The Ten a Day challenge, join me

MallyGirl

berries with breakfast - 1
pad thai for lunch - butternut noodles, an onion, a leek, mushrooms, 1/2 red pepper - 5

there will be spinach in tonight's risotto for another 1 but not sure I am going to manage another 3 on top of that. In fact I know I am not. Better luck tomorrow

Living_proof

THIRZAH wrote: »

I usually have between five and seven portions most days. I slip at weekends or when DH is at home all day as he prefers a bacon sandwich type lunch rather than my usual bowl of veg soup or salad.

We are away this weekend visiting family and I'll be lucky if I get two a day. It's much easier to eat healthier if we eat at home. So few restaurant meals come with a decent portion of veg and side salads often contain raw onion which I hate.

I am with you Thirzah re. the raw onion. I used to like the taste of it but now I can't tolerate it and I would get severe indigestion, even from just a little sliver. Everywhere I go I should ask for no raw onion, but I always seem to forget and end up having to dissect my meal.

If anyone is to do 10 a day the vast majority of that should be vegetable, otherwise the amount of sugar in your diet will rocket.

oldtractor

Decided to have home made ratatouille and a tin of mixed beans mixed in sprinkled with goats cheese for dinner. Half a grapefruit for starters.

burtha

Hi can I join in ...
Most weekdays ok but struggle at weekends,
Today , Banana and grapes ( breakfast and snack)
Lunch didn't happen ..
Dinner , 2 large bowls of soup made with , butternut squash,chickpeas,leeks,celery,carrot,turnip,red onion ,peas,lentils,barley,stock.
Plus seeded bread ,
So somewhere in that lot has to be about 5 or 6 at least .

As for repeated meals/ veg , yes soup will be eaten tomorrow and any left frozen . And i try to keep costs down,so buy/use what ever is on offer , special buys or short date , chopped and frozen if needed .

Pop_Up_Pirate

Beans and Pulses are only classed as one portion a day no matter how many of them you eat. Beans for lunch, chickpeas and peas for tea only count as 1 portion, not 3.
This is because they are starch rather than nutrient based.

They are:
baked beans
red, green, yellow and brown lentils
chickpeas (chana or garbanzo beans)
garden peas
black-eyed peas
runner beans
broad beans (fava beans)
kidney beans, butter beans (Lima beans), haricots, cannellini beans, flageolet beans, pinto beans and borlotti beans

Also, the portions should be 10 different vegs/fruits. Eating two apples only counts as one.

JingsMyBucket

Here's a great PDF put out by the NHS that has specific numbers for serving sizes: http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/5ADAY/Documents/Downloads/5ADAY_portion_guide.pdf. Here are some of the examples from the sheet:

Peach: canned 2 halves or 7 slices
Peach: fresh 1 medium peach
Pear: canned 2 halves or 7 slices
Pear: fresh 1 medium pear
Pineapple: canned 2 rings or 12 chunks
Pineapple: fresh 1 large slice

Asparagus: fresh 5 spears
Aubergine/Eggplant : One third of an aubergine
Carrots: fresh slices 3 heaped tablespoons
Carrots: shredded 3 heaped tablespoons
Cauliflower 8 florets
Celery 1 stick
Courgettes Half a large courgette
Cucumber 2-inch / 5cm piece
Curly kale: cooked 4 heaped tablespoons

Those are all the equivalents of 80g. When you look at the list, it really isn't that hard to get in at least 7 servings per day.

oldtractor

I think pulses should be 2. if they count as 1 portion for 5 a day them surely they should count as 2 for 10 a day. I'm counting them as 2. if I eat 2 of the same fruits I count it as 2. no need to be pedantic. after all its all better than a biscuit or piece of cake or junk food.
today so far, brkfst 2 pieces of fruit and yoghurt. snack a tangerine
lunch will be mixed leaves salad with olives and tomato and cucumber and half an avocado and a little cheese. a bowl of tinned fruit salad for pud. dinner tonight is grapefruit half, carrot and swede mash,broccoli,cauli and a salmon fillet with blackcurrent jelly for pud. thtas 10 or 11 :-)
Pasturesnew Welcome to the challenge. its good to have you on board.

MallyGirl

In the end I managed 8 yesterday.

Today:
berries with breakfast - 1
bns and cauli soup - I am going with 4 for this
fruit cocktail as I found an out of date can in the cupboard - 1
mange tout, carrots with steak - 2

still only looking at 8. This is hard.

Broomstick

I have, out of curiosity, been weighing everything to see what portion sizes actually look like and they don't always match the NHS list. My scales and weights are accurate.

Maybe Sainsb's fruit are extra heavy at the moment but I weighed our kiwis peeled (but before serving with greek yoghurt last night for pud) and one (not two as they suggest) kiwis weighed almost 80g. Similarly ten grapes not 14 as suggested came to 80g.

I know there's lots of variability in what you can buy in the shops (or grow yourself) but I think it is worth checking weights some times if you want to be sure and are struggling to make up numbers - you might be surprised that you are eating more than you thought! Having said that, portions are only portions and it's the taste and enjoyment of the food that really counts.

Bx

PasturesNew

oldtractor wrote: »

....after all its all better than a biscuit or piece of cake or junk food. ...

There are 0 portions in pancakes.

I've eaten pancakes today....

Later I'll probably have chilli/rice - must remember to put the peas in the rice this time .... chilli should count for onions/tomatoes/beans, although it won't be a large portion, so not much of any of those to be honest.

I've no carrots left else I'd have grated carrots to serve the chilli on too....

Oh well - I THOUGHT about it, thought it through ...and am still going with "what I fancy" rather than trying to shoehorn more food into it.