What do you eat for breakfast and lunch if you at a healthy weight?

[rosesbloom]

If you are a healthy weight, what kind of things do you eat for breakfast and lunch (and snacks if you have any) and what kind of portion size?

Why I'm asking if you're curious but feel free to ignore:

I need to lose weight as I have gone from a size 10/12 to size 16/18 in the last few years and I realised I have no idea what a "normal" breakfast and lunch looks like. I realised that the reason my weight has gone up is because in the evenings I am so hungry that it is like I need another meal and I end up going for junk food like crisps and chocolate because I am tired and hungry.

I usually eat:

• Breakfast: nothing, if I force myself to have breakfast I will have one weetabix
• Lunch: a sandwich, maybe an apple too
• Dinner: something reasonably healthy
• Evenings: around 500 (or more) calories of junk food

I am not a parent but I looked after my 3 year old niece the other day she had so much for breakfast and lunch and managed to eat it all and I realised my perceptions of breakfast and lunch are warped. I think I begin each day "on a diet" (aka subconsciously restricting my food) and by evenings I am so hungry it all goes out the window.

I don't eat breakfast.

For lunch I will have something like boiled egg on cracker bread, maybe leftovers from night before, salad with some fruit perhaps.

I don't eat wheat but if I did I may have had a toasted sandwich or that sort of thing.

I honestly don't think about food until I realize I am hungry. Then I have a rummage around to see what there is.

Should add I'm a size 8, previously was more diet focused and a size 12-14.
I've made exercise an integral part of my life however but doing things I enjoy so rather than the gym I do a lot of rock climbing, hill walking, cycling, wild swimming, etc.

My breakfast is usually one of these:

• porridge with blueberries and cinnamon
• boiled eggs with whole meal toast
• wheaten bread with peanut butter or avocado

Lunch is usually;

• mackerel and salad
• hummus and rice cakes
• eggs if I didn’t have them for breakfast.

Have actually just eaten a small bowl of chickpea salad for today’s lunch.

My dinner would then be more substantial. I roughly calorie count and save calories to eat a bigger dinner.

So far I have managed to stay a slim size 8 (but now in 40's so who knows if it will continue!) and I don't really think too much about food. I walk miles most days though - usually do my 10k steps by lunchtime, average 16k a day according to an app on my phone (so not including steps I do at home/ in the office).
Breakfast I have a small bowl of cereal - cornflakes or sultana bran, something like that.
I tend not to snack in the morning, usually too busy.
Lunch I have at midday - a sandwich or wrap, or soup or if at home omelette or scrambled eggs on toast. A piece or two of fruit.
Afternoon - I will usually have a biscuit or something, occasionally crisps.
I eat with my DC at around 5.30pm. This meal is usually pretty healthy, with fruit for dessert.
8pm I will have some cheese or a bit of fruit or some nuts if I feel hungry - I find if I have crisps or something I end up eating loads more. A glass or two of wine at weekends.

A friend of mine brushes her teeth an hour after her dinner to stop her eating or drinking in the evening.

Pre-baby last year I was a size 8.
Breakfast: toast/bagel with jam or scrambled egg or avocado. Porridge usually on workdays and pancakes sometimes at weekend.
Lunch: sandwich, apple and bag of crisps.
Snack: more fruit or some crisp bread.
Dinner: usually always home cooked with either an ice cream cone or cake bar for pudding. I tend to snack on crisps and things in the evening.
Since having DD in May I am having a hard time shifting the weight despite eating pretty much the same but the crux for me is exercise - I have a job on my feet and I think that keeps my weight at bay. Dossing round the house isn’t doing me any favours.

Breakfast - coffee (red milk, works out about 80 cals I think)
Lunch - I just cooked sesame salmon with boiled rice.

This is very different to what I ate before working from home. When I went to work in the office I got up at 6 to commute, I'd eat fruit, yoghurt or porridge when I got to work with a coffee.

Lunch would be a tuna jacket or a sandwich (brown bread, no butter) and then a carb free dinner

Breakfast: veg sausage for protein with grilled tomatoes on wholemeal seeded bread with butter

OR egg (protein) on toast

OR oats (protein) with almond milk and sprinkled with flax seed

Mid morning snack: banana OR 8 almonds in Greek yoghurt (full fat)

Lunch: lentil (protein) soup OR hummus (protein) on M&S crackers, salad

As you may have noticed I focus on having protein at every meal to stop me getting hungry.

Fried eggs, mushrooms, tomato, avocado
Or
Porridge with whole milk, mixed seeds, berries, banana and butter on top
Skip lunch Monday to Friday but eat more in the evening
I'm slightly underweight

BMI is about 20

Rarely have breakfast I’m rarely hungry enough for it. If I am it’s 2 slices of toast or two potato cakes normally

Lunch is almost always a portion of leftovers from night before

Dinner is always veg heavy (vegan) usually curry/tofu stirfry/ bolognese made with lentil and walnut mince/ veggie stews etc etc always hearty and always with carbs...

@AdoraBell

My go to breakfast is home made granola, yoghurt and fruit. I prefer pears and berries. I’m really cold weather I opt for porridge and frozen berries.

Lunch, salad/omelette/leftovers.

What do you put in your homemade granola? I would love to make my own but don't know where to start.

Your plate should be green and colourful with lots of salad of veg and some protein and some carbs. I tend to avoid bread for breakfast in case I have it for lunch.
Is there a time of day you're worse for snacking? If you know that, make sure you don't for the other parts of the day.

Breakfast: 2 weetabix or those bran sticks or porridge. And fruit! An apple and banana. If really hungry (I'm breastfeeding) I'll treat myself to peanut butter toast.

Lunch: a mixed salad (lettuce, tomato, avocado, red onion etc) with feta cheese or tuna or boiled egg. Or an omelette or bean wrap. Or leftover from last night's dinner.

Dinner: a real range but I'm a carb lover bean chilli, different pasta dishes, veg curry, baked potato.

Snacks are things like fruit, nuts, rice cakes with peanut butter, popcorn.

The big thing is making sure you have fibre like weetabix and lots of different colours of fruit and veg.

I don't always have breakfast - it's a bit of a myth that it's the most important meal of the day

The NHS agrees...

www.nhs.uk/news/food-and-diet/breakfast-not-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day/

Didn't the myth stem from a marketing campaign back in the 1940s designed to sell more breakfast cereal?

Thank you for all of the replies, it has been really helpful. It seems some of you eat quite small portions (e.g. soup alone for lunch) and some eat slightly more.

I think my approach needs changing. I'm just about to make lunch (for the PP who asked, I do eat lunch at home) and I will make a sandwich but I feel like I should skip pairing it with anything else (e.g. crisps or yoghurt) to be healthy as I know I need to lose weight. However it's completely hypocritical and doesn't make sense given that I can sometimes eat an entire 700 calorie share bag of crisps in the evenings. It seems like I have a feast (evenings) and famine (daytime) relationship with food. In comparison my 3 year old niece ate a sandwich (2 slices of bread), carrot sticks, a yoghurt, fruit and some cheese for lunch.

I think I will try and have breakfast and use some of your ideas and then have a more substantial lunch and maybe an afternoon snack and see if that curbs the evening hunger and overeating.

@YerAWizardHarry I know it may seem like that but I have tracked my food and drink intake on My Fitness Pal so I know what I eat. Lunch is usually 300-400 calories and dinner is maybe 700-800 calories on average. The weight gain has been over 6-7 years so maybe that is why it seems like I am underestimating what I eat? It is the evenings that cause the weight gain as it is minimum 500 calories of junk at least 5 days a week. The only other factor I have not included in my OP is takeaways; before lockdown I was having on average 2 takeaways a week (!) but now I have around 1 a month so I have lost around a stone from that change alone.

I tend to eat porridge for breakfast, occasionally scrambled egg.

Lunch - usually a banana, a bar (or two) of chocolate and a cheese sandwich. So perhaps not very healthy!

Breakfast: scrambled egg and rice crackers
Lunch: salmon, mushroom and onion noodles or soup

I do 5k every other day

BMI about 21.5.
I only eat if I'm hungry, so breakfast might not be until 1pm.
I get a lot of exercise. I probably eat a lot of 'junk' food too.

Today I had left over home-made apple crumble with greek yogurt & buckets of tea by 10am. Then 2 WM tortillas with lots of cheese & salsa, and some licorice & chocolate.

Yesterday I had maybe 10 plums and a bucket of tea by 9am. Ham=-cheese sandwich & Apple crumble for lunch, maybe.

Recently I've been having a bowl of tomatoes with a few chunks of brie for first meal. And buckets of tea (with FF milk).

Sunday I had cheese & ham sandwich with lots of mayonaise on WM bread for breakfast by 10am (& buckets of tea...) And a lot of Doritos for lunch with tomatoes, grapes & plums.

I don't eat so much fruit in winter.

I’ve lost 1.5 stone and currently healthy weight for my height etc.

I eat porridge for breakfast with skimmed milk (it’s in a sachet so weighed out and it’s about 300 cals) and I normally have a 2 coffees with skimmed milk and 1 sugar.

Lunch: salad which includes lettuce, cucumber, peppers, maybe onion, beetroot, sometimes gherkins and a boiled egg. I’ll either then add tuna (1/2 can and a tablespoon light mayo) or chicken breast. And a tablespoon of salad dressing. Normally about 300-400 cals.
Dinner: tonight is beef and broccoli With 60grms which boiled rice. Maybe about 500 cals.

I’m not allowed to eat at my desk at work and I drink about 1600mls water through the day and maybe 2 extra coffees. I also track steps and weigh food so I know I’m not overeating. I consume about 1200-1500 cals. I sometimes have a snack after work (something I can eat whilst driving so maybe a baby bel or similar. I might have a handfu of grapes whilst I’m home.) i don’t snack on the evening.

I find it difficult to associate not being ‘full’ with being hungry/wanting to snack. I also find being bored can lead to snacking. I don’t buy crisps/chocolate/cake etc as I will eat them.

I don't do breakfast unless It's leftovers and more 'brunch ' of healthy every day foods. Not a fan of sugary carby fatty processed stuff that most 'normal' breakfast foods are. I do have coffee with creamer though.
Lunch, if I'm at work It's a huge salad with lots of protein and interesting bits,hummus dressing, brown rice. If at home usually crackers and salsa but lunch is often later than usual.

My weight is ideal for my height, but my health is probably poor.

Weekdays I get up around 7:30 and the first thing I'll have is crisps, at 10ish, with a coffee.

Lunch, more crisps, or a crisp sandwich.

Normal dinner around 5, then a couple of drinks.

I don’t eat breakfast and eat whatever I want for lunch. Dinner is small.

I’m like you and eat loads at night. Is it that you’re also eating more than you think? You mentioned crisps and a sandwich but your first post said sandwich and apple. Are you not noticing the extras you have? I need to do this for myself!

Breakfast is 2 eggs scrambled with spinach and mushrooms and a slice of buttered toast. Sometimes I add egg whites to up the protein.

Lunch - varies. Some sort of filled pita or wrap or maybe a hot meal. Always something substantial and protein-based and filling.

If you move more you need to eat more.

For breakfast I had: 2x bananas, 1/2 avacado, 40g porridge, 2 tbsp peanut butter and milk blended to a smoothie.

Snack: Eat Natural nut bar

Lunch: 2 x chicken sausages, bagel, celery & tomatoes.

Dinner: prawn pasta with spinach
Fruit yogurt

My BMI is 20 and I exercise for 30 mins every day.

I skip breakfast because i do intermittent fasting. My first meal is at lunch and i usually have fish or meat (mainly chicken) with vegetables or salad.
Snacks are fruits and during summer ice cream.
Dinner varies. We sometimes get take out but usually i make noodle soup with shrimps or chicken and veggies. When i make a pasta dish or risotto for the family, then i have a salad. I try to avoid eating carbs too much.
I gained 25kg in my second pregnancy 5 years ago and couldnt shift most of it for over a year. Started this diet and im now back down to a healthy bmi.
It was hard at the beginning. I think i was hungry for a year. But its normal for me now and i dont get hungry anymore.
I do eat more occasionally when i go out or i have cake on birthdays, but not every day.
Also my vegetable portions are big.