To not understand why my healthy (I think) way of eating isn't making me feel energetic and fabulous

You surely mean not enough carbs!

Good sources of high carbs are potatoes, rice, pasta.

Also carbs are the main source of energy, which OP says they’re lacking in.

If you can afford to, I'd find a recommended trained nutritionist to discuss all this with and take their individualised advice.

The diet looks good to me. I think what may be missing is weight bearing exercise? If you’re feeling unusually fatigued, then I would get a full blood count and tests for nutrient deficiencies to see what might be causing it.

Just saw you don’t eat meat. Get your ferritin checked. I only get physical symptoms when mine drops below 30. But I feel AWFUL it’s below 60 and to feel good I need it to be over 100. (Normal is 30 - 291. That’s not even mid range)

I Agree. It all sounds a bit joyless. Have the odd Mars bar and packet of crisps.

Are you doing resistance exercise? Post menopausal women need to lift properly heavy weights, and be getting explosive forces - jumping etc, for bone density and muscle mass.

expecting a post- menopausal woman to start lifting heavy weights and explosive forces by jumping is unrealistic and in many cases overkill and could lead to injury, especially if they've been sedentary most of their adult life.

You can maintain muscle mass and bone density with walking and other daily activities such as gardening. Hand weights could be a few cans of beans in a carrier bag,

Just get some bloods done. You could be low in iron/ferritin. I know you can get this from food sources other than meat but it does take planning and effort and combining various foods.

Also B12. As we get older we can have absorption issues.

Do you take a vitamin D supplement?

I don’t know what the rest of your diet looks like as that’s just one day. But be careful not to be be too restrictive. You need a good variety. Definitely introduce some beans/pulses/lentils.

Not much vegetables and salad is low in phosphates. I found this out when DD ended up in hospital with cluster seizures. Her bloodworm should she had low phosphates and is why she was having a lot of seizures. I had given her salad with her midday meal. Salad is fine to have once a day. But family had her at theirs for tea. Said family member said they planned to do salad for tea. I pointed out she had already had salad. They said they would do something else but didn’t. If I had known it would trigger her to have so many seizures I wouldn’t have let her go.

Fibre is also important a lot of salad is mainly made up of water but there’s also very little fibre.

Yes! People don't use their teeth and jaw nearly enough, due to heavily processed food. Not in the case of the OPs diet, but smoothies aren't nearly as satisfying and they don't need any biting and chewing.

Too many carbs, not enough fat, protein and iron would be my conclusion. What do they come out at if you put it into myfitnesspal or similar? Are you doing resistance exercise? Post menopausal women need to lift properly heavy weights, and be getting explosive forces - jumping etc, for bone density and muscle mass.

Muscle mass is what makes you feel energetic and fuels metabolism. You are what you eat, because what you eat is what you’re made of. And you want that to be muscle.

On the surface the food you've listed is good quality and nutritious.

however, if this is one "typical" day it doesn't give sufficient insight over the course of a week, a month. The key thing is variety. And ensuring you have lots of different colours (eg spinach, red and orange peppers, butternut squash, carrot, purple sprouting broccoli etc).

you haven't mentioned your fluid intake. I cannot tell you the amazing difference it has made to my wellbeing to ensure my fluid levels are consistent every day. Recommended target is 2,000 ml per day, with an increased amount if you add exercise into your day. I try to drink this quantity through the day as water. Any additional fluid eg the odd cup of coffee (I have cut the amount of coffee I was drinking) are extra.

Hardly any carbs there! And carbs are the main source of energy.

Also your info on meat is incorrect.

There is no vitamin C in meat. No Fibre in meat. Little or no K1, Vitamin A or D.

Eat the whole fruit rather than a smoothie and include some meat for iron.

it depends I think, I’m generally healthy and at a Christmas do thought I’ll have the salmon wellington. I felt absolutely awful after it, it was the pastry it did not make me feel well at all. The idea that one should use food to cheer strikes me as not the right way to treat food. I do agree you don’t want to be the po faced person refusing birthday cake (even if you only eat a little bit) but there are fat better ways to treat yourself I think.

Sounds depressing tbh. Have a bar of Dairy Milk and watch your energy explode

How can anyone know how many calories the OP is consuming without her portion sizes? Half the people are saying it's too much, half too little and we can't possibly know! One small piece of sourdough with a teaspoon of peanut butter vs 2 slices, lots of butter and a generous helping of peanut butter are not the same calories.

OP, stop stressing about your diet and get out and about in the sunshine is my advice, and sort out sleep issues.

She really does not eat a lot. You say that like she should be eating less. Did you not read the bit where she isntvtrying to lose weight. She has 3 perfectly normal meals and 1 snack a day.

Agree, some completely clueless responses.

You’re eating the amount of calories that would maybe be appropriate for a toddler.

ChatGPT’s advice is drawn from … randoms on the internet.

I don't think it's your diet. I would drink lots and lots of water (I drink squash) and go for a walk every morning in the fresh air for 20 min. This has had way more impact on my energy levels than tweaking a reasonably good diet. It may also be you have to accept that energy does die off a bit during and after menopause and so a little nap or an early night might be needed to keep you going. You are doing pretty well!

Maybe try eating similar foods at different times to see if that makes a difference e.g. for breakfast have wholemeal toast with avocado topped with a poached egg. Smoothie for a snack. Have a jacket sweet potato with beans, salad and feta cheese for lunch (Bold Beans smoky baked beans are really good for this).

But tiredness isn't just about diet - do you get enough sleep? Do you exercise? Is your job/life very busy? Do you have time to relax/get out in the fresh air?

Is this a recent change of diet? If you have overhauled your eating you could still be having some carb/sugar withdrawal. Add in some fruit to snack on, almonds, walnuts and seeds. Definitely get some bloods done to check too. I had a good diet last year but I was low in folate for some reason. A course of folic acid and some additions to my food and I felt better. X

@LindyFoo doesn't mention any exercise at all.

Very heavy on fats. Just look at your breakfast smoothie with yogurt, milk, peanut butter, avocado, milk powder! It sounds very fatty even if you are using low fat items.

Same with your other meals. you are eating healthy fats but in large quantities. I would try to cut back on them. Excess fat is stored in your liver, which is not a good thing to be happening.