"Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it."

rtandon27

GB - the Zoe Programme sounds fascinating - I didn't realize you've had a round previously.  Please do share which small changes make the most difference!  I'm always amazed that for me tiny changes tend to make the most difference! 

I've started this year simply by removing sugar/honey/maple syrup from my weekend morning brew and its done wonders for my energy.  Am now making efforts to always have a small savoury breakfast (rather than nothing or a protein/energy bar) which in the past has also done wonders for that mid-morning slump.  Current favorite is chia pudding with vanilla and sweet spices which tricks my brain into thinking it's having something sweet.

Alchemilla

Did you have a bespoke programme from Zoe, @greenbee?

We too wanted a small yellow...he is already nearly as big as our smaller choccy. 

I think black Labs have the greatest temperaments though, if I can generalise.

greenbee

• Fermented foods (kefir, yogurt, sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, water kefir) but introduce them slowly. I now have a small portion of each of the first four daily, and one of the other two as my post-work drink)
• Pulses - as much variety as possible (lots of Zoeites use Hodmedods), and a couple of portions a day (but build up slowly)
  
• Fibre - again, increase slowly, but it makes a massive difference. Back in September 2023 (when I was last logging properly) I can see that some days I was having well over 100g of fibre a day
• Nuts - particularly almonds with the skins on, but be sensible about quantities (about 20-30g a day)
• 30+ plants a week (this is 30+ different plants, not the number of portions)
• Time-restricted eating. While this makes it hard for me not to get a fat warning (I have poor fat processing) unless I leave most of my fat until the end of the day, it does help. Plus it's one less meal to think about

Fruit tends to get me through the craving for sweet things, but if I really need something then medjool dates with 100% dark chocolate buttons in them are my go-to. Black bean and beetroot brownies, zoe almond cookies, and peanut butter and almond cookies are also good if you need to snack. You can replace sugars in recipes with dates (or prunes once your taste buds have adapted). 

redofromstart

I think I would just quietly starve at that point.  

Baileys_Babe

Thanks for sharing @greenbee they are all foods I love, now I just need to make sure they are in the house and I meal plan around them.

greenbee

redofromstart said:

I think I would just quietly starve at that point.  

That's why I told you to try some of the recipes before even thinking about signing up 🤣

greenbee

Baileys_Babe said:

Thanks for sharing @greenbee they are all foods I love, now I just need to make sure they are in the house and I meal plan around them.

I buy all my pulses dried and batch cook and freeze them, so in theory they are always available. Likewise I bulk buy seeds (ground flax, chia, camellina, hemp, sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, black sesame) so I can add them to salads, soups, and yogurt. Cacao nibs are good for a bit of crunch and a chocolatey flavour. 

Lunch today was some defrosted mediterranean veg heated up as soup with a blob of goats' cheese, some rye bread (the german stuff from the supermarket) and sauerkraut. I'm also drinking lots of fennel tea, and have three cups of black coffee a day. 

The Zoe instagram is pretty good, and there are FB groups, but you have to filter out all the whining from people who want something slightly different from what they signed up for (lots of people wanting personal advice from a human being on what is an AI-enabled platform delivering a service at scale) or who don't like the way the app works/don't want to use an app/don't like having to log what they eat/don't like what the app tells them about their choices to get to the helpful stuff. 

Baileys_Babe

Your lunch sounds delicious, I would be very happy dining at chez greenbee.

greenbee

Baileys_Babe said:

Your lunch sounds delicious, I would be very happy dining at chez greenbee.

it took about 3 minutes given that it was out of the freezer I've got something from the freezer for tonight (fish I think) which has some veg with it, but I need to add more (partly because the veg drawer is full of savoy cabbage and sprouts). I may make a salad rather than cooking more veg. 

Alchemilla

Really interesting having. I try the many plants thing when I can and try not to eat between 7pm and 10 am. However just read some research about the development of cancer and fasting (though it won't stop me).