Naturally Non Overweight People - What do you eat?

newthrift

I have enjoyed reading some of the advice on here, some points mentally noted! I don't have a massive issue with my weight and i'm in OK shape but I'm trying to slim and tone up just a little more so i'm comfy with where I am. Defiantly do not use your scales as a measure, go with how clothes look and feel - example I have clearly lost size as clothes fit better and people have noticed BUT I jumped on the scale and weight wise I had only lost 1lb :eek: I always knew not to believe the scale but this really brought it home.

As a rule of thumb meal times and portion sizes should go:-
Biggest meal breakfast
Healthy snack - nuts/piece of fruit/veggie sticks
Medium sized lunch
Healthy snack - same as prev
Small tea if with a pudding or medium tea if without

Always eat slow and never deprive yourself of anything. the change will take time to get used to and stick with and you may find you size changes slowly, but remember that slow and steady wins the race (more likely to be maintained!)

helcat26

Hi in response to the "change for life response"- this is broadly correct but very misleading.


All calories are not equal- so if you got your daily intake from simple carbohydrate eg sugars, you would get an immediate energy boost, followed by a drop as your body then stored the excess sugars by the action of insulin potentially resulting in fat.


If you ate your calorie allowance in complex carbohydrate- starches etc then this process is slowed but still occurs.


If your intake was all protein then this can be converted to energy, sugars, amino acids in the liver but is a slower process.


I will not flog this by saying what to expect if you ate all your calories in fat.


So you need to choose food that makes up your calorific quota but also makes sense in terms of immediate energy requirements, energy for the time between meals and also key nutrients and fibre.


I am sorry to lecture but it makes me mad when someone supposedly an "official" representative gives such poor advice.

I am sure you will remember we have had threads in the past from people who were religiously looking at the calories in the food they consumed but were eating pizza and crisps and could not understand why they did not lose weight.

newthrift

helcat26 - this is very much a gripe I have when I listen to people talking and I heartly stand in agreement with what you have said!!
Calories in calories out I believe has been proven to actually be an incorrect way to measure as like you say some people were eating the recommended calories but in unhealthy options!

Anoneemoose

helcat26 wrote: »

Hi in response to the "change for life response"- this is broadly correct but very misleading.


All calories are not equal- so if you got your daily intake from simple carbohydrate eg sugars, you would get an immediate energy boost, followed by a drop as your body then stored the excess sugars by the action of insulin potentially resulting in fat.


If you ate your calorie allowance in complex carbohydrate- starches etc then this process is slowed but still occurs.


If your intake was all protein then this can be converted to energy, sugars, amino acids in the liver but is a slower process.


I will not flog this by saying what to expect if you ate all your calories in fat.


So you need to choose food that makes up your calorific quota but also makes sense in terms of immediate energy requirements, energy for the time between meals and also key nutrients and fibre.


I am sorry to lecture but it makes me mad when someone supposedly an "official" representative gives such poor advice.

I am sure you will remember we have had threads in the past from people who were religiously looking at the calories in the food they consumed but were eating pizza and crisps and could not understand why they did not lose weight.

I have to say, I agree. Although I appreciate them posting.

My issue is sugar - and simple carbs. Biscuits, choc, crisps. I know they're terrible and I should cut them out totally, but I haven't managed to yet. I am having some more tests done re: my fatigue so will discuss with my gp to see if I can get this under control.

I don't believe in low fat stuff either. I use semi skimmed milk as that's what I prefer and I use normal natural yoghurt. I also use butter (not that I have it often - but when I do, probably have too much!!).

I have been scouring for quick, nutritious meal recipes to see if I can get some variety into my food. If anyone can offer their easy, healthy recipes, I will be most grateful.

Thanks again for all of the replies.

peachyprice

Marisco wrote: »

My son is as thin as a rail and he can eat what he wants without putting an ounce on, and he does eat "rubbish" TBH Whereas my daughter and myself have to be "vigilant" and keep an eye on things.

Yes, one of my sons is like that too, and my daughter, they can both eat as much rubbish as they like ans still stay skinny, my other son bless him can't look at a pizza without putting on weight.

OP, people who are naturally thin are not that way just because of their diet.

helcat26

Hi with regard to recipes can I suggest some substitutions?


If you like chocolate try buying a really intense strong high percentage chocolate then you will probably find that you can only eat a tiny bit broken up or you would feel a bit sick!


With biscuits and crisps is it the crunch that you like? substitute carrots, celery? the saltiness - in the case of crisps? make a spice mix dip.


Or with bread and biscuits is it the sweetness or instant fullness you get? I suggest if these are snacks you substitute with a drink. Either no sugar or with sweetener. I read somewhere that we confuse thirsty with hungry frequently.


Basically if you can get the taste or sensation you like in snacks that are not obviously bad then you might not crave them so much.


I appreciate fibro is a whole different ballgame in terms of fatigue but I would imagine getting ups and downs from sugar will provoke your adrenal system and make symptoms worse.


http://www.sharecare.com/health/fibromyalgia-maintaining-healthy-lifestyle/how-sugar-fibromyalgia-myofascial-mecfs

VJsmum

I agree with the whole "change for life" responses.

I think their responses on all threads are inappropriate and misleading and much of it is against current research. Skimmed milk is a terrible thing to suggest - do they know how skimmed milk is made? it is a highly processed food with almost no nutritional value

Shocking

trailingspouse

So - my food today. A totally random sample, obviously, but fairly typical of what I normally eat.

Breakfast - Alpen original with some semi-skimmed milk (2-3 tablespoonfuls), half a small pot of natural yogurt and a banana. Mug of tea (with semi-skimmed milk and a spoonful of sugar). Most of the time I would have a slice of wholemeal toast with real butter, but occasionally I have Alpen or Crunchy Nut Cornflakes instead. Sometimes I just have the tea, but I know I should try to have breakfast.

Mid-morning snack - mug of black coffee with one sugar. 2-3 choc chip cookies. I try to only have one coffee a day, but I am a fiendish tea drinker.

Lunch - Piri-piri humous with cucumber and red pepper sticks and some cherry tomatoes. I had about half the pot of humous, will have the rest tomorrow. More tea.

Mid-afternoon - a glorious day, so I went out for a walk and had a cup of tea and a seeded flapjack while I was out. This doesn't happen every day! I would be very unlikely to have a slice of cake - much more likely to go for the flapjack or maybe a scone.

For dinner I'll have wholemeal pasta with some home-made bolognaise sauce that's been cluttering up the freezer for long enough. I'm not a big fan of puddings, but I might have a fruit yogurt, or a banana.

Mid-evening - more tea.

I'm 53 (actually, thinking on, I'm only a week off being 54 :eek:), and weigh 9 stone 3 lbs. I don't do as much exercise as I should, but I can run up three flights of stairs without being out of breath so I guess I'm fairly fit.

For meals out I tend to go for the starter and main course, usually fish or veggie, very rarely have pudding, instead just have an espresso. I'm also unlikely to have more than two glasses of wine. I refuse to eat more than I'm comfortable with, and I'll quite happily leave half a plate of food if I've had enough. I just say 'It's beaten me, I'm afraid'. OH was brought up to feel guilty if he didn't finish everything - he's finally beginning to realise he doesn't need to clean his plate, and he doesn't need to feel guilty about leaving food.

fairy_lights

helcat26 wrote: »

I am sorry to lecture but it makes me mad when someone supposedly an "official" representative gives such poor advice.

I agree wholeheartedly with your post. I'm finding all of Change4lifes posts on here infuriating. It drives me mad that they post such outdated, oversimplified information and we're expected to take it seriously because they are an official organisation!
Their posts basically all boil down to "eat something low fat and go for a bike ride."
There are a lot of people on these boards who are much better informed and give better advice than the change4life rep in my opinion.

belfastgirl23

trailingspouse wrote: »

So - my food today. A totally random sample, obviously, but fairly typical of what I normally eat.

Breakfast - Alpen original with some semi-skimmed milk (2-3 tablespoonfuls), half a small pot of natural yogurt and a banana. Mug of tea (with semi-skimmed milk and a spoonful of sugar). Most of the time I would have a slice of wholemeal toast with real butter, but occasionally I have Alpen or Crunchy Nut Cornflakes instead. Sometimes I just have the tea, but I know I should try to have breakfast.

This is quite a sugary/carby way to start the day. I usually have 2 boiled eggs and a small piece of toast with butter - this holds me to lunchtime. Alternatively I might have porridge - half oats, half seeds and nuts, with milk and a big tsp of peanut butter mixed in - no added sugar

Mid-morning snack - mug of black coffee with one sugar. 2-3 choc chip cookies. I try to only have one coffee a day, but I am a fiendish tea drinker.

My guess is you're getting a craving for sugar and coffee because of a 'crash' after your breakfast - if you have something higher protein you might find you don't need this and can break the habit

Lunch - Piri-piri humous with cucumber and red pepper sticks and some cherry tomatoes. I had about half the pot of humous, will have the rest tomorrow. More tea.

sounds good and def the kind of thing I'd have, but it wouldn't be enough for me, I'd need something more substantial as well (eg salad, or maybe oatcakes) or else I'd end up having the scone or flapjack!

Mid-afternoon - a glorious day, so I went out for a walk and had a cup of tea and a seeded flapjack while I was out. This doesn't happen every day! I would be very unlikely to have a slice of cake - much more likely to go for the flapjack or maybe a scone.

Again this is simple carbs and will leave you with a bit of a crash later- the main reason you want it is because your lunch is quite small. That said you could have nuts or something instead....

For dinner I'll have wholemeal pasta with some home-made bolognaise sauce that's been cluttering up the freezer for long enough. I'm not a big fan of puddings, but I might have a fruit yogurt, or a banana.

I'm not a big fan of pasta but if you have a good portion of the bolognese sauce that would probably help

Mid-evening - more tea.

I'm 53 (actually, thinking on, I'm only a week off being 54 :eek:), and weigh 9 stone 3 lbs. I don't do as much exercise as I should, but I can run up three flights of stairs without being out of breath so I guess I'm fairly fit.

All that said you're a bit older than me and over a stone lighter so what do I know lol!

For meals out I tend to go for the starter and main course, usually fish or veggie, very rarely have pudding, instead just have an espresso. I'm also unlikely to have more than two glasses of wine. I refuse to eat more than I'm comfortable with, and I'll quite happily leave half a plate of food if I've had enough. I just say 'It's beaten me, I'm afraid'. OH was brought up to feel guilty if he didn't finish everything - he's finally beginning to realise he doesn't need to clean his plate, and he doesn't need to feel guilty about leaving food.

I need to learn about leaving stuff on the plate!

Just my thoughts, ignore if they are unhelpful but this is the way I used to eat and I think it had quite a negative impact on my energy levels and motivation levels.

As a PS I agree totally with the comments re changes4life!