To think my diet is possibly worse than any other 32 year old's?

[mytartanscarf]

The title makes it sound like I am proud of it and I am not - but I do need help (as gently as you can, for AIBU!) as have never spoken of this before.

By some miracle, my teeth are all good (confirmed by dentist to my shock!) and I am overweight but only marginally - weigh 10 stone 8lbs; I am 5 foot 3 inches.

It's hard to talk about a typical day so to give an idea I'm either hungry or I am not - if I'm not hungry I generally won't eat anything until the evening and it's usually porridge, made with water, and a low cal hot chocolate. I'll generally have a snack sized chocolate bar in the day. Drinks - diet coke by the gallon.

If I AM hungry, I'll eat - sugary cereal, sweets (haribo/wine gums) crisps, chocolate. Maybe a McDonalds or a pie. Drinks - diet coke by the gallon. Sometimes I'll heat some soup up and have it with bread & butter.

I know it's awful and I'm trying to think how things got this bad, I know I have a lot of guilt/strange feelings with food. Also I live on a boat so don't have a fridge or microwave (no room) so shopping has to be done daily and I often don't have time or nowhere to store leftovers. I work a weird job with shifts all over the shop. I'm not veggie in the strictest sense of the word but I do find it hard to disassociate feelings about the animal. I HATE green veg apart from spinach and cabbage, there are other foods I dislike though none spring to mind right now.

I do enjoy fresh fruit, and some veg especially onion, mushroom, sweet potato and carrots.

I think the main problem is lack of organisation with food. I just don't recognise hunger, so when I do want food it's an emotional "want" - like a childhood thing?

I know you can help. Just PLEASE don't yell at me if I can't do something as I'm sure I've missed off some information, but not on purpose!

[BestZebbie]

What cooking and food storage/prep facilities do you have? eg: is there anywhere that you could keep a tupperware box with salad in it, to make salad sandwiches? Do you have an oven or a hob for saucepans?

[mytartanscarf]

I have an oven with a hob, and grill and main part.

I can only buy things that are either tins/can be kept or can be eaten within a day or two days at a push. So even with small loaves of bread I struggle, although living on a boat I can always feed the ducks with any stale bits :) but that's an example of how awkward it can be.

[SpringBreaker]

My friend lived on a boat and had a small fridge.

Do you have electricity? You could get a slow cooker and make chilli or bolognaise.

Take vitamin supplements, I have a berocca tablet every day. I havent had a really bad cold for over 5 years, and have never had flu yet thankfully. I hardly ever eat fruit, and dont really eat a lot of veg.

The worst thing about your diet is the diet coke. It is poison.

[MizK]

Maybe swap as much diet coke as possible for water. That alone will make a big difference to your cravings for sweets and your lack of appetite.

Soup is great, possibly with a nice multigrain roll so you dont waste bread, plus fibre is super important and it doesnt sound like you get much.

Good luck with changing things, it does sound like your kitchen facilities would be a challenge, but personally if I had a choice between living on sugar and McDonalds or (admittedly salty) ready meals, I'd choose the latter for the time being. You can get some that are not too bad I'm sure?

[mytartanscarf]

It's difficult to make chilli/bolognaise as I can't really buy mince for one, and there's nowhere to store leftovers. I know that some boats have fridges but there really isn't room for one here, even a small fridge would be pretty much impossible to fit in. Then there is the problem of electricity which I do have but v expensive.

I'm perfectly healthy and my teeth are fine but I know that's in spire of not because of my diet!

[MelanieCheeks]

Don't try to change everything all at once! The biggest culprit leaping out there is all that diet coke. Can you reduce that to one a day?

[Tykeisagirl]

I think you need to start by eating regularly, your blood sugar must be all over the place from not eating one day then eating large amounts of carb heavy food the next. Even if you're not hungry try having a piece of fruit in the mornings and something like an omelette (eggs don't need to be stored in a fridge) baked potato or soup for lunch and dinner.

Not having a fridge is a real issue, not having a microwave isn't. Is there any way you could get a mini fridge so you could keep cheese, salad and yogurt in it? All of those things would make good quick snacks.

Do you know how to cook? Sorry if that sounds patronising but a lot of people don't. Learning how to make some basic dishes would be really useful if you don't.

[nilbyname]

Make friends with your local
Butcher!

You will get and they will gladly sell you small/single portions of mince etc.
Swap the diet coke for fizzy Ayer with a wedge of lemon in it.

Draw up a meal plan for the next 3 days-
Breakfast- porridge with a banana
Lunch- small roll with cheese and tomato
Dinner- spag Bol
And so on. go and do the shopping for it, as
Much as you can.
When it is this cold I think a smAll Tupperware would keep things fresh. Try and think of a place on your boat that is cold and make it your larder.

You need a simple cookbook, will have a think.

[mytartanscarf]

Melanie - when I've cut it out before I have honestly been rendered useless for days. It was awful. I was even vomiting quite a bit.

The other day I didn't have any till 3 (went to work without my purse) and had the most horrendous banging headache for the rest of the day - I NEVER get headaches. I think I can cut down but one a day wouldn't be enough for now. I'm not saying never of course.

No, haven't a clue how to cook :) not patronising. I'm just not sure about the fridge though - I'm looking at the boat and honestly it's just full to BURSTING.

[LeBearPolar]

I would struggle without a fridge so you have my sympathies!

I agree withe the others: get rid of the diet coke as it has nothing in it which will be providing you with anything you need, and the aspartame is evil.

Swap the sugary cereal for less sugary cereal! Porridge is good; you could also get shredded wheat for variety. Make your own soup with red lentils, onion, tinned tomatoes and stock; buy wholemeal pasta and pasta sauce - add onions and mushrooms for more flavour. Always have fresh fruit available - apples and satsumas are fine out of the fridge.

[nilbyname]

Fizzy water!

[mytartanscarf]

Good suggestion about the butcher thanks :)

[mytartanscarf]

Oh no I HATE fizzy water, I was pregnant once and even THINKING of it made me puke! I absolutely loathe it, it's like salt water or something ... Anyway as you were

[MelanieCheeks]

Do it gradually - the fact that you are suffering from such obvious physical withdrawal symptoms is an indication of how bad it is for your body.

[nilbyname]

Ha, fair enough!

But the fizzy drinks need to go!

[championnibbler]

I would make some gradual changes, if i were you.

i would cut down on the diet coke. its very bad for you. don't give it up altogether because you'll feel deprived but replace a third of it with water each day.

i would get a small fridge and MAKE it fit in somewhere on the boat.
oh come on, surely you can move something and fit it in somewhere?
sorry but you REALLY, REALLY need to get a fridge.

you can buy a small microwave pretty cheap too.
again, you need to prioritise and find a place to keep it.

if you want to change, then you have make room for change.

[NutellaLawson]

Make sure you have protein in every snack or meal. I can see you are tending towards carb cascades. It's like dominoes in that one carb rich meal leads to cravings for more an hour or so later. Many bulimics who binge (not saying that's you) are actually just throwing themselves into a carb cascade. Protein like nuts cream cheese ham etc will help to put a lid on cravings for more carbs later. If I were you I'd have protein for breakfast. And if you DO find you've dipped into the Haribo then have protein right after or as your next snack to put a lid on it.

[ThinkIveBeenHacked]

You dont need a fridge for eggs, so get on the Omelettes. How cold is it on the boat? Could you visit the butchers on the way home for a few rashers of bacon and a small portion of mince - mince cook for bolognaise/chilli, save bacon for the morning with eggs if theres any part of your boat really cold (with it being this time of year).

[capsium]

Dilute the diet coke with fizzy water little by little? Try it. This might work. Start with a slurp. Progress to quarter of the glass and so on.

[specialsubject]

you certainly aren't veggie, in fact I am struggling to see how you don't have scurvy! The veg you list would be good and you can buy small quantities.

please please please try to get some vitamins in from food. Not tablets, food. And the right minerals; you must be very low on calcium which stuffs up bones. This is doing so much damage long term.

try a student cookbook; they assume limited facilities. Or even better, a yachting cookbook - I know you aren't on a yacht but the issues are the same.

[Moniker1]

Hmmmm. Bananas, pkt of digestive biscs or some oaty health type bisc, tins of soup but chop some broccoli or spinach or some green veg in it when you heat it up, blueberries seem to keep quite well, as do apples. Tinned fish, fish paste, eggs. Cheese slices keep well, as does most sliced bread now.

The thing is to have an emergency pack in your hand bag - oaty biscuits like Nature Valley come individually packed. Then you eat that when starving not haribo.

Stop the fizzy drinks. Keep some water in your bag (just a 1/4 bottle otherwise too heavy).

[nilbyname]

I would view a fridge as an essential.

How much are you spending on junk, how much would a small fridge cost to run?

I think you need to give getting a fridge a priority.

[BestZebbie]

Pasta with a tinned/tub sauce and some tinned veg (sweetcorn etc) or peppers stirred in? (or grated cheese, cheese will be OK without a fridge for a day or two if you only buy a small piece at a time). Similarly, boil in the bag rice with tinned veg or tinned curry sauces etc. Stir fry quorn with mushrooms and onion and other veg that you like, with packet sauce. Hard-boil eggs. Baked potatoes are good, you can have them with baked beans or other tinned fillings if you dont have cheese or butter around.
Prepare some savoury 'bite size' things like mini sausage rolls, scotch eggs, or a pizza that you can cut up in advance, then keep them in a biscuit tin/tupperware over a few days to snack on rather than sweets, as despite not being great they are still a bit closer to being 'proper food' - esp if you can then eat them with a bit of pre-cut-up/washed salad (disclaimer, this is ok with veggie sausage rolls, dunno if it would work for meat ones).

[misskangaandroo2014]

Could you introduce a day where you eat your porridge for breakfast and add a piece of fruit. For lunch have soup (and buy an individual bread roll). Make a risotto / pasta dish with green beans / peas/ red pepper (buy a handful).
Also for a fridge buy a proper canoe bag for keeping gear dry. Attach it by a rope to the boat it will keep small items cool. At this time of year you can also stow milk etc in an outside area of the boat (just in any bag)

[ThinkIveBeenHacked]

For an easy recipe of bolognaise, tinned toms and dried herbs with the mince is sufficient, you can get more adventurous as your cooking improves), keep a good stock of dried pasta in to eat with it.