Thread for those who are trying to eat "better"

[Octopus37]

Following on from yesterdays thread "Do I eat too much", which I posted on, I was unsurprising told that what I eat is crap. Have been feeling pretty crap the last few weeks, not enough energy low libido, sluggish, wound up, down - so have decided to see if changing my eating habits can shift things a bit. I'm not overweigh 5ft5, 8st6lbs, (slightly on the heavy side for me), but would be pleased if I did loose a few pounds, trying not to make weight the focus. Have decided to take a vitamin pill with iron every day, last year had v low ferratin levels so had to take iron tablets for a while. I'm not promising to do well every day and cut out sugar completely as I feel that I would be destined to fail. However, I am going to try to I improve. Today have eaten:
1 pack of Belvita biscuits
1 Actvia extra creamy yoghurt
1 large apple
1 Danone (high protein yoghurt)
3 Oatcakes
Some cashew nuts
I am planning on sweet chilli chicken & rice (ready meal cause of money diet) with some stir fried veg for tea and plan to eat some red grapes afterwards. Also may have some sort of a treat on school run. Also aim is to replace the Belvita biscuits with oatcakes for breakfast and maybe eat them with some cheese. Know I'm not doing perfectly but I am making an effort. Buddies welcome.

I mostly drink water. I like it - although it still takes effort to drink as much as I should, it's easy to just forget! Having a bottle to hand helps, I just keep refilling it.

I love juice and smoothies but they are now placed firmly in the 'treat' camp. I never order it with the groceries anymore so it's just the occasional 330ml bottle when out.

I sometimes still reeeeally fancy a coke/pepsi/dr pepper but try to keep it infrequent. I'll have it in pubs (again, very rare, just the odd pub lunch) as I don't drink alcohol. We have a soda stream (DH was given it at work) so have a bottle between us once a week or so if we've got the syrup/gas canister in.

Can't stand coffee, only really like tea with sugar so don't drink that either really.

Those who like the odd bit of cake/chocolate etc - I actually find water makes me enjoy it more! I'd really recommend grabbing a bottle of water and enjoy one mouthful of the treat at a time, then sip some water before your next bite. It cleanses the palate and really helps me slow down and enjoy/feel satisfied by the treat more rather than just scoffing it mindlessly :)

Oh yes,I drink peppermint tea too. I never drank coffee and am tea total so tbh it's not been much of a change really.

Just had a really nice cabbage and carrot stir fry with smoked mackerel. Yum!

I have converted my workmates into fans of roasted beans today.

Shame I ate three biscuits. Snacking is defo related to the days I don't have protein for brekky.

I'm trying to swap some teas and coffees for peppermint tea. My daily Starbucks has become a once a month treat. Where do you all stand on wine? I had a month off and gradually reintroduced a glass or two with dinner a couple of nights a week. I do feel it is creeping up a little now and thinking about cutting it entirely, but it is one of life's little pleasures as well as being sociable...

Wine is gross IMHO so can't really help there.

But what about thinking of it the same way as I do with coke/juice - not banning it (TBH I don't believe in banning any food or drink) but basically not bringing it into the home. But if I am out for a meal or whatever then why the hell not. That way you can still drink socially but you have a limit so that it can't really creep up.

Oops there was supposed to be a :o after the first sentence :o

I don't drink spirits or beers but I do like a glass of red wine. Not every night though and with a meal not usually on its own. Having said that once the summer arrives I'll probably have a glass of rosé outside. I tend to drink more in the summer just because I socialise more then. No plans to stop drinking wine because I'm probably only having the equivalent of two glasses a week.

I wouldn't cut it out entirely Xmas if you enjoy a glass.

Wine is a definite temptation for me . I do enjoy it but was slipping into the habit of having a glass or two every night territory six months ago. It was never more than that at home, would drink more maybe once a week when out. But now I try not to keep any white wine in the fridge-tepid white holds no attraction! Also the screw cap tops are too easy - all the red wine I buy seems to have corks and opening one when I know it won't be finished that night so I will also end up drinking some the next night is enough of a deterrent! I try and stick to sparkling water with dinner now, sometimes with a squeeze of lime. Am managing about 3-4 nights without a glass. It also helps (much to my annoyance) that my tolerance seems to be getting worse, more than a couple of glasses really upsets my sleep so I end up feeling crap the next day, even though it's not really a hangover . I don't drink any fizzy drinks or juice, holds no appeal.

White tea is a good lead in to green tea by the way, less bitter tasting, also less caffeine but possibly even more antioxidants. If you get used to that, green tea isn't such a shock to the tastebuds! I drink gallons of green tea now. Always a. Cup of builders first thing in the morning though, and one latte at some point most days.

I'm more spirits than wine. Don't like wine much. Hardly drink, just socially.

I walked around tesco today and told myself I could have anything I wanted for lunch. Of course I checked out all the ready meals first, pizzas, curries, pies. But nothing felt tempting! Ended up with pasta pesto salad. Ate it slowly too.

Oh and I got frozen edamame beans. I'm looking forward to having those. I've not found fresh ones anywhere.

Thanks for the views. Dh is french so no hope of avoiding wine at home! So far he hasn't minded opening a bottle for himself only and I think it has cut his consumption but it takes strong willpower, think it is easier for me to have none than one which leads to two!

Going to try hot brekky from work canteen tomorrow and see if it helps reduce biscuit consumption. Currently up with dd so likely to be wanting caffeine and sugar hit.

Wow sounds like you are all doing really well. I don't like coffee so don't drink it, love tea but drink it black with no sugar so to me surely that means its ok. Also enjoy peppermint tea etc, there are some nice new Twining green teas out. Would also recommend the Waitrose Love Life soups, I eat them on my fast days, the lemon ramen one is lush, lots of chicken and yellow split peas in it. As ever fairly mixed for me with eating, know mainly due to stress don't know whats happening with my work and tbh that's making me pretty miserable, although trying to fight it. However, the habits I am managing to retain are my healthy breakfast, and two fast days a week (obviously healthy those days as soups all have lots of veg and try to have ones with chicken in for protein).

Cashew nut butter tasty! How much can I have??

Where's that from? Sounds nice!

I had Greek scrambled eggs(olive oil, tomatoes, eggs and tons of black pepper) and soda bread for lunch, really delicious.

I drink a lot of water in the summer, but find it harder in the winter so tend to drink a lot of herbal teas. I always add a second lot of hot water onto the teabag so I can keep it going for longer! I am always chugging one tea or another. Just 1 or poss 2 cups of ordinary caffeinated tea though - including one first thing - I couldn't get up without it!

I found it in Sainsbury's. with peanut butter. There was also hazelnut butter.

They sound nice Rummik, may have to try when I next go to Sainsburys

Hi everyone, how are you doing? I have hardly eaten anything today, managed to catch a tummy bug off DS so I spent last night throwing up and all day feeling very sorry for myself, flopping about the house and spending far too much time on MN mostly getting very and about all the dieting threads. Anyone got any news to cheer me up?

Sorry you got sick

My only news is my tablets seem to be ok, thank goodness. Sorry, nothing exciting

Dh is out so I'm watching back to back Grey's Anatomy

Tell me about the diet threads, I've never been brave enough to read any of them!

Why :( / about the diet threads sleep? Is it because they are not a healthy attitude to food? Hope you recover soon anyway. I hate tummy bugs.

I don't really have any news TBH apart from I've been cooking a bit more with DCs which is lovely. We made fish fingers the other day, they were honestly the nicest I've ever had (fresh cod, and toast whizzed into breadcrumbs with added Parmesan, paprika and mustard powder)

They sound delicious fuzz!

How to explain the diet threads....for me it's incredibly depressing how so many people are chasing weight loss at all costs and as fast as possible, minimising calories, being proud of the willpower they've exerted to ignore their hunger-and so often a process they have been through repeatedly before and yet they remain convinced that it 'works'. All with apparently little regard to health. I just want to shout 'how can it possibly have 'worked' when you have gone back to where you started and have to do it all again . The ones that don't regain the weight are basically continuing to calorie count and exercise control and for me it sounds like such a miserable way to live. Others are literally starving themselves and confused about why weight isn't shifting and other posters jump in to give them tips on how to further cut calories . The trouble is we've been brainwashed into thinking this way about calories, food and the 'perfect ' body (that doesn't exist). Anyway...rant over

Your fish fingers sound fantastic fuzz! Lucky dc's

Hope you recovery is speedy sleep.

I had chips, post drinking night out. Best time to have them!

Sleep I entirely agree. I've never really tried dieting 'the proper way' () as I've seen my mum try every diet under the sun and seen them all fail.

I did grow up with a messed up view to food, but I'm glad I don't have serial diet attempts added into the mix. And it's only now that I have sufficient self worth to actually look after myself. :)

Ahh chips Rummi - from a proper chip shop. Definitely a big temptation for me, I used to go swimming every Wednesday with my mum and my sister when I was a kid and we'd get fish and chips from the shop opposite the baths afterwards, remember how ravenous you'd be after swimming when you were young? Oh my god, the smell in that shop was heavenly, I couldn't wait to get home to eat them! I also lived in Cardiff for a while after uni, the city known for 'chip alley'.. Chicken curry off the bone with chips after a long night drinking was the best! You can keep your pizza, KFC and mcdonalds!