Calorie deficit ideas from someone who can't cook

[merrickmckinney]

I've posted before regarding weight loss and get good tips but some of the meal suggestions are so far removed from what I usually eat that it all feels very difficult. For context I don't cook much and I'm not overly adventurous with food. I make my own soups and meals like lasagne and stews but that's about it.

So for breakfast I would probably have cereal or pancakes with fruit. Lunch is almost always a sandwich, wrap or salad with crisps. And dinner would be some variation of a Gousto meal which in fairness are quite balanced. I snack terribly during the day as well which I need to cut back on.

I've tried eating in a calorie deficit in the past and it does work but I struggle for meal ideas and that's when I fall off the wagon again.

So please could anyone suggest some low calorie meal ideas that aren't salmon and quinoa? That I can whip up easily on a small budget and limited cookery knowledge! Thank you.

Just eat what you normally eat just less of it. The idea that a diet is special food is why they fail.

Look at the Mealime App. You can make it give you recipes at specific calorie points (you may have to go pro to do this but it’s only a couple of quid a month). The recipes are easy and take about 30 mins. It also writes you a shopping list fir the meals you choose, which I find saves me money.

That’s true, but if @merrickmckinney doesn't normally cook much, it’s a good idea to widen the repertoire of healthy meals. It makes everything easier.

things like stews and lasagne can be very high in calories with all the heavy ingredients
keep things as simple as possible, meals that require only a few ingredients
the keto diet is good for this
meat, fish and veg, easy to cook and lots of variations , you have to keep an eye on sauces and oils you use

i would ditch the bread and crisps and find low calorie snacks like yoghurt

This is what I struggle with. I am used to this food and I dont really know what to do with a bit of fish as silly as that sounds. I have always wanted to learn to cook but the truth is I don't really enjoy it and I don't have the time. So I end up eating the same old meals and falling into the same old habits with snacking and bingeing.

Could you swap out the snacks for fruit and veg?

Keep breakfast the same and lunch the same but without the crisps? Lower calorie gusto meal for dinner.

Huel

My suggestions would be:

• have low cal, high protein snacks in the fridge ready to grab - boiled egg, babybel, cooked chicken chunks
• swap carbs for veg grown above ground, you can still have your bolognaise, pork chop, chicken breast.... but instead of rice or pasta have green beans, mushrooms, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, baby corn, sugar snap peas. You can eat loads of these veg and barely eat any calories. One of my favourite lunches is to put a mix of this veg into a microwaveable jug with a dash of water, cover loosely and microwave for 3 mins. Then add a teaspoon of real butter, plenty of salt and pepper and tear up a few bits of wafer thin chicken/ham or a boiled egg. Warm salad, really filling and about 200 calories for a big bowl full.
• don't have fat free versions of anything, less filling, less protein and more sugar. Have real full fat Greek yoghurt, longley farms full fat cottage cheese (no other brand is anywhere near as good as longley farms!), nut butters.

you could start with buying pre prepared meat and fish,
in shops like Asda they’ve got fish fillets and chicken breasts that are already flavoured , you just put them into the oven and boil some veg,
i buy frozen veg because it’s more convenient

then you get more confident you might decided to prepare the meats yourself to your own liking
the prepared stuff comes in two portion usually, so you could cook both and eat 1 chicken breast for dinner and then the next day cut the remaining breast into a salad or something

Good suggestions so far thank you. I know I really need to try and move away from bread and other white carbs. I love cheesy pasta and things like that. It gives me that instant, comforting full feeling but it doesn't last. A bowl of fish and veg doesn't have the same appeal. I feel like I need to totally overhaul my habits and feelings around food.

Again, the snacking kills me. I can easily polish off 500 cals just stood by the fridge on lumps of cheese, crisps, nuts, biscuits. It's really bad and I have piled the weight on recently.

Are you on Instagram? There are a few good accounts to look at for this kind of thing. Scaseyfitness does lots of meals that mostly involve sticking ingredients in an air fryer or a wrap (sometimes air frying the wrap!). Cooking for people who can’t/won’t cook!

Pinch of Nom is another good one, they have several books but lots on their website - you can choose “quick eats” which are simple and quick.

Have a look on TikTok for ideas. There are loads of really easy videos of stuff to make for a calorie deficit.

Could you try a few substitutions? Mac n cheese has about double the calories of cauliflower cheese. Now I know they're not the same, but in terms of a comforting, hot, cheesy, goopy meal there are a lot of similarities so it could give you the same satisfied/comforted feeling.

I tend to find I do best on a lower cal diet when I have strong flavours in my food, it makes the experience of eating last longer. So I'll have things like scrambled egg with chopped chillis, pepper, spring onion, a little paprika or hot sauce. I'll add a small amount of chorizo in with stir fried veg or roast broccoli with olive oil and garlic.

I feel your pain, I’m always hungry and a terrible snacker. I try and keep it healthy most of the time and my weight doesn’t really fluctuate. Traybakes are great - all in the oven, minimum cooking and washing up effort and have the left overs for lunch or pop in the freezer for another night.

Great recipes here https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/traybake-dinner-recipes

as for snacks have you tried making your own oat bars or egg muffins? My favourite snack at the moment is watermelon and feta salad with mint but appreciate its not for everyone.

oatbars
https://feelgoodfoodie.net/recipe/oatmeal-breakfast-bars/

egg muffins
https://cafedelites.com/breakfast-egg-muffins-3-ways/

You can bake salmon and haddock fillets in the oven inside tin foil ( turn up the ends to make a package) with a bit of oil and lemon and/or veg stock. 18 min for haddock, 20 min for salmon.

cut the crisps and the pancakes 😊

Cereal for snacks maybe?