good grains so I guess it might not be possible to go 100% not processed? But I at least want a start.

Thanks in advance and sorry for the rather rambly and unsure nature of this.

But the basic premise is PLEASE HELP ME EAT HEALTHIER AND ALSO FIND WAYS TO MAKE HEALTHY TASTY AND NOT BORING.

 

[Kiki]

KDog..Ive been away from my computer...which means away from BYC...I have not/refuse to be on BYC on my phone.


So...
I have not done squat in the last few weeks to lose any weight.
BUT guess what ...I HAVE lost weight!

I stopped...completely stopped buying c r a p ..junk food.....which means I can't eat it!! (this is perfect when you want it but can't find it in your kitchen!)


I so BAD wanted to cheat today and "Splurge" and get some type of fast food...but I "controlled" my urge and didn't!


How are your fish?

 

[rebrascora]

@KDOGG331

Hi

I'm in a similar situation although a few decades older. Major sugar addiction but recently I have also been eating a lot of crisps (you call them chips I think) and biscuits like cookies and shortbread as well as chocolate....I'm an Olympic standard chocoholic!

I know that I feel better when I eat fruit and veg but finding time and motivation to make proper meals is hard work and I decided to make it easier at least in these initial stages of trying to change my lifestyle to a more healthy one. I therefore invested in a juicer (nutri-bullet type blender) and I am making myself a smoothie every day, so that I am getting plenty of vitamins and micronutrients and also water.
Today the mixture was
a banana
an orange
a nectarine,
half a yellow pepper
some frozen mixed berries...red/black currants, blackberries, cherries, raspberries and blueberries
some pomegranate
a handful of spinach
and some pumpkin seeds
(oh and as it's day 6 and I'm getting quite experimental I also threw in a clove of garlic today because we all know how good garlic is for you!)
Then top it up to the mark with water, whizz it up and then I dilute it 1 part water to 2 parts juice and drink it either all at once which really fills you up....but don't stray far from the loo because that's a lot of liquid intake!!....., or have several glasses of it throughout the day.
I usually have a bowl of porridge (takes 2 mins in the microwave) with mixed berries and sultanas and honey for breakfast and scrambled eggs on wholemeal toast with tomatoes for evening meal or a bowl of homemade soup and a sandwich made with wholemeal bread. I only buy wholemeal pasta and bread and brown rice as they provide more fibre and make you feel full for longer.... the porridge does the same thing. Oats are really good for you in many ways.

My body is still getting the sugar it craves with all that fruit but in a more natural and unrefined form. I'm probably eating nearly as many calories, but at least they are good calories! The smoothie may sound yuk but you really don't taste the spinach or other veg with all the other fruit...although I could definitely detect a hint of garlic today, but it wasn't unpleasant and you certainly don' have to put anything in it that you don't fancy. It is actually really encouraging me to experiment I've tried adding porridge oats to the smoothie and sesame seeds and coconut and dried fruits and cinnamon, kale and broccoli and rocket work well instead of spinach and cucumber is rather nice. Mangos and apples and pineapple and kiwi all work too so. You could even add a pot of natural yoghurt if you fancy it. It's still early days for me (first week) but I'm finding it much easier to throw everything in the blender and drink it than have to think about cooking a meal and because the veg is raw, you get all the natural goodness. I just open the fridge, cupboards and fruit bowl, see what needs using up and throw it in. I would recommend plenty of dark fruits/berries as they are particularly high in beneficial micro nutrients and because they usually have very strong flavour, they mask the vegetables that you might be less keen on.

I need to lose a couple of stone (28lbs) but I'll be happy if I can just start eating more healthily and hopefully feel better. I also try to walk whenever possible. Find yourself a little circular route that takes 15-20 mins and try to walk as quickly as possible....time yourself and see if you can beat the time you did it in the day before. Start with small changes and make them as easy as possible and then consider making a slightly bigger change once you get comfortable with the small one.

Good luck. I know how difficult it is and I'm happy to be a diet buddy if you like. We could have weekly weigh ins and share our ups and downs, if you fancy it.

Best wishes

Barbara

 

[shortgrass]

I'll just give a small tidbit of advice... Whole milkfat. Butter instead of margarine or oil. Stat away from trans fats and hydrogenated oils and stick with good high natural fat like butter and whole milk.

You can also make your own pasta, all it takes is a few eggs, flour, and water, and I just chop up a few tomatoes and some fresh basil and garlic for the sauce


The fat thing, I give ALOT of credit, since the only time I've ever weighed over 125 lbs is when I was pregnant, and I eat so much butter its not even funny.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Ok, back with the recipe - this is an easy to make slow cooker stew that allows for a lot of customization: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/hearty-cabbage-patch-stew. I like mine spicy, so I add some lacto-fermented peppers, forgo the ketchup, add an extra can of any kind of beans, sub enchilada sauce (processed, but I look for one that doesn't have additives) for the stewed tomatoes, add a bag of (organic) frozen mixed veggies, and use Italian seasoning instead of just oregano because that's what I have on hand. Pair with a piece of homemade sourdough and you're good to go.

 

[rebrascora]

@shortgrass

I was brought up on raw milk and it took me ages to get over the change in taste between raw and pasteurised, when the law here changed and meant milk deliveries had to be pasteurised. There is however a pedigree jersey herd a few miles away that sells raw milk from the farm shop (with an appropriate warning sticker on it of course!) I occasionally buy one in passing but I've been very conscious of the huge cream content and my need to lose weight in recent years, so I have not treated myself in a long time.....your post is very persuasive and I might be tempted to make a more frequent visit there. The problem is that they also make allsorts of amazing flavoured ice creams from their jersey cream.....

 

[Adalida]

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/contest-winning-black-bean-soup
This is a delicious, filling soup that's healthy. You can soak and cook your own beans rather than using canned.

It's also good to keep lots of healthy snacks on hand so you're not tempted to grab junk. I boil a dozen eggs at a time and always have those on hand for a snack. Also when you buy veggies, do all the prep work- peeling, slicing, etc, so they're ready to eat.

 

[Kiki]

Just stopping by real quick.
I just watched a show on netflix called SUGAR COATED.
It is a MUST see!

I too am reading the labels on EVERYTHING!

Be back soon!
M

 

[Kiki]

I wonder if keeping some sort of journal or something might be helpful too? Or would that be a waste of time? You know, just something simple like writing down what I eat or when I exercise. My thinking was I could write down the good stuff (like I just ate a salad and some steak lol) but also might hold me more accountable for the bad? Like if I see it I might go "gee I ate a lot of junk..." cause I tend to just grab what I want when I want and not really eat or sleel at regular times, eat late at night, snack all day, etc. And I am sure I am not really keeping track of just how much junk I am eating, I just kinda do it... maybe if I saw it it might be easier to change or recognize the problem

Do you happen to have a fitbit?

If not think about getting one.
It comes with an app where you keep track of EVERYTHNG you eat/drink.
Say if you had a hamburger...you type in hamburger and you can choose from a million different brands/types..
even homemade..even which type of meat you used to make it..
it counts the calories..fat ...all those things for you and puts it in neat charts and graphs.

it is WONDERFUL! a snap shot of everything you eat at your finger tips.

Now I am sure there are many other sites or apps out there that do the same thing..
you should look at using one.

 

[shortgrass]

I agree. Don't overwhelm yourself. Start with the small things; a teaspoon of sugar on cereal instead of a tablespoon... Honey instead if sugar in tea, etc.. You probably didn't want the ice cream for 2 reasons, 1. You ate the pear and yep, your body got what it needed for sugar, and 2 you made yourself feel guilty That can sometimes make a person crave MORE sugar to give them that rush of endorphins and make them feel better. Yes, sugar gets you "high"


My sugar addiction was helped with having kids. Sugary cereal, candy on holidays, cookies galore, they love pancakes...syrup oh yeahhhh lol.. My youngest has 4 cavities.

That's when I started to cut the sugar out, watching my little girl have to have cavities filled broke my heart and made me feel like a horrible mother. So I started small, no more cereal. Oatmeal, creamed rice, sometimes I'll get them some Life or granola. They love yogurt with granola and fresh fruit. They kinda hated me there for a while, but now when I make a pie, they can barely eat one peice before they complain that's its too sugary and can't eat the rest. And they wont use syrup on the pancakes anymore; they prefer for me to make them a sauce, either with cooked berries or I make a banana foster type sauce with bananas and honey.

The kids have been my biggest motivator... That and if I even dare to open a package of candy, they're like hyenas sniffing out meat, so it makes me have to hide it and eat it in secret, which makes me feel like a felon lol, takes all the fun out of it