What we ate today in a calorie deficit - whole food edition (and how do we feel?)

[thenewaveragebear1983]

I am on a long running ‘what we ate today’ thread, but I am currently trying to cut out ultra processed foods and Eat a (mostly) whole food diet. Mainly because I am really suffering with a looooooong list of minor ailments that are not independently any issue but as a collective, they are really dragging me down. My plan is to do the next 30 days (barring a weekend away) and to see if I notice any improvements, while also sticking to my calorie and exercise goals.

@Getoutasearlyasyoucanits very hard when you’re not able to cook /prep for yourself, particularly to make meals rather than just graze on snacks. When I did whole30 before I found that I had to buy things like ham, tomatoes, cut melon etc from supermarkets when the family got lunch out. Some ready salted crisps are UPF free? However I’m sure your bigger priority is your family at the moment, so be kind to yourself 🌺

Sorry to hear of your pain @thenewaveragebear1983

today’s menu plan is:

B: Greek yoghurt with homemade granola and raspberries

L: salad with artichokes and boiled egg, apple

S: Banana and peanut butter sandwich with homemade bread

D: chicken and veggies stir fried with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, vinegar and honey. Kids will have it with noodles

@thenewaveragebear1983 - I hope this way of eating helps the inflammation/pain in your hands. My hands were going a bit crampy at one point but it seems to have gone since starting hrt but maybe it’s coincidental. Cutting wheat does seem to help my knees though.

yesterday my lunch was on track and really filled me up so I ended up fasting in the evening. I had kidney beans cooked in tomato purée, chicken breast, roasted vegetables.

I had made sourdough toast for one of the dc who didn’t touch it and unfortunately I had it cold when breaking my fast, not the best decision as it had kicked off my carb cravings! Also had salmon and baby leaves.

B: Porridge & coffee
L: Courgette frittata & salad
D: Baked sweet potato, cottage cheese & salad
S: Greek yogurt & berries

I have eaten loads today, I think I am fully in detox flu! Headache, tearful, restless, found it very difficult to concentrate. I have had no UPF and therefore no sugar or dairy or bread for 3 days so I think my body is going into shock! It’s been a pretty long and challenging day! I fully intended to go for a run but I just haven’t got the motivation so instead I’m going up have a hot bath and try to get to bed early.

food today.
chia pot as yesterday
scotch egg (homemade) and mayo with sweet potato chunks
leftover roast meat
chicken thigh
grapefruit

dinner will be mince with veg but I’m actually really not hungry in the slightest, I feel very satiated.

Do you mind if I join? I usually eat really clean but I’m breastfeeding a 5-week old right now and trying to slowly get my pre-pregnancy fitness level back. I’m also tired, suffering from baby brain too!

I do a food diary (have been counting calories for nearly two years now without a break) but I don’t keep a very strict deficit because I am exclusively breastfeeding.

I’ve been really craving sugar today. I’m so tired as I woke up at 3am unable to get back to sleep must have dropped off about 5 then felt like the living dead all day. I’ve had loads to do but felt totally overwhelmed by everything so actually ended up doing the bare minimum.

B Greek yogurt, banana and almond butter
L- chicken salad
D- pea and ham soup with sourdough
mini dairy milk bar….. not ideal but I caved!

well under calories but I to tired for anything else counting the hours til bed!

hi @CortieTatwelcome and congratulations on your new baby.

Thank you!
I had today:

Overnight oats with chia, sunflower, hemp and pumpkin seeds + banana
Osso buco with gluten free crisp bread (knäckebröd) - leftovers from Easter 🐣 and cabbage salad (cabbage and homemade vinaigrette)
Chilli sin carne from this recipe: https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/chipotle_pinto_bean_stew_94139
Snacks: two coffees with oat milk, chia seeds with kefir and 1 scoop of vegan (rice) vanilla ice cream.

I am gluten intolerant and I eat little dairy, usually only kefir/onaka (Japanese-style kefir) with my overnight oats. I try to incorporate as many sources of various types of fibre as possible every day, because I often forget to drink enough with baby constantly needing my attention and I end up constipated and miserable.

My main UPF is oat milk, we love the Arla one. I can’t give up coffee and I can’t drink coffee without oat milk, it’s my guilty pleasure.

Bf sourdough, leftover salmon, avocado, leaves
L roast chicken breast, courgette and red pepper, leaves and lidl butternut squash meezeulen (not w/f but 90/100 on Yuka app)
D stir fry veg, prawns, squid, muscles quinoa, coriander and lemon juice
S latte, kind bar (upf), berries, tsp pb, 90% dc

way too much carbs and haven’t counted cals.

shopping - lidl version of merchant gourmet packs was on offer - the quinoa one just had olive oil added
Waitrose have 20% off organic berries -v yum raspberries

Day 3 - 1155 calories
Stewed Apple with pumpkin and sunflower seeds.
Salmon, avocado, tomato, pickled cucumber, pea shoots. Strawberries.
Courgette, carrot, onion, chive egg fritters with tamari.
85% dark chocolate
2x black coffee, 2ltr water.

Breakfast:
Overnight oats with chia, flax, hemp and sunflower seeds, dried organic apricots, half a banana, almond butter and kefir.

Lunch:
Leftover chicken, daal, palak paneer, mint raita and rice (that’s leftover Indian takeaway from Tuesday)

Dinner: Sushi and miso soup.

Snacks: two coffees with oat milk, raw cacao with oat milk, edamame, 80g of mixed winegums.
It’s 2552 kcal in total. I’ve also been to a 5 km walk in the woods with the baby in a carrier and done yoga (Les Mills BodyBalance). Beautiful weather today, the spring is underway. I’m glad to be on maternity leave during such a beautiful time of the year.

B-cappuccino
L- tomato bread, calamari, chicken thigh, lentils, Padron peppers (out for tapas)
D- nothing yet really not feeling hungry so might give it a miss.

Today I had:
black coffees, water with lemon
chia pot and fruit
melon
homemade scotch egg and sweet potato
couple of chicken thighs as snacks
handful of nuts
cherry tomatoes
blueberries
2 mini bananas
I struggled at dinner time, dh and the kids ended up eating a big meal at lunch so didn’t want dinner, so I ended up eating leftover chicken and not really having a proper meal. I’ve ended up on around 1600 calories which is over my allowance but it’s because everything I’ve eaten is very calorie dense.

Porridge
cannelini bean stew with brown rice
prawn stir fry brown rice
many cups of tea
2 large handful salted peanuts
4 squares of dark milk chocolate

Feel like crap this morning- stomach cramps, palpitations walking down the stairs, tired, grumpy…. Oh, what a delight I am! I was in a really crappy mood last night as well, dh and I are going away this weekend and I have basically no nice clothes that fit me anymore. One pair of jeans, which fit, but I don’t actually like them. I do have some dresses but it’s not warm enough for them. So I spent the evening feeling cross and grouchy and like it’s all a lot of effort for not a lot of results. I’m actually heavier now than I was on 1st April (not due to this, due to the ridiculous amount of chocolate and rubbish I ate in the first half of the month) and I was supposed to be running London marathon this weekend except I had to pull out at Christmas due to being really unwell, so I feel a bit sore about that (in a kind of sliding doors kind of way, I would never have got the training in).

anyway. I will do my best today to try to keep on the straight and narrow. I’m going to venture up into the loft to rummage around for something to wear tonight and tomorrow that is a bit nicer. I coloured my hair yesterday at least.

food today- I’m bored of my repetitive breakfast and lunch options, I think I will amalgamate into a brunch and have eggs, avocado, tomatoes and mushrooms. Dinner will be at the spa restaurant so I looked last night, it’s all lovely sounding. I may end up having my first alcoholic drink this year although the thought of it actually turns my stomach a bit, but I imagine once there I will fancy one.

tomorrow I will be completely at the mercy of hotel breakfast, bakery lunch and tapas restaurant for dinner so that’s going to be a write off, although we are going to hike a bit of the malverns and there is a hotel gym, which I always quite fancy but then feel too self conscious to actually use. I will take my kit anyway, even if I just bang out a few fast kms on the treadmill.

No one seems to be eating much veg? I mostly seem to have plates full of broccoli, cauliflower, spring greens, sweetheart cabbage, kale, Savoy, etc. I would feel rubbish (and be constipated) on some of these menus.

Yesterday I had:
Lunch: huge bowl full of half pickled red cabbage salad with ginger/chilli, half lettuce and herb salad, Greek yoghurt, balsamic, tin of sardines, tahini dressing
Snacks: 2 apples, 2 oranges, 2 carrots, 2 celery sticks, half a cucumber, 2 tbsp seeds, 10 almonds

Dinner: chickpea lentil stew, grated courgette mixed in to bulk it out, saute cabbage instead of rice, crumbled feta, half a broccoli

About 1400cals

I’m sorry you are feeling crap @thenewaveragebear1983 . But a weekend away sounds fabulous, I haven’t been on a short break without children since we had them (eldest is 12). Have fun!

Hope You feel better soon and can enjoy your weekend away @thenewaveragebear1983

Day 4 ( yesterday ) 1722 calories. I was very active all day and managed a small deficit from my total energy expenditure according to my watch. Ended up quite hungry at dinner so added carbs.

Full fat Greek yoghurt with poached apple.
Chicken breast in a tomato creamy sauce with new potatoes and courgettes. Banana.
Scrambled eggs, spinach, mushrooms on toasted homemade gluten free bread.
Last of the 70% dark chocolate
2x black coffees and 2.8 ltr water.

@Authorpersonyou’re right, certainly in my case. I like veg, I love salad, but sometimes I just don’t eat it, and find it a real chore to get it into my diet. I always have the best intentions 😇 usually I get those packs of tenderstem broccoli or sugar snaps and just add that to whatever main meal, or I substitute rice for a big pile of veg, but for lunches unless i specifically eat a salad, I wouldn’t get much. I also don’t really like lentils or chickpeas, I do eat some beans but not often.

I must be retaining quite a lot of water overnight as yesterday morning I weighed myself and was quite disappointed to be up on my 1st April weight. However today I was down around 3lbs and to my lowest weight this year, 154.2lbs! I’m away this weekend so I am counting that as my weigh in for my Monday scales as I weigh on WhatsApp group linked to a podcast I listen to. That means I am very close to being under 11 stone and that will be a real milestone, so hopefully by the following weeks weigh in I will be there 🤞

Today I had:

Overnight oats with chia, sunflower, flax and hemp seeds, organic dried apricots, kefir, banana and dried mulberries

Chilli sin carne (leftovers from two days ago)

Shrimp soup with konbu seaweed, savoy cabbage, shiitake, sprout beans, broccoli, onion, garlic and spring onion. Topped with hard boiled egg and sweet potato noodles. I used leftover tikka masala sauce from another day to flavour the soup.

Snacks: two coffees with oat milk, protein bar (full of UPF), three prunes and two scoops of vegan ice cream (rice-based).
1996 kcal in total. I’ve also went for a walk (with pram) and done my first cardio workout after pregnancy. It wasn’t very demanding but still left me out of breath.

B: 1 black coffee then mid morning coffee with milk
L: Courgette frittata with salad, satsuma
D: Butter bean stew with cauliflower rice, broccoli & green beans. Greek yogurt & berries.
S: Carrot & celery sticks with a babybel

I’m having a real re-think this weekend about my plan/strategy for diet, exercise, etc. I’m getting so confused about cardio/weights, fasting/not fasting, too much or too little calorie deficit, protein, etc. I am currently weighing the heaviest I think I’ve ever weighed. It’s ‘only’ 8st10, but is far too heavy for me (short, very small framed) and, perhaps more worrying, is that I’ve gained around 10 pounds since this time last year and I’ve no idea why. It’s got to stop!!! (But not sure how…?)

Day 5 - 1034 cal
Apple, pumpkin & sunflower seeds
Assorted veggie stir fry with fresh tofu, ginger & tamari. Strawberries.
Assorted roasted veggies, salad leaves, feta, extra v olive oil.
2 sq 85% chocolate.
Blk coffee, 2+ ltr water

I had a bit of a headache all day and wasn’t overly hungry.

Felt dreadful this morning after drinking for the first time this year! Had awful nights sleep as well, I was having such awful palpitations they were waking me up. Checked my Garmin sleep graph this morning and literally every wake up my heart rate is high (for me, I have a ridiculous low hr of 40bpm so a palpitation for me is like 60 🤣 ) - but it confirms why I wanted to give up alcohol. Today we had hotel breakfast of poached eggs and avocado on malted toast, then I have had a bakery baguette with chicken mayo (v nice but total UpF!) - tonight we were hoping for tapas but our favourite restaurant is closed 😢 so we’re going to try one of The Lounges instead. Again, probably quite UPF. But I am probably not going to drink as I felt so crap this morning.