Why We Eat (Too Much) Thread 2

[TooExtraImmatureCheddar]

Shiny new thread to continue on with! I hope everyone keeps going.

For any newbies, this thread is based on a book by Dr Andrew Jenkinson. The main principles are to cut out sugar, wheat and ultra-processed foods, while eating fresh natural ingredients. It works!

Previous thread: thread 1

Hi Words - congratulations on such fabulous weight loss, that is a brilliant achievement!!

How close are you to being a healthy weight? Perhaps your weight loss has stalled because you've reached the set point for your body. I don't think BMI is a perfect tool, but are you still in the overweight/obese category for your BMI and if so how much more would you need to lose to fall into the healthy category?

Regarding the sweet stuff I am similar to you in that I love sweet treats and would have over-indulged terribly in the past. The main thing that makes a difference to me is simply not buying/making them. If I don't have them in the house I can't eat them!

I don't even walk down that aisle in the supermarket so I'm not tempted. Also, when I have to make dessert or cake for someone else I make something I don't like so I won't eat it.

What I now have instead is Greek yoghurt with berries. I also weaned myself onto a higher % dark chocolate and now I find a square of that with coffee is enough to satisfy me without me wanting to eat the whole bar.

I do find my cravings have reduced and now there are times I've seen something I used to binge on and it hasn't appealed to me at all.

Hello Tired - and thank you

I still have a stone and a half to go, so need to keep at it, but resigned to it taking a while!

It's amazing what nice things just seem to fall into my basket when shopping.

I think that's fine in moderation as a treat, but then if they are in the house, it's very tempting to start snaffling things for emotional eating reasons- for me generally when I am tired, bored or stressed.

That's when the real damage occurs, I think.

@Words welcome and well done on the weight loss!

I would suggest you eat more. Instead of the juice, have a piece of fruit so it fills you up. Perhaps add yoghurt and berries for breakfast. The book talks a lot about how our bodies resist weight loss when we go into a deprived state. It’s possible your plateau is down to this effect? If you can eat greater quantities of healthier food your metabolism may kick start naturally.

Regarding sugar and UPF... I was an addict. But I walk around the supermarket totally blind to these foods now. I simply don’t buy or eat them, they’re just not an option. For me, if I start down that road I won’t stop. It’s much easier and kinder to myself if I avoid them.

You might also want to think about maximising omega 3 intake/ minimising omega 6.

Thank you everyone for the humous tips, I generally don’t have any of those ingredients in, so will need to buy them in.

Just to add if you have children like I do, and you don’t want to completely deprive them of treat food, try to buy things you don’t find appealing.

For me it’s all the kids organic type snacks, ginger biscuits, Pom bears, hula hoops, fig rolls, pink wafers, fish fingers. None of these appeal/ are tempting to me but my children are allowed small quantities within their healthy diets.

ThanksBright!
I might give that a go - although I don't think I deprive myself particularly- portion control is an issue.
The green thing is not actually juice, but a smoothie, so quite filling really.
I need to check which foods contain Omega 6. Do have lots of oily fish and avocados...
Thanks for the lovely welcome :)

No children, thankfully! 😃

Omega 6 OMG my staple diet is meat poultry fish and eggs!

... maybe I should start to add protein powder to my smoothie again...

I dunno if I'd try switching your breakfast completely Word to something like smoked salmon and scrambled eggs, or mackerel or something. Or an omelette with cheese. Really fill yourself up with protein. As healthy as a green smoothie sounds, if you are hungry throughout the day its maybe not substantial enough to control your blood sugar. And sweet treats won't help unfortunately. I don't completely deprive myself but I generally plan for a pud after a certain meal, usually on a sunday evening and make sure its something amazing and worth the calories.

Yesterday was tricky as I knew it would be but not as bad as it could have been. Didn't have buffet at the wake, and couldn't be bothered with cooking when I got home, but equally couldn't face a greasy takeaway. The kids had dominos and I nicked a slice of pizza, then me and dh had cheese on toast, which was lush. Then a strawberry tart my gorgeous ndn sent round as she knew it was funeral.

So not on plan but it wasn't a plate of buffet, followed by a crappy takeaway.

Today I will probably have chicken and mackeral salad for lunch as they need using up, and then indian restaurant for dinner. It's a good restaurant tho, everything made from scratch and they use ghee. Will dodge the bread and bhajis, and probably have a poppadom with onion salad and yoghurt sauce. Then a prawn curry with rice.

Had far too much beer yesterday tho 🙈

Have you read the book @Words? Poultry, fish, eggs are all encouraged with the way of eating (trying to get out of calling it a 'diet because of these word's connotations). Likewise the book explains about sugar and sweet things and exactly how they're acting on your body and brain to make you want them. Personally, I'd just say 'give sugar up - totally', go cold turkey and in a week you won't need any. But I do realise how easy it is for me to say this. I was lucky having a mum who didn't like sweet things and I grew up in the 60s & 70s when sweets weren't so easily available, as a result I've never really had a sweet tooth. Bread though... 🙈

Thanks everyone. I really can't face breakfast unfortunately until I have been up at least two hours but I might do well with an omelette mid morning and more substantial lunch perhaps.

As it happens I have fresh mackerel in for lunch!

No haven't read the book yet ( as is probably obvious!)

What are the omega 6 foods one is meant to avoid?

Thé choc thing is a new bad habit for me. I never had sweets as a child ( am ancient)

And am rarely really hungry. It's just sugar calling to sugar I think...
Cold turkey is probably the way to go as you say.

Hi everyone. I've been over various diet journeys in my life, most recently fast800/low carb but found it not always very sustainable in the real world - ie, out of lockdown and socialising again!

Reading this book, it made so much sense - like a sustainable version of the above. So im going to give it a try.

I've spent the morning reading through thread one for tips and ideas while adding to my Tesco shop for Sunday, ready to start on Monday.

I have some non-plan things like yogurts that I will eat up in the transition though I've binned my normal flour etc. What are people's thoughts on gram flour?

I don't bother with breakfast either, Words. I think this diet is very compatible with intermittent fasting, and I rarely feel like eating before lunchtime, so I don't see why I should. On days when I do feel hungry in the mornings, I eat. I think it's important to listen to our bodies rather than follow prescriptive plans.

Re: Omega 6, it's mainly not using seed oils in cooking, as well as avoiding processed foods, as 99% of them are made with sunflower oil and the like. It's best to read the book to be honest, as the omega 6 thing is explained in great detail there. The book also has a useful appendix giving the omega 3/6 ratios of a lot of foods.

WeKnowFrogs I use gram flour a lot. It's much lower carb than wheat flour, so I assume it's fine to use, though I keep my total carbs below 80g most days. I use gram flour to make things like fritters, bhajis, batter for fish etc. It has a lovely flavour.

I do think this diet works well as a long term maintenance plan after doing something like Fast 800. I do 16:8 most days, with a 24 hour / 800 calorie fast one or two days a week, and am now only about 2 to 3 kilos away from my goal weight, so I'm transitioning into maintenance.

Book ordered!

Grilled fresh mackerel, roasted red peppers ( in olive oil) and green salad ( cos, flat leaf parsley, spring onion, olive oil) for lunch here. Mackerel soooo yummy 😋

Any suggestions for a good seafood sauce for prawns please?

@LifestyleReset seafood sauce, I’d mix some ketchup and mayonnaise. You‘d either have to make your own ketchup and mayo from scratch, or buy Keto versions. I’m using these:

hunterandgatherfoods.com/pages/bundles

I much prefer their ketchup to Heinz, although it’s not comparable at all!

I made satay chicken salad with coriander and lime today for lunch. It was yummy and very filling.

@HighlandCowbag sorry about your difficult day yesterday and well done for keeping m with healthy food choices in the circumstances.

@LifestyleReset

Any suggestions for a good seafood sauce for prawns please?

Is there anything better than garlic butter?

A little miso paste or umami paste is good in a Marie Rose sauce.

@ TheLeadbetterLife
Is there anything better than garlic butter?
Not much
And welcome

@HighlandCowbag
Cyber hug, you're doing fabulously

@LifestyleReset
Sour cream or good greek yoghurt mixed with Tom paste, Worcester sauce

What about drawn butter?

@Words
I forgot to say welcome! As the book will explain, it's about balancing the omegas rather than cutting one or the other. The mists will clear when you see the book 🙂

@BrightShark
I've left you out but hi 🙋

Was thinking I don't really eat these nut or seed oils - then looked at my Lurpak spreadable. Uh oh - rapeseed oil.

Really looking forward to learning more about this when the book arrives.

I was wondering around Tesco earlier and trying to see if I could find cold pressed olive oil rather than EVOO for stiff that needs a milder taste - I couldn't. But out of interest, I looked at the balsamic labels. All except the Filippo Berrio was OK. But I'd suggest avoiding the Berio label on this WOE, it's not good.