WIBU to ask for your smart food swaps?

[Dillo10]

Let me firstly say that I am 20 weeks pg. I am NOT dieting, but I have already put on a stone (BMI was 23 to begin with, so it's not hugely concerning) and am pretty sure it's mainly down to my eating habits.

Until around 12 weeks I existed on McCoys, Super Noodles, Lucozade Sport and bananas! My current diet is much more balanced but definitely carb heavy, and having looked into it, I'm consuming lots of "hidden calories"

For example - mayo in every sandwich, drizzling tons of olive oil on salads, snacking on taramasalata (800 calories in a pot!!!!!) I convince myself that jacket potato with tuna mayo is healthy-ish but in reality I use so much mayo and then add a ton of grated cheese... you see what I'm getting at.

I'm wondering if anybody has an tips for these small changes that have a huge impact? I'm not purely thinking about weight loss here, but the nutritional value of food and eating a healthy diet for me and the baby.

An example my friend shared with me: swap grated cheddar on pasta for parmesan as you need much less to add flavour. Or swap mayo on sandwiches for mustard.

Thanks in advance!

First time I did a low carb diet, lots of carb substitutes (cauliflower rice, cauliflower pizza, courgetti).
This time around (slipped a bit the last week or so) I've just had lots of veg instead of carb - having crunchy textures is much better anda lot less faff.
Think curry with cauliflower, no rice.

I swapped mayo for yogurt or quark. I like the sour-ish taste. Half and half is bloody awesome too.

Oil is very simple solution. Take a teaspoon, put oil in, put on salad. No free hand "drizzling".

Your friend is absolutely right about swapping meh food for flavoursome food. Nit only you need less, you also get much tastier food. Happy tongue, belly and brain😁 Don't cut everything out though! Have your jacket potato once in a while, or mayo sandwich. Just not too often.

I'd just go for the low fat/lighter version of things like spread, mayo, cheese. Get the lean/5% fat meat if you eat meat. Brown rice and pasta too.

Be careful. Low fat option isn't always the best option. Look at difference in ingredients in for example Hellman's mayo vs their light mayo.
I found that less of a full fat version often works out healthier.

You might not be overweight but your diet is somewhat lacking in nutrients!
Make your own pasta / curry sauces using tinned tomatoes and herbs / spices rather than buying ready made ones which are packed with hidden salt and sugar.
I can't get on with low carb and a lot of low fat "diet" type food can be full of artificial sweeteners and all sorts of weird things. Some of the low fat yogurts give me crazy cravings due to the sweetener!
I would aim for a diet of wholegrain carbs (oats, wholemeal bread, pasta & rice), lean protein (white meat & fish, eggs), "good fats" (oily fish, nuts, avocado in moderation), and plenty of fruit and veg. Cook from scratch and anything else in moderation.

@emmathedilemma I do tend to cook most things from scratch - I make my own pasta sauce, soups, fishcakes etc. But I think your you're right that I don't get enough "good fats" and too many bad ones!

For example - mayo in every sandwich, drizzling tons of olive oil on salads, snacking on taramasalata (800 calories in a pot!!!!!) I convince myself that jacket potato with tuna mayo is healthy-ish but in reality I use so much mayo and then add a ton of grated cheese... you see what I'm getting at.

So, for the examples you give:

I would just cut out the mayonnaise. You don't need mayonnaise on your sandwiches - just have butter and whatever fillings you want. The same with the baked potato - just have the tuna, and then either add mayonnaise OR cheese - you don't need both and you'll be just as full if you get rid of the mayonnaise.

I would also make sure you have lots of veg with every meal - your plate should be mostly vegetables with a portion of protein and some carbs.

Re cheese. I've always bought mild or medium cheddar but now tend to buy mature as you then need much less, was a bit of a doh! moment.

have beans on your baked potato as a change, i changed to the lite version of mayo and don't notice any difference now.

I had a curry and had shredded iceberg lettuce instead of rice/naan bread etc and it was pretty good.

In your current condition, i'd just try to concentrate on upping your fruit and veg and protein and you'll probably be less hungry for the rubbish. Small changes. I guess you could just think about what your baby needs to grow and what you need for good energy and maybe the empty calories will look less attractive?

I swap mushrooms or roasted butternut squash in for a bit of bulk when I'd perhaps have had pasta or potatoes.

Make your own salad dressing so you can bump up the vinegar content

Make your own coleslaw with fat free yoghurt- pinch of nom have a great recipe but I have to admit fat free is a step too far for me so I have full fat yoghurt but it's waaaay better than Mayo and has protein.

Full fat cottage cheese is good, creamy, protein and not scary with the calories.

Ham / chicken are very low fat and calories compared to cheese / tuna Mayo. You can devour half a pack of flavoured chicken breast, be absolutely stuffed for ages and it's only 150 ish calories.

It's a bit of a double edged sword but I add a bit more salt sometimes - has to balance out though so eg a super healthy veggie and lentil soup gets quite a dose to make it really tasty but it's so healthy I can justify it!!!

Ditch the meat. Veggie is so much better and lower in fat and calories. Obvs keep up protein and maybe have 2 or 3 meat meals a week.

@WaxOnFeckOff yes that's exactly the approach I am going for - trying to focus on what me and the baby need nutritionally. I am also taking pregnancy vitamins so hopefully getting good balance of everything from those too.

Hope it doesn't sound like I am living on takeaways and fizzy drinks! I haven't had one takeaway during lockdown, I'm just trying to make sure I don't put on unnecessary weight through little habits that would usually go unnoticed.

And I am definitely hungrier than normal!

Today I have eaten:

• special k red berries and tea
• one piece of pitta bread with some taramasalata
• one piece of bread with half a can of heinz tomato soup

I will probably have a banana and some dried apricots between now and dinner, which will be homemade chicken pad thai

That's very lacking in protein and fruit / veg. If you're looking to do swaps I would have:

• porridge & banana
• homemade soup, 1 pitta bread with some chicken & salad

Try having eggs for breakfast in some form if you like them. Waaaay more filling (and nutritionally better) than cereals.
Definitely up your protein intake with some full fat Greek yoghurt, more lean meat like chicken etc. You'll be less likely to reach for the 'empty calories'.

Often the low fat alternatives are not better for you by the way. Stick to real butter, full fat mayo etc, just have a bit less.

I second the eggs. I have eggs for breakfast most days and they are more filling. Either 1 egg and rye bread with some herbs or 2egg omelette with eggs and cheese.

10 weeks pregnant and craving Taramasalata now...!

For the tuna mayo you can use the very thick greek yoghurt (Fage?) and season it well with pepper and lemon. The yoghurt gives some extra protein too

Instead of loads of mayo, try a good amount of fat free yogurt (or quark) with a teaspoon of low fat mayo for the flavour. You could gradually wean yourself off the mayo entirely (or from a tbsp, down to a tsp), flavouring with lemon juice and mustard powder. Good calcium content there too.

Swap sugar-y cereal for wholegrain toast and peanut butter or an egg, overnight oats, or porridge and banana

Grate your cheese on the finest side so you can have a thinner layer (weigh it the first few times, aiming for 30-40g, but you'll soon get used to what this amount looks like!)

Poached/baked (or fried if you only use a tiny bit of oil) egg is a great lower-fat alternative to cheese on top of things (although make sure you still get enough calcium).

Put your oil in spray bottle for cooking (I mix mine with a bit of water to stop it clogging - just needs shaking each time).

Choose brown/wholemeal/wholegrain pasta, rice, bread, etc.

Try to add in more fruit and veg. Try homemade or (if money isn't tight!) those fresh pots of soup instead of a tin. Do a big pasta bake with loads of veggies. Swap dried apricots for fresh fruit - e.g. satsumas, figs or grapes.

Sometimes homemade chips (oven or airfried, with a small squirt of oil) can be less fatty than a buttery/mayonnaise-filled baked potato.

Swap super-noodles for a veg-filled stir fry with fresh/packet/dried noodles (depending on time and budget). You can buy frozen or fresh prepped veg or just chop up some sugar snaps and spring onions. Use lots of garlic and ginger for flavour.

Swap sandwiches for a salad with grains or brown rice (you can get ready to eat packets, or make up a batch of couscous) - add veg and low fat cheese (e.g. tomatoes and low fat feta or mozzarella); or an omelette like PPs have said.

Swap cream-y things for yogurt or quark (e.g. in curries or quiches).

I didn't think I was doing tooooo badly but now I realise I need to eat much better.

Eggs and whole grain toast for breakfast tomorrow I reckon!

Kinda weird but I love those frozen veggies you get (sweetcorn, peas and diced carrots) and could genuinely eat them by the bowl - I usually mix a teaspoon of butter and a pinch of salt in but thats ok right? I might start having that instead of other snacks like crisps and dried fruit.

Thanks for all the inspiration!

P.s. I have never heard of quark before! Have I been living under a rock?

Canned tomato soup is usually fairly sugary & quite low in fibre & protein.
Special K is marketed as a "healthier" cereal but actually it's nutritionally really poor, it doesn't keep you going for long, quite sugary, low fibre, low protein & the vitamins are artificially added (as many breakfast cereals are). You'd be better off with an egg on wholemeal toast, or porridge & a piece of fruit. Financially as well as health wise.

The veggies are absolutely ok. My mum likes them like this too! Often frozen can have more vitamins in than fresh which lied in a storage for god knows how long and was picked unripen.

Quark is awesome. It's so versatile. I use it instead of soft cheese on bread and just top up with slices of veg or tomato. Or you can mix it with salt, prpper, lemon juice, sriracha (or any chili sauce) and throw in some herbs. Perfect dip!

We had 2 types growing up. This soft one and hard one which we grated on sweet dishes😁

Ditch cereal - it’s processed crap! You can still have porridge if you like a bowl of something - I put in cinnamon and some fruit - banana or pear. It’s about 300 cals w semi-skimmed milk & filling.
Wholemeal toast and peanut butter (maybe not in pregnancy), and banana is a good one.
Eggs as someone mentioned etc.
Generally I’d always go as wholemeal as you can: pasta, bread, rice (can be a bit rough totally brown but Tilda do a half and half basmati that I use).
I don’t bother w low fat condiments as they generally have more sugar, but I’ll buy reduced fat mature or extra mature cheese.
Measure the oil that you use. Olive oil is stacked w calories!!

You can get powdered peanut butter btw😁 Perfect for stir-fry, sauces, salads etc.

Funny because I was having peanut butter on wholemeal toast for breakfast, but then I swapped it for the special k because I thought it had less calories!

Now I think of it, I used to have pb on rye bread and that kept me full for hours and hours

Hmmmm lots to think about, thanks guys