To not understand why my healthy (I think) way of eating isn't making me feel energetic and fabulous

[LindyFoo]

AIBU to consider this is a healthy daily diet (not looking to lose weight as already a healthy weight). I want to feel more energetic and fabulous :-). Don't eat meat or drink alcohol. In my 60s, fit and well, very minimal stress.

AM
Smoothie with banana, kale, milk, peanut butter, avacado, skimmed milk powder, greek yoghurt
SNACK
Sourdough bread with peanut butter
MIDDAY
2 egg with onion, peppers, cheese and a mixed salad with olive oil dressing
5PM
Salmon with salad or brown rice with prawns and lots of vegetables and spices

What is missing? Or not helping?

Doesnt look right to me. There isnt much to get energy from.
Also I would move your evening meal to lunch.
There us about 1600 calories in the says meals.
The carbs are comole and there us healthy fats in there.
There could be external factors causing the tiredness, not the diet.

You’re expecting too much. What’s your fitness regime? Are you fit? Maybe more exercise is what you need.
I give up alcohol for Lent every year, and probably drink too much the rest of the time. It makes no difference to how I feel whatsoever, whereas it’s supposed to make me sleep better, feel clearer headed and less sluggish… not one bit. So it’s not always diet (which I think yours is fine, there are plenty of carbs on vegetables and fruit too).

I have an electrolyte tablet every day and that makes a difference for me.

It looks good to me but I always thought that smoothies weren’t that good for you and it’s better to eat the constituent whole parts.
Even psychologically, I think I’d be hungry after the breakfast as it’s just a drink (regardless of what goes into it.
Do you feel tired generally, or are there particular dips in energy you can pinpoint?

I think you have to be realistic here .Your diet seems good to me .Mid 60s similar age here .You wont feel "fabulous " as a younger woman may .You are doing the right things ,but wont have the energy of someone 20 years younger!

The first few replies

• there's too many carbs
• there's not enough carbs
• there's no sugar for energy
• there's too much sugar in breakfast and snack
• there's not enough fruit
• where is the meat?

I agree with you that it looks healthy. If you don't feel you have enough energy then look at increasing protein further or quantities - how many calories are you eating? Do you take any supplements?

That is not low in calories at all!! Avocado, peanut butter, salmon, bread, olive oil.

All healthy fats, granted, but low in calories - not at all!

Are the lots of carbs in the room with us?

OP your diet looks fine. Obviously nobody knows what proportions your macros are in but it looks good on principle. We don't know what quantities you're eating in relation to your caloric needs. What were you eating before? Are you in a calorie deficit? Are you trying to lose weight or maintain?

I don’t think it’s “too much” carbs or sugar, it’s looks very normal and healthy to me.

Whats your caffeine intake like? Are you drinking enough water?

Coffee, toast with jam and an omlette in comparison is not a healthy diet. I imagine this poster is less active than many.

You genuinely think a salmon fillet and 2 eggs and a bit of cheese is enough food of substance/calories to keep someone satiated and energised from breakfast through to breakfast the next morning?

Vegetables and salad leaves will fill you up in the moment but they won't keep you full for a long period of time or give you energy. Protein and fat will do that and carbs give you energy.

It looks like a lot of calories from dairy because there's very little other calories being eaten

So, to summarise for you @LindyFoo:

You're eating too much, you aren't eating enough, eat more carbs, eat fewer carbs, eat no carbs, do and don't eat meat, take supplements (no, not those - they're terrible).

If you're tired I would check you are getting sufficient quality sleep, up your water intake and then get a blood test.

It look pretty healthy. If you have the same plants on repeat most days of the week trying switching it up a bit, I quite like the trying to eat 30+ different plants a week idea to ensure a good range of nutrients.

Sleep, workload (mental and physical), hydration, stress, vitamins /iron, air quality, hormones and illnesses all impact how we feel so if your diet is pretty good perhaps you need look at what else might be contributing to feeling sub par.

Without knowing quantities it's difficult to estimate calories but without the smoothie it's about 800-1000 calories. Unless the smoothie is 800kcal it's not enough calories to keep you energised, assuming OP is reasonably active.

It would be a good weight loss diet (minus smoothie maybe). But it's pretty low in calories. As OPs main concern is lack of energy, she doesn't drink alcohol, has a low stress lifestyle and doesn't want to lose weight then upping calories would be a sensible option

As I said there's no magic diet that's going to make you feel energised, and there could be any other reason why OP is low in energy, including just age. But it's not a high calorie diet

I’m in my early sixties and lead a healthy lifestyle but I wouldn’t say I feel fabulous at all, just ok. I suspect that might be normal for my age.

A lot of publicity is given to film stars and exercise influencers in their sixties but this isn’t realistic for most of us! I’m grateful to be in good health, but I know I’m slowing down a bit and I’m not too depressed about it. Hopefully I still have lots of life ahead of me and interesting things to do!

This.

I get quite lethargic eating starchy carbs. Swap them out for leafy greens and a touch more protein and feel way, way better.

Hope you find what works for you.

it looks like not enough protein, 30g per meal

Do you have energy crashes??
its possible to quick sugar rises, and to quick drops

add more protein, eat wholegrain and ideally when eating start from veg, protein and then carbs as this slows down glucose release.

check your Hb1ac, ferritin and iron level, add vit D and b12 and take it from there

Diet alone doesn't make one feel fabulous.

Unpopular opinion I know but I think humans need protein from animal products. If you started introducing lean meat and chicken I wonder if you’d feel better?

Nutritionally it looks good to me, but in terms of calories it’s not a lot, especially if you’re active. I would try bulking out your lunch a bit, having rice every day instead of sometimes just salad, and have a snack in the afternoon. Also look at hydration, not drinking enough can affect energy levels.

Try dropping the snack and have just 2 meals a day. That makes me feel energetic. I also eat bucket loads of salad, high protein and low carb.

The most energy I ever had is when I went vegan. And I'm not a particularly healthy vegan either.

Gamechangers on Netflix is an interesting watch if you're interested in the science behind this kind of stuff.

I think your diet is low in iron. Do you not eat red meat? Also potentially low vitamin D and B1 and B6 mostly present in meat and whole grains.

Looks absolutely fine to me. Possibly lowish on bioavailable iron, depending on how well you personally absorb it, but that easily checked with a blood test. Obviously protein and calories will depend entirely on portion size, but there’s enough in there for both unless they’re very small meals.

Iron deficiency? Vitamin d deficiency? Have you been checked for these?