To ask you all for feedback/advice on my proposed diet?

[3GreenFrogs]

I’ve always had a shit diet and have gotten away with it but now my health is deteriorating and I need to change things quick.

Normal day for me would be a cereal bar and coffee for breakfast. A pot noodle for lunch and frozen pizza and chips for dinner.

New proposed “normal day” ...

Breakfast - porridge with natural honey
Lunch - 2 egg omelette with cheese and mushrooms and a pear for afters
Dinner - sirloin steak with sweet potato fries and Greek yogurt.

Is this any better and if so, how can I improve it? I need to boost protein and fibre pretty sharpish

Blimey.

It's definitely a lot better than your previous diet.

You could add a lot more fruit and vegetables, though.

Well, it's a big improvement so that's a good start.

Where's the veg? You need a myriad of veg: the more colours the better

Needs more veg (especially green veg) to get up to your 5 a day but otherwise sounds good.

I went to see a dietician once and the first thing she said to me was "there is no perfect diet". You need to find something which is "good enough" but still sustainable for you. This definitely sounds like an improvement on what you were eating before

More fruit and veg. That level of protein is more than enough. It looks like quite a lot of fat too - I'd be tempted to swap the fries for oven baked wedges.

But you need more greenery.

Good thing you are changing- your previous diet was really high in sodium.

Your new menu seems good, but I would suggest downloading myfitnesspal and start logging your meals. Make sure you log everything, including butter and oil, and little snacks. You only need to do it for a couple weeks, and it helps you identify where you need to get nutrients, as well as where your big calorie sinks are.

Yes an improvement but have a big salad with your dinner and add some more veggies with your omelette. You can switch up what you add to your omelette and the meat you have for dinner (try some fish) for variety.

Sounds nice and as others have said a massive improvement, so if this is sustainable for you then don't worry about making too many changes all at once.

But to make it even better...

I would probably try and fit one other portion of fruit in - can you slice some banana into your morning porridge? Or have some berries with your evening yoghurt?

Also would probably try and add a portion of veg with your evening meal, with your steak I might have some roasted Mediterranean veg (pepper, tomato, aubergine etc) or a green salad, or some grilled vine tomatos, or some wilted spinach? Whatever you like really.

If you like them, beans, lentils and pulses are great sources of lean protein and fibre, and as an additional plus are better environmentally than meat. So can you experiment with veggie curry, hearty soups/stews bulked up with lentils etc for your evening meal? Or try hummus with crudites and pitta for your lunch, or baked beans on toast?

I know people are saying more fruit and veg, but I think you have plenty of fruit in there. What you need is more vegetables. A lot more vegetables.

Breakfast: porridge with very small amount of honey
Lunch: omelette with courgettes and mushrooms (no cheese), large salad (dress with lemon juice, salt and pepper).
Dinner: small steak, roast veg but mostly not root veg (too much starch), use peppers, aubergine, broccoli, tomatoes etc. roasted in olive oil, salt and pepper. You don't need any yoghurt with this.

Add blueberries, blackberries or raspberries plus a handful of nuts or seeds to the porridge.

Add salad to your lunch or some chopped cucumbers and tomatoes

Add cooked broccoli and carrots to your dinner or green beans.

You need far more nutrients in diet.

Agree with *Mamabear. I’d include chicken and salmon for variety in the evening meal.

Bridget, op said nothing about trying to lose weight!

Very quick easy way to fill you up without many cals is to make sure you get your 5 a day.

There's only 3 items that would count toward your 5 a day there and I suspect the portion size of the mushrooms wouldn't be enough.

How about

Add some berries to the porridge or a glass of fruit juice with it (1 juice or smoothy a day counts for 5 a day)

Make sure the mushrooms at lunch are a full veg portion

Add a portion of broccoli, carrots or green beans to the steak dinner.

Have a portion of veg as a snack at some point in the day - celery, carrot sticks, sweet pepper crudités or a salad for supper.

Also are you drinking enough? That's something I really struggle with and is often overlooked when people review their diet.

Also don't completely cut out less healthy items - it's unsustainable and turns it into a "forbidden fruit" situation

What are you trying to achieve? Is it weight loss, better blood sugar management, lower cholesterol, more energy?

Thanks for all the advice. I’m trying to achieve more energy, more iron (severe anaemia) and to lose a bit of weight. Cutting calories doesn’t work for me. I’ve put everything into MFP but cannot seem to hit my protein and fibre goals without over doing the carbs

Check out Dr Fung on you tube. He has great advice

For natural iron gain include spinach, beetroot and dried apricots. I managed to escape being hospitalised whilst pregnant and anaemic after the MW suggested upping my intake of these.

I always try to have at least half my plate taken up with vegetables too.

Add way more fruit. I sweeten porridge with banana rather than honey because honey is still a sugar and not as healthy as everyone seems to think. Or you could add a smoothie with breakfast? Eggs are sooo good for you but could could again add a salad and some more veg in the omelette. Dinner sounds good but once again, add veggies or salad.

I wouldn't worry so much about cutting stuff out, in your case - it's more adding stuff in that you need to worry about! Pot noodles are full of shit and nothing good in them whatsoever but the occasional one won't kill you. Your current diet might though, with little to no fruit, veggies, pulses, beans etc. Even stuff like making your own pizza - it's unbelievably quick and easy to make a base, a quick tomato sauce, and add on some veggies. This would make the world of difference!

If you aren't a fan of veg, and some people just arent, I'd suggest looking up some 'hidden veg' recipes that are meant to disguise veg in meals for kids, but they work just as well for adults!

I hate cooking but I live abroad where it's not possible to buy pre-made food, even sauces, so I have always had to make my own. It's so easy, I just can't see the justification for instant meals that everyone back at home eats! I hate cooking but have a selection of healthy, quick recipes that get several portions of veg in in one meal - really easy and will make you feel much much better.

Ok well the honey never turned up in my online order but the blueberries did ... so porridge sweetened up with blueberries :-)

I also bought a bottle of Tropicana vitamin boost juice and have had a glass of that. My vitamin c on MFP is through the roof ☺️

I’ll add cucumber and tomatoes with my omelette

I’ve bought broccoli to have with my steak and have swapped the sweet potato fries for a simple sweet potato

For tomorrow I have ...

Breakfast - scrambled egg with Philadelphia cheese
Lunch - whole seed bagel with salmon and cucumber and a pear for afterwards
Dinner - homemade bolognese with carrot, celery, onions, garlic and tomatoes. I’ll also have another glass of the fruit juice. Drinking tons of water also and logging in on FitBit to ensure I have enough

That diet you proposed wasn't particularly high in iron, neither is tomorrow's especially.

In addition to best absorb iron, as well as iron rich foods you need vitamin c rich food and do avoid iron blockers - mainly calcium rich foods and caffeine.

Have you sought advice from an expert?