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.

You sound exactly like me except that my evening snacks could easily be an extra 1000. 2/3rds of a bottle of wine, some cheese and biscuits or a bag of salted popcorn (that bag is 400 Cal's alone). I know how to eat healthily, I know about protein Vs sugar and carbs etc. What I eat in the day is often below 1200 but the late night boredom / I deserve a treat thing is why I am.now still 4st overweight despite 'trying' to lose it in the daytime. Accurately record your snack calories, bet you'll be horrified.

BMI 21.
I have cereal and whole milk for breakfast, or Greek yoghurt and fruit.
Snack - babybel
Lunch - leftovers or sandwiches, chocolate biscuit.

I don't think I eat awfully but I prob wouldn't recommend my diet if you're trying to lose weight!

This thread is 2 years old...

Porridge or greek yoghurt with fruit or toast and peanut butter for breakfast. Salad, vegetable curry, leftovers etc for lunch - about 300 cals worth. I snack on fruit, cucumber and cherry tomatoes, a couple of biscuits, greek yoghurt and honey, hummus and celery, ryvita and marmite... not all of these on one day, but I do love snacks so probably 3 a day.

I don’t know why you are asking about what people who don’t suffer from disordered eating have for breakfast and lunch when you do suffer from disordered eating and breakfast and lunch isn’t your problem.

If you are not going to seek medical help for the binging- you need to a) not have your binge foods in the house b) replace your binge foods with low calorie and low sugar alternatives, if you are going to reach out for them anyway.

If you are eating exactly as you say you are during the day, then you would lose weight eating a giant bag of sweet and salty propercorn (low cal), 3 sugar free ice lollies and a punnet of raspberries

volumeeating on Reddit has some good ideas

If you are eating exactly as you say you are during the day, then you would lose weight eating a giant bag of sweet and salty propercorn (low cal), 3 sugar free ice lollies and a punnet of raspberries each night*

**

The truth is, I eat whatever I want, whenever I want. I don't really think about it. The few times I have gained weight it's because my portions have got out of control, usually due to stress. I don't actively control my portions normally though.

My typical day is;

Breakfast - coffee (latte)
Lunch - 2 spices of sourdough toast with butter and an apple
Dinner - spaghetti Bolognese (homemade)

I don't snack and pretty much only drink water.

Yogurt and fruit then at 10ish at work il have a banana and a baybell or a flapjack. Lunch il have soup or salad or a pasta pot then mid afternoon pack of crisps then dinner. Snacks in the evening if I'm hungry I make them protein based like fridge raiders, cheese, pepperami, nuts or fruit. I'm 5 foot 10 and eat about 1800 calories to maintain my weight.

I’m quite skinny. 1,68 weight 55 kgs.

breakfast: black tea, 3 scrambled eggs w/toast. 1 expresso.

lunch: large bowl of lentils with boiled potato’s and vegetables. Yogurt with nuts and fresh orange juice as drink.

evening snack: coffee, piece of cake or fruit smoothie (2 bananas and one apple all blended with coconut milk and honey).

diner: tuna salad with vegetables and one big piece of bread.

I exercise every day, I don’t eat meat and only consume organic food (meaning: no junk, processed or microwaved food).

I’m never hungry by the way.

@rosesbloom
I could have written your post and know exactly how you are feeling about losing a sense of what is normal.
I gained 35kg since 2016 (lost 5kg over the past 3 weeks) and it has been and continues to be a real effort to reframe 'normal'.

I have definitely found that eating a bigger lunch and smaller tea earlier in the evening (between 5 and 6) has made a big difference to me in terms of hunger although I was an afternoon snacker. About 4pm I would start to get hungry and lose energy and send DP out for snacks.
We reduced carbs in the evening. I mostly drink water (a lot of it too), but we used to have a glass of squash with our meals. We have cut that out too.

I suggest doing a bit of trial and error and work out what the best combination is for you in terms of size and composition of the meals throughout the day, to reducing your hunger at the time you are most susceptible to reaching for the snacks.

Remember to lose weight you'll need to under eat normal. Smaller portions, stricter control of things that are easy to underestimate.
I like to try to aim for 800g fruit and veg every day as you get lots of volume, nutrition without dense calories.

Breakfast: 40g porridge oats with spoon or nutella or nut butter with orange juice and a piece of fruit
Lunch: cheese/ham salad sandwich (2pieces brown bread) crisps, fruit snack and few chocolate squares
Dinner: fajitas with wedges/jacket potato and salad, pizza and salad etc.
Snacks: 2-3 biscuits, sometimes a carrot/pepper to munch (bourbon/digestives/custard creams)
2.5-3l water too! 10,000 steps minimum!

On weekdays, breakfast is usually fruit juice, tea & a bowl of substantial cereal, eg weetabix or porridge. Then nothing until lunch, which is usually a sandwich or salad & a couple of pieces of fruit. I try very hard to avoid calorie-laden snacks.

At the weekend I have whatever I fancy, often a freshly made smoothie followed by a bacon & egg sandwich & a cappuccino or two. I generally don’t bother with lunch if DP is cooking dinner as I know it will be three courses with wine.

Summer breakfast - yoghurt fruit and seeds
Winter breakfast - porridge fruit and seeds

lunch - either soup or ham and beetroot.

Dinner - good dinner with wine.

I don’t snack. BMI bang in the middle of normal range.

When I'm working:

Breakfast - 1 egg scrambled with butter.
Snack - Greek yogurt and berries.
Lunch - big salad with cheese, olives to add calories.

BMI was around 19 last time I was weighed.

Weekends and holidays I tend not to eat breakfast.

I eat crisps for n the evenings but not a fan of cake/chocolate. Or rather, they are not a fan of me.

I remember once being told that folk who diet think about food all the time. I have never dieted (I did lose weight in my 20's by giving up stuff though) and I don't think about food much.

I am like you OP and had excellent modelling in DM, DSis and DMil.
My DM has porridge with milk, a round of toast with butter and marmalade and an apple or pear.
Masses of milky tea.
She has a little something mid morning and her main meal for lunch ie fish, potatoes and 2 green veg, or similar,fruit and cream, a little piece of cheese and a little piece of chocolate.She has a small portion of cake mid afternoon and her dinner is usually an egg and cress sandwich .She will have a glass of wine in the evening and if hungry a biscuit at bedtime.
My Mil ate in exactly the same way.So too my sister although she has quite large portions and more wine as she does loads of exercise.
DM was the same weight ; 9 stone, from 18 - 60 plus. She is terribly old and light now but still eats a really balanced diet.
She never overindulges and portion sizes are small.

B: Greek yoghurt, nuts, seeds, berries, drizzle of honey

Or bowl of fruit & fibre with semi skimmed milk

Or homemade smoothie with kefir, frozen blueberries, ACV, splash of fruit juice

L: two egg omelette with blue cheese, black olives and tomatoes. Small bar dark choc

Or cheese sandwich with Mayo and pickle. Yoghurt.

Or tuna salad with tomatoes, sprinkling cashews, maybe a packet of crisps too.

Or spicy bean chilli and rice from Leon if I'm at work.

The l

No breakfast, most of the time. Eggs, if eating breakfast (at weekend or with friends). Black coffee

Chicken salad/Prawn stir fry/scrambled eggs and smoked salmon/omelette/chicken and houmous wrap for lunch

Spinach and chickpea salad/chilli and tacos and salad/chicken drumsticks and salad and coleslaw/bolognese/fajitas/prawn pasta for dinner.

Essentially - nothing before 12pm, and if I have carbs at lunch then none for dinner (and vice versa). As PP have said, try and have veg or salad with each meal.

5% Fage Greek yogurt and berries after dinner if still
hungry. Small snack portions of cheese in fridge for snacks.