Come forward EatBetterers and unite - it's the second happy healthy eating thread!

[fuzzpig]

Here's the previous thread where it all began!

EatBetterers are trying to improve the diets of ourselves and our families. No weighing, restricting, calorie counting etc - just finding joy in nourishing ourselves by making positive changes one step at a time. All welcome! :)

Lunch is a slice of spelt bread with butter, some lettuce, a couple of slices of brie, and 2 x bits of smoked salmon rolled up with cream cheese in the middle - yum!

I must admit that I like Ryvita - I have the pumpkin seed & oats ones and quite often have them as a mid-morning snack with some cheese. Not ideal on the the carb front, but good for a low-wheat, low-sugar diet.

I had courgette ribbon salad (with toasted pine nuts, cherry tomatoes and parmesan) with baked salmon for dinner last night - so good, raw courgette is so much nicer than cooked!

Avocado and chilli on a slice of toast for breakfast before hot yoga this morning, lunch was smoked mackerel with some spinach leaves, tomatoes and m&s nutty superwholefood salad for lunch ....plus too many dark choc edamame!

You're all so very healthy!

I've had a delicious smoothie made from a banana, frozen blueberries and creamy full fat yogurt (with a hint of vanilla) - it has a bit of added sugar but not much, and is from a local dairy. It's lovely. But then I had a Wagon Wheel mid-morning because I'm stuck in doing loads of work today and felt like I wanted a little treat. Lunch was pate and butter on seeded toast, but then I had a creme egg after, as I'm surrounded by Easter goodies!! No idea about tonight - I really struggle to be bothered to make a proper evening meal and quite often am not all that hungry by then.

I've had a major revelation over the past few days though - I've been reading around the subject of body-image and disordered eating etc and I'm finally beginning to accept the reality that I don't actually need to lose any weight at all! So I'm shifting my focus over to healthy eating, and only eating when I'm actually hungry, whilst also moving away from the idea of depriving myself of anything. I'm trying to think in terms of choosing what I want to eat, and thinking about the effects my choice will have on a)my health, but also b)how I'll feel after eating it (indigestion, bloating etc).

The one thing I really want to stick with is giving up wine - I had 2 glasses on Friday night and as usual it led to a night of disturbed sleep and a bad stomach the following day - I just enjoy it at the time though and Friday night is one time when I usually have it as a treat to mark the start of the weekend. But when I'm next tempted I'm going to remind myself of the negative effects it'll lead to. I'm going to try my hardest to have all of May without any at all, and hopefully I'll have begun to break the habit by then.

Sheesh - apologies for long ramble!

Hmm courgette ribbons like the idea of that.

Lunch was salad with roasted peppers, avocado, cucumber, tomatoes, cheese - and the seeded Ryvita which I have to admit I have a bit of a taste for and better than the cheesy pasta the DCs had.... but am going to experiment with home-made spelt/rye breads.

Managed to avoid the post lunch biscuit-fest.

I went out for brunch today and had scrambled eggs and bacon without bread which surprisingly filled me up so much I turned down a slice of cake without a pang of regret! I've snacked on fruit and then just had leftover pasta bake for dinner which has tonnes of veg in. Feeling good, I'd usually be craving and feeling deprived and so on by now but I'm not hungry and I'm not having cravings so I'm happy :)

I eat a lot of Courgette in salads sleep, much nicer than cooked! Courgette, carrot and apple grated is the base for most of my salads tbh.

Fell off the wagon massively this morning - slice of spelt bread toast with marmalade at 11am, followed quickly by raiding the kids easter chocolate, spreading a digestive biscuit with butter, and then a handful of dates & almonds. WHY couldn't I have just stopped at the toast ?!

bramshott it happens. Tomorrow is another day. And your spelt bread, almonds and dates were healthy so you didn't completely come off the wagon.

After the revelation, I need a filling I am extremely stressed as I am petrified of the dentist. Luckily, my new dentist is lovely, reassuring (unlike my old one) and quite cute (also unlike my old one) which helps.
He's offered me gas and air/iv sedation if I need it.

I think my main issue is I snack in the night when I'm breastfeeding, which I need to stop or find low/no sugar alternatives. Possibly need to have a filling snack/supper around 9pm before I brush my teeth and go to bed. Can anyone recommend a good, light pre bed supper? I'm thinking porridge or rice pudding.

The new and improved breakfast is really helping, I've had cream cheese and ham on granary toast with cherry tomatoes and cucumber followed by a banana yesterday and today and its lasted me till lunch without feeling peckish.

The spelt bread toast sounds good! I went out and bought some spelt and rye flour to use in my breadmaker, but stupidly didn't read my breadmaker instructions properly and have realised it is the more advanced model that makes it, not mine. Rather disappointing and now I have bags of flour that I probably won't use! Yes I could make it by hand but to be honest I just don't have the time. Maybe I will experiment with mixing a bit into a regular loaf.

However have been doing well. Stayed off the biscuits all day yesterday. Had fruit and nuts instead. Dinner last night was a sort of kedgeree type dish - rice, leeks, peas, toasted almonds and a few spices, I had mackerel with mine. It was a revelation because I used brown rice and it was really nice! I have always assumed I don't like brown rice, but it was actually tastier. DH didn't even notice the difference. However the DCs wouldn't eat it (think the yellow colour from the turmeric put them off) so they got their baked chicken with regular rice and peas.

I am a bit of a chocolate addict, so am experimenting with dark chocolate - at the moment I still prefer milk but hoping it will grow on me as I definitely can only eat a little bit of it (as opposed to milk chocolate which I can eat and eat and eat)

Bramshott same here, I will be so glad when the Easter chocolate has all gone!

Lunch today we were out and ended up in a greasy spoon cafe, and I avoided the chips! Had a jacket potato with tuna and salad. The potato was massive so I left half of it. Trying to listen to my body when it says it is full. Had water instead of diet coke.

Unfortunately am still feeling a bit bloated and constipated at the moment not really feeling the benefits of my new diet. Maybe a spicy curry would sort me out...

Donteat I'm the same with chocolate, I could eat milk chocolate endlessly whereas dark is harder to overeat.

I'm mostly only having really nice chocolates now and trying to avoid stuff like cadburys unless I really, REALLY want it (which actually isn't much at all anymore). I remind myself that Cadbury dairy milk, for example, is NOT actually chocolate. Technically they have to refer to it as 'dairy milk bar' rather than 'chocolate bar'. Something to do with the amount of vegetable fat instead of cocoa something or other. I learned about it in a chocolatier class (hen party :o).

The dark chocolate I really like is made by Divine, and has bits of freeze dried raspberries in.

Ugh really not looking forward to tonight, got to do dinner after helping DD with homework and also sort out laundry, but I'm epically dizzy today. I am always dizzy when I first get up (such is the nature of POTS) but usually it fades. Some days though it just stays with me all day and makes life really bloody hard (excuse self indulgent rant)

My BP medicine has been upped slightly which results in my mouth feeling like I'm sucking a coin, BLERK!! Everything tastes metallic, I'm hoping it will pass…

Im drinking lots of peppermint tea and chewing strong gum

Oh yuk Dame - if that carries on I'd definitely be going back to the doctor .

Bram - your tumble off the wagon isn't exactly disastrous. Bear in mind the 80/20 rule. It's only a shame if you didn't enjoy the fall . Also, this mindful eating stuff is a practice not a perfect , so don't beat yourself up.

Fuzz - is there anything that helps the dizziness? Sounds awful.

Oh fuzz, dizziness sounds awful, you poor thing

Thanks both. Am in a grump about it today! Mostly I'm fine so it really does my head in when it stays all day. Not on anything for it, just trying to work around it really. DH isn't back til at least 10 tonight though so I'm dreading the evening. Should really go and sort out dinner!

Dame that sounds really annoying about the taste in your mouth. That's what my morning 'sickness' felt like with DS - metallic. Yuk! Hope it eases up when you get used to the new dose.

Donteat - I reckon that spelt flour would work fine in a normal breadmaker on wholemeal setting. For 100% rye you need a special rye paddle which only comes with newer machines, but I'm sure you could do a half rye with the basic model. Our old machine only gave up the ghost earlier this year so we are very new to the whizzy new one.

Thanks for your kind words earlier. The thing that made me so cross is that I really didn't need the food, just wandered randomly round the house finding and eating it . I think I was trying to put off a work job I didn't want to do! Mind you I still feel starving. Can ovulation make you extra hungry?!? Can't be PMT, which always does.

Sorry to hear about your filling enormouse, your dizziness fuzz and your metallic taste Dame.

I do go a bit weird around ovulation time I think bram so maybe there's something in that!

I'm pleased I managed to cook an omelette for dinner. Had planned tacos with a bit of the mince (mostly earmarked for a bolognese tomorrow, which hopefully I'll have the energy for as I'm not working) but just couldn't face it. No longer keep any freezer stuff like nuggets in (if they're there, I'll use them up pretty damn fast, so it's better to not buy them!) so eggs are now the fast food option. Plus a bit of cheddar, baked beans I found lurking in the cupboard, and carrot/cucumber sticks. Not amazing but better than ordering a takeaway which I was so tempted to do...

My food today was-

2 boiled eggs

Salmon filett and sumac chickpeas with spinach

Garlic chicken breast, noodles and corn on the cob.

Tinned peaches and spoon of Greek yoghurt.

All tasted of money

I awoke this morning and was delighted that the money taste had gone, so I celebrated by eating 2 French Fancies, 2 Oat biscuits and 4 Nice biscuits.

ffs

I'm writing today off as Im out for a curry this evening too! Back on track tomorrow…

At least you could enjoy them, dame :)

They tasted great

Feeling slightly smug after making my best ever bolognese. Loads of grated veg, not much mince and for the first time I added red lentils to soak up the tinned tomato juice. Simmered it for over an hour after initial cooking (never bothered before but now I see what I was missing!), it was lovely and much more veg packed in than normal. DCs were none the wiser... the real test will be later when DH gets home and tries it :o

Sounds yummy, fuzz!

I've been craving sweet things this afternoon, its not hunger as I feel full, just wanting something sweet. I've had some raisins and almonds and pleasantly surprised that that did the trick (probably as many calories as chocolate but with all the good stuff too!)