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

I think in the grand scheme of things kids having bread/sandwiches/cereal is not the end of the world as long as they are eating reasonably healthily other than that.

A kid having ham sandwiches with a bag of crisps and a chocolate bar at lunchtime after Coco Pops for breakfast and going home to chicken nuggets and chips every evening is very different to a kid having a ham sandwich at lunchtime with an apple and some cheese after eggs on toast for breakfast and having a home-cooked meal with lots of veg in the evening. There has to be a balance somewhere and family-life means we don't all have time to make healthy home-prepared meals 3 times a day 7 days a week.

@JeffVaderneedsatray - maybe consider roasting up a tray of Mediterranean veg such as courgettes, aubergines, onions etc, and sticking it in the fridge to act as an alternative to salad in the office? You could either heat it up the other end or drizzle with french dressing and eat at room temp?
I tend to live on stuff like that in the summer.

I’m trying to incorporate a tablespoon of hemp oil in to my diet everyday. I do find it helps my skin, and is another anti inflammatory oil. It also has the other Omega that we often lack. 3?...6? I can never remember!

I worked out yesterday that I could make a dressing with it, and chucked it over my salad.

Am I right in thinking EVOO is the cold pressed olive oil guys online? Or am I missing something?

Totally agree with just ‘tilting’ the kids food away from UPFs is a really good move.

EVOO is extra virgin olive oil.

I made the firm decision that this was about me. DH actually eats way less crap than me although he does drink -far too much-

The kids is tricky - they both have an ASC and massive issues around food. DD in particular will only eat a very limited diet - mostly beige - and that arrived out of desperation when she wouldn't eat.

Lunch wise - most days I take leftovers but if we have no left overs I'm generally stuck. I spent ages in the supermarket reading ingredients labels and rejected ryvita because I couldn't find an accurate ingredient list on the packet.

We meal plan and the food I've planned for this week has a high chance of left overs but I've bought some rice cakes to try.

My brain is fighting against me at the moment - part of it knows this is right but the other part is being a sulky and rebellious teenager and keeps eating all the shit. It doesn't help that I am knackered and stressed.
(I was ill with a really awful flu in December 2019 and have been left with post viral stuff - I can generally mange a day at work - I'm a 121 TA but that's me done. I know improving my diet will help but first I have to find the energy to improve!)

The thoughts about porridge are interesting. I use semi skimmed milk so maybe full fat might help. I shall try one weekend or over half term.
This week I am going to take a hunk of cheese as a snack for break - we have a very long morning at school due to staggered starts. I eat breakfast at 6.00 - 6.30 and our lunch is 1pm. No snack means I am ravenous and an apple just doesn't cut it. I generally have a graze bar or a small handful of nuts but am concerned they are a bit 'autumnal'. The graze bar is out due to palm oil.

I'm going to weigh myself today and then not look at the scales for a month.

It sounds like you are dealing with a lot @JeffVaderneedsatray. I think it's important for all of us (myself included!) not too get so bogged down in the little details of all of this that we lose sight of the bigger picture. If we have made bigger changes, such as cutting back on sugar, wheat, UPFs, the smaller details are not as significant and we shouldn't beat ourselves up too much.

I know that I am eating MUCH healthier than I was a few months ago. I'm more satisfied with my meals, I'm not craving sugar, I'm not getting the roller coaster of urges to eat crap and I am losing weight (albeit slowly). I need to keep reminding myself of these facts instead of beating myself up about still having sultanas with my porridge or having the occasional jar meal.

Well done to everyone on this thread who has made changes and is continuing to make changes, we are all doing well, let's take heart and be positive!!!

Meals today:
B - porridge (with sultanas!!)
L - veg soup followed by a dessert of raspberries with toasted oats, Greek yoghurt and cream cheese
D - not sure yet, but probably either scrambled eggs or smoked salmon on rye crispbreads

Morning all

Had a lovely meal out last night and apart from the poppadom all on plan. Far too much to drink tho, tho I feel more tired than hungover.

Was absolutely starving this morning. I made a bowl of cheesy, eggy gorgeous though. Had some naice butchers ham in. So buttered a tapas pan thing I have, put a layer of ham down, half a dozen siced cherry toms, 2 eggs just cracked in the middle and covered with grated cheese. Baked it for 10 mins. Oh my days it was lush! Roast beef dinner later as well so nice food to cure the mild hangover tiredness.

That sounds fab @HighlandCowbag!! When we have a 'Why we eat too much' post-covid get-together could you make that for us all please???

Lol I will Tired. I have many eggs so will be happy to use them up!

Wheat & sugar overload again this weekend. I’m really struggling to get back into it I might reread the book and see if I can find my motivation again...

I’m looking forward to watching the prog on UPF this week, am hoping it’ll inspire me to make better choices.

The book that got me started was David Gillespie Sweet Poison, why sugar makes us fat. Very interesting.

@OhMyChrist2020

I’m looking forward to watching the prog on UPF this week, am hoping it’ll inspire me to make better choices.

There’s a program? Do you have details @OhMyChrist2020. Sorry if I’ve missed something in the thread.

Is it 'What are we feeding our kids' 9pm Thursday 27th May with Dr Chris Van Tulleken (he who did the month on UPF mentioned before on this thread)?
My week-end wasn't good, too many apéros which included crisps. And my nut habit has taken off again post Covid, I really must ban them from the cupboard as I'm incapable of eating a handful of almonds, it ends up being 200g at least.
My weight has gone up as it always does on a Monday due to water retention. Hoping to get back to 57. something kg tomorrow as that's my happy weight.

Hi all,

Had a super manic week, my youngestS birthday on Saturday and a party yesterday, tbh I ate whatever I could when I could otherwise I didn’t eat! So I have had two pitta breads, lots of cake and pasta yesterday. But that is the end of the crazy period and today is a new day.

Looking forward to the tv show on Thursday, busy day today and tomorrow putting the house back together, making all the healthy food etc!

B- poached eggs and skillet potatoes
L- jacket potato stuffed with broccoli and cheese
D- bolognese with cheese and salad

Snack will likely be an apple with... cheese!

Hope you’re all doing ok.

Tinkling how do you make your skillet potatoes? I need something for lunch today, have no salad in and am fed up of omelette!

Busy 2 weeks, exams from uni. Need to be careful not to go off track due to lack of time/planning for food. Tonight is steak, Mediterranean veg and beef fat chips. Not sure on lunch yet tho, or the rest of the week. Fancy something different but exams mean I don't want to get tied up buying fancy ingredients and faffing around.

Hi all,

Sounds like there’s been some chaotic weekends. Mine has been too, which again has led me to eat far too much wheat, in the form of pizzas! Really feel jowly faced today!!
Back on plan today and excited about it!! Also looking forward to the programme. Going to record it and hopefully get my kids to watch it!

B- porridge, honey and blueberries
L- Greek salad
D- stir fried greens with some boiled rice.

Going for no snacks other than cheese or olives today. Plenty of lemon tea to cleanse too

@Billybagpuss

The book that got me started was David Gillespie Sweet Poison, why sugar makes us fat. Very interesting.

I read this as well, fascinating book and ties in very well with what Dr Jenkinson says.

Good luck with your exams Highland. X

I’ve read the David Gillespie book too (and attempted to give up sugar years ago after first reading it). Good to hear that everyone’s back on it today if they’ve had some off plan eating over the weekend. I’ve been in a crappy mood all weekend and this morning and one thing I’d noticed when following the plan was an improved and more even mood - definitely a good reason to get back on it! Planning porridge for b.fast, scrambled eggs for lunch and a leftover portion of sausage, mash & veg tonight. I will resist the white chocolate and raspberry cookies in the cupboard (food of the devil!!).

I boil them first whole, and have them sitting in the fridge until I need them.

I just slice and fry them in olive oil and salt. If you’re being good, add in some onion, pepper, mushroom, courgette.

I always have the weekend off!
Back on it today, breakfast - nothing as usual, lunch homemade veggie soup made from the chicken carcass my neighbour gave me last week, dinner will be mackerel and green salad.

Hi all,

I've had a lot to drink this weekend and went off-piste - chips in a restaurant on Saturday, then crisps later on. Sunday started with a breakfast roll from the van (proper roadside greasy spoon van which does amazing rolls for about £2 each - I had sausages and egg in mine) and continued with half a pork pie, an ice cream, a Flake and concluding with chips and cheese. I am so dehydrated this morning and I've had a ridiculously upset stomach. The Flake wasn't even nice - it tasted cheap and flavourless.

Never mind, though - normal eating patterns have resumed today. Lunch was fajita salad, with chicken, onions, guacamole, Greek yoghurt, cheese and salad. Everyone else had wraps but I was determined to stick to the letter of the law today after such a bad weekend. The guacamole was homemade, and the only semi-baddie was fajita seasoning, which probably has stabilisers or something in it. Dinner will probably be beef pie with whatever veg is lurking in the fridge.

I am considering how to make the kids' diets more healthy - I'm not too concerned about giving them sandwiches for lunch or pasta for dinner, but they eat a lot of sweet treats and I want to crack down on those. I've swapped DD's Petit Filous for Greek yoghurt and honey in a Tupperware pot, and stopped giving her a KitKat in her lunch in addition to the crisps for snack time. DS gets school meals (all infants in Scotland get free school meals) and they're reasonably healthy. The trouble is after school/before dinner when they would graze forever if we didn't object. I haven't cracked that one yet - and they still get cereal for breakfast. DS will eat porridge but DD doesn't like it. We have started to make them ask before all snacks so we can tell if they're eating loads of junk, though.

My DC are only given fruit for snack at home. They do have cereal for breakfast, either Multigrain hoops, rice crispies, weetabix, whole grain malties or bran flakes.

Packed lunch is either a sandwich (granary bread) with raisins, yoghurt, cucumber etc or pitta with houmous and crudités.

Second DC has school dinners (I don’t feel they’re healthy at all but they’re free) and then dinner is homemade. So they don’t eat bad, but sometimes have way too many treats.

At the moment we have Easter eggs in, a few packs of crisps and after the birthday, sweets DC was bought! Obviously also loads of leftover cake in the freezer but at least it was homemade.

I think their duets could be better but they could also be worse. I will continue to tweak over the coming months to get it as healthy as possible without baking them feel restricted.