The Ten a Day challenge, join me

lessonlearned

*Margaret* wrote: »

I saw this, it's about people who already eat 10 a day and how they do it. Thought it might be of interest to some of you

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/feb/24/meet-people-eat-10-portions-fruit-vegetables-day

Thanks for the link, very interesting and lots of ideas on how to up the f&v content with very little effort.

The people who live in the island of OKinawa (Japan) are one of the healthiest and longest lived. They rack up around 17 portions of f&v a day.

THanks pirate.....ad much as I love spinach I do t think I could face it for breakfast. I could hide it in a smoothie. I shall be adding mushrooms and tomatoes to my breakfast today.

I didn't grow much in the way of vegetables last year, left it a bit late in the season, but I will definitely try again this year. Going to buy one of these temporary mini greenhouses and try and make an earlier start.

phizzimum

When I read the article on the BBC I knew there'd be a thread here!

Beautiful Raven, I think your post summed things up well. I also judge a portion by the size of a cupped palm - works for all ages and sizes.

10 is no more of a magic number than 5, but I guess it helps to have a goal. focusing on eating a variety of colours, tastes and textures makes eating a pleasure and will ensure we're all getting a good balance.

Hopefully this thread will encourage us all to keep making healthy choices and we can sure our ideas and recipes

phizzimum

*Margaret* wrote: »

I saw this, it's about people who already eat 10 a day and how they do it. Thought it might be of interest to some of you

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/feb/24/meet-people-eat-10-portions-fruit-vegetables-day

Great article full of common sense

PenguinOfDeath

Yesterday's intake...

1 apple
1 banana
1 sandwich with cranberry sauce on it?!
Glass of pure apple juice
An Oriental meal including veggies

4 portions at a push I'd say

Fruittea

Well yesterday I ate out and knew it would be a fish based diet. I'm having a bit of a guess here.
Shredded wheat - does wheat count as a veg?
Garlic prawns 0
Cod, raita, pak chow and kale cucumber spinach salad and potatoes 4
Slice of bread and fish paste for late night snack.
Not a fruit in sight as I was too stuffed to east any dinner after the lunch.
Today will be a home based diet so breakfast egg on toast - 0
Will have salad with at least 8 different veggies for lunch:
2 different lettuces
carrot
spring onion
Tomatoes
Cucumber
Spinach
gherkin
olives
avocado
Only small portions of each but I'd say equivalent to 4 veg
I always like a good mixed salad and usually use sprouting seeds as well. 2 blood oranges and a banana - 3
Then tonight I plan a veggie pizza bit like the one Meg 72 posted. So I'd say around 3/4.
That will be me done today.

moneyistooshorttomention

lessonlearned wrote: »

Thanks for the link, very interesting and lots of ideas on how to up the f&v content with very little effort.

The people who live in the island of OKinawa (Japan) are one of the healthiest and longest lived. They rack up around 17 portions of f&v a day.

THanks pirate.....ad much as I love spinach I do t think I could face it for breakfast. I could hide it in a smoothie. I shall be adding mushrooms and tomatoes to my breakfast today.

I didn't grow much in the way of vegetables last year, left it a bit late in the season, but I will definitely try again this year. Going to buy one of these temporary mini greenhouses and try and make an earlier start.

I am so trying not to be envious of you for being able to put up a temporary mini greenhouse - living in windy West Wales.:(

Still - I now have a permanent type distinctly small greenhouse - so I'm hoping for great things from it.

17 portions a day - my mind is boggling how they do it.

The second bit of that sentence was a downer though. The one about "living longer".

By now I just go off and go "Agh:eek::mad:" somewhere quietly (you know the image I guess - the current tv advert of a man going off and putting his head in a cupboard and having a good scream and then reappearing looking normal) whenever that comment comes up on anything, ie the one that goes "Be healthier and live longer" on anything.

I have yet to see the version of that I personally want - which goes "Be healthier - full stop" and I'm there thinking "Now just how am I supposed to get 'healthier' without also getting the 'live longer' bit chucked in with it?".

That is a serious question. I do want/strive for good health (or what other people might call "perfect health") - but I seriously do NOT want to "live longer" chucked in with it. That would count as = "Damn....that's a downside" to me personally. I want the good health - and do not want any length at all added to my life personally. My head hurts as to how one gets the first - without getting landed with the second.:cool:

lessonlearned

I get you Money.

But surely if we are healthier then "old age" won't hold such terrors......

I totally agree if living longer means getting frail, wheelchair or bedbound, and being in pain and discomfort then it ain't going to be much fun.

However if it means staying strong, supple, flexible, healthy, and vigourous then bring it on.:rotfl:

Re the Okinawans, they eat mainly a plant based diet, some fish, a little chicken but hardly any red meat and no dairy. They have a special mushroom which provides protein and which they eat daily.

I watched a programme about it, very interesting. In their 90s and low 100s they were as fit as fleas, tending their gardens, taking care of themselves, walking and doing yoga or tai chi every day.

When they were ready to die their decline was relatively swift, painfee and peaceful, often just simply passing in their sleep.

Nice way to go.:D

I often think that we could learn a lot from some of these simpler and less materialistic societies. They seem to lead far less stressful lives and often seem much happier than their counterparts here in the West.

LameWolf

PasturesNew wrote: »

What is a small portion to one is huge to others.

This. I can happily eat 5 different types of F&V in a day, but no way can I eat the portion sizes to make it count as "5-a-day", so from that, 10 is completely out of the question.

Also, I find if I think too much about what I'm about to eat, I lose any vestige of appetite completely, and end up not eating at all. (Oh, and I hate smoothies - can't abide the thick texture. I mostly drink tap water, tea with lemon in as opposed to milk, and black coffee).

But I do wish everyone trying for this all the very best.

Doom_and_Gloom

10+ a day is normal for me. Yesterday was an oddity at only 7 portions but due to how bad I was due to my disability I only had breakfast (3), a snack (1) and dinner (tin mexican bean soup counted as 1, OH added sweetcorn and peas for me, so 3), no lunch.
Breakfast today has seen me have blueberries, raspberries, apple and a banana with porridge and soya yogurt - 4.
During the rest of the day I will have carrots, courgette, cucumber, broccoli, parsnips, tomatoes, peas, sweetcorn, kale, celeriac, red cabbage, onion, mushrooms and lentils - 14. I will have that with rice as a spicy vegetable rice dish for both lunch and dinner.

So by the end of the day I will have had 18 portions minimum with most being vegetables that are very low calorie. Yes the portions are weighed so I know they are portions.
The more fruit and vegetables the better.

katkin

I'm in for the challenge but think I'll try for 7 days as it'll mean a reduction in eating other things like meat and carb heavy meals.

If 80g is a portion it means I'm looking at nearly a kilo a day of veg and fruits :eek: and no tatties includes

I'm not a huge fruit eater, mostly it is an ingredient in dishes and salads especially. My favourite salad is red cabbage, carrot, Apple and cranberry. I mostly have berries with yogurt if I do have them separately and seldom a pudding but when I do it's usually fruit based.

Thinking to make it easy to have a fruit salad for brunch, salad and veg soups for lunch and heavy on the stir fry and mixed roast veggies for supper meals. Making up the rest of my calories from eggs, fish, meat.

Oddly I've been fancying oranges and grapefruit the last few days, so maybe that's a good attitude to start with.

I'll start on Monday when my new week menu plan begins.