building a healthy meal plan

[mpruet]

Maybe. I know that my son studied nutrition while in med school. But the point is that your doctor should know your medical condition and what potential impact a significant change in diet could cause.

 

[urbankid12]

My main meal of the day is usually a large salad. I can store enough veggies in a 2 cu.ft. refrigerator for 2 weeks.
I add orange, strawberries, blueberries, or raspberries to my oil and vinegar dressing for variety. Lots of recipes online.

For me eating healthy boils down to three things:

1. Good balance of fruits, veggies, protein, fats,
2. Minimize starches,
3. Avoid processed foods as much as possible, especially heavily processed starch.

I eat the same diet on the road and in a S&B.

 

[urbankid12]

Can you expand on that a bit more? I struggled to make it work. I was putting spring mix in plastic bags and squeezing out the air and trying to make sure they didn't touch the sides of the fridge otherwise they would spoil and go bad so quickly. To this day I struggle to eat spring mix veggies.

..What im doing today is making smoothies with fruit and putting in frozen spinich and now frozen kale. I have my lunch with 50% broccoli so that helps gets my greens in for the day. I also want to start juicing cucumber juic and carrot juice oh and I love beet juice with garlic, lemon, and ginger flavor enhansers YUM YUM YUM!

When I was making my spring greens salad I would just mix olive oil, and a nice balsamic vinigar mixed together plus a few crushed tortilla chips OR waaay back in the day I would just toast some bread and crumble that over my salad. Plus I had to have some cheese for flavor and some tuna from the tuna packets really made a good healthy salad.. Just can't seem to bring myself to putting that back into my diet just yet..

I just need to know the "science" behind it. Like what veggies lasts in the fridge still on day 12 or 14? What veggies lasts under the bed outside of the fridge and for how long? Is it very healthy? What veggies go hand and hand to being great healthy items? What veggies are basically the same so not best when you have both but instead need a vararity? What veggies should be staples and what veggies should be kept out of the diet?

Corn, and peas I have heard are NOT healthy veggies as they don't provide good nutrutuion and should be consumed in moderation. So no all veggies are not the same so we need to know the TRUTH... yet, does the only way to learn more about veggies involve going to the library and reading tons of books? ugh... cause if I wanted to do that I think I would have done that already... but I can lie and say im deffently going to do that... yet, im guessing in a few years I still won't..

Not enough hours in a day to read through tons of books but perhaps that's my only option.

 

[urbankid12]

Drink more water. If you drink the water before meals you will be satisfied with less food.

Portion control, 4 ounces is a small amount.

Have some foods that you crave. Follow a small portion of the craving food with a tall drink of water. You can use electrolyte flavors to increase your desire for the water.
-crofter

 

[urbankid12]

A lot depends on your current health and existing chronic conditions. It’s best to discuss with your doctor before starting any diet plan that might be proposed here. I’m not saying that any of these are bad, but a lot depends on what your current conditions might be.

As an example - I’m diabetic and because of that I have to avoid foods which are rich in carbohydrates. Why? - because the body converts carbs into sugar and with type-2 diabetes the sugar will remain - and build up in the blood. If I were to eat most fruits, my blood sugar will increase. Breads, potatoes, most cereals, etc. are big no-nos.

My breakfast will usually consist of eggs, bacon and/or sausage. Sometimes I will have a bowl of low-carb/**** granola. About the only veggie that I can eat without seeing a rise of blood sugar are green beans. Corn is out of the question. Most veggies will cause a rise in my blood sugar. Lunch might be a hamburger pattie, steak, or fried ham. A snack/treat might be a spoon full of peanut butter.

This would be considered a terrible diet by most folks, but since my goal is to keep my blood sugar down, it seems to work well for me. I’ve gotten my A1C down from 9.5 to 6.3. When I try the diets that well-meaning folks suggest, I see a gradual increase in blood sugar requiring an increase in insulin. Also it takes about a week to get my levels back down after I get off of the diet.

So basically I would suggest discussing with your doctor before making any significant change in your diet.

 

[urbankid12]

I haven't got a "Doctor" I been without health insurance going on nearly 15 years now. Although I did have health insurance for a short period hear and there but I have not had a checkup since I was in High school. Which wasn't since 2004. I AM my own doctor. I had a family member with diabetes so I understand the basics. I even bought a sugar level tester from CVS along with a blood pressure measurements and I tested myself and never seen any concerning trends. Although my blood pressure was quite high at times but I have since changed my diet completely and have lost over 50lbs since then so I don't see any need to re-test again for the next several years.

I know you mean well, and you took the time to explain good examples because I know the complexities of understanding how foods turn into sugar that can spike blood sugar levels can be confusing and a large learning curve. My problem has been poor teeth, I have learned that cod liver oil supplements help them from decaying to rapidly. Which has been part of my motivation to get a better diet. I had to rack up credit card debt getting teeth pulled cause they caused so much pain they kept me up all night..

American healthcare is so.... is so expensive and most of us can't even afford it.. even when I had the option to sign up what was the point? Paying the detectable and co-pay alone was expensive enough. My money was and is better spent on my dental care because that can cause me pain that can stop me from working and making money. I hope some day within the next 10 years I will be able to find a way to have stable dependable healthcare that I can actually use! by the time im 45 in 10 years would be a good achievement as I'm sure by then I will defiantly need it as I age..

I don't recommend anyone do what I have done.. Yet, it was the only way I could have survived as well as I have so far. I'm my own doctor, im my own therapist, im my own dietitian, im my own life-coach, im my own accountant, and im my own retirement planner. I'm burndend with a lifetime of debt and poverity.. why? not because I spent my 20's strung out on drugs but... strung out on college books and racking up thousands in debt. That is my shame, and yet what has also allowed me to provide for myself just enough to get by another month in poverty.

I'm sorry not trying to single you out but anytime I see an advertisement telling me to "ask my doctor" It enrages me beyond the point because I know im not the only one shouting at the screen about not having a doctor...

Plus now with surprise billing, hospitals can use out-of-network doctors even if you obeyed the rules and stayed in-network and end up STILL getting billed for thousands...

That's my motivation to get healthy, to get the opportunity to live longer... cause I know there will be a day when I get sick and won't be able to get any care at all... and then it's game over.

 

[eDJ_]

I haven't seen much mention of eating tree nuts as I look thru this thread. Lots of good discussion here and I hope this continues to grow.

A can of mixed nuts from Aldi's is about $5 bucks. Almonds are quite good as nuts go but Walnuts, Cashews, & Brazil nuts have a lot going for them. But I'd caution not to eat more than three Brazil nuts a day. But overall a 1/3 cup measure of nuts in your diet each day can contribute much to your health.

Pickled veggies such as Giardiniera, or other like beets are probiotic. You need to keep the daily intake of these up.

Green leafy vegetables such as collard greens (kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, nappa cabbage, and swiss chard are also valuable in your diet)

Fermented dairy products such as yogurt, butter milk, Kefir, cheese (such as cheddar, swiss, provolone, mozzarella, gouda, cottage cheese...to name a few are probiotics) and these items can improve your "gut health". Why "gut health" ? Because the brain and digestive tract are connected by what is known as the "vagus nerve" which senses the nutrition you are getting from what you eat and sends feedback to the brain....and from the brain back thru the digestive tract. So often the final portion of your intestinal tract (the large intestine or colon) doesn't have the good bacteria it needs in it which impairs your health. There is all kinds of bad bacteria in the colon, so you need to offset that with the daily addition of foods that establish the good bacteria (probiotics) and the foods that feed them known as prebiotics.

As for juice, better to eat the whole fruit but in some cases juice such as Purple or Red grape juice can boost the bloods hemoglobin (that which carries oxygen thru your body) or Pomegranates are more convenient in juice form.

But you will need to be set up with equipment, organization, and a well laid out plan for doing this. One of the greatest benefits will be in being mobile where you could shop the grocery store every few days to not have to carry stores of supplies. You buy as needed often. and fresh.

Things to consume in moderation would be the usual suspects. Caffeine, sugar, red meat, alcohol, nicotine, salt, diet soft drinks. (these tend to leach the potassium from the cardio muscle) There are other things to avoid but these are the front line of them.

 

[wolfv]

all veggies are not the same so we need to know the TRUTH... yet, does the only way to learn more about veggies involve going to the library and reading tons of books?

No need to read through tons of books. The whole-food plant-based guidelines are simple.

There are many diets to choose from. Which diet is the healthiest for humans? Here is how I figured it out.

Googled: healthiest for humans

Then I evaluated the diets based on:

• the credentials of the diet's advocates, research trends, and institutional support.
• consistency with consensus among nutrition researchers.
• look for observed difference in healthspan and life span.
• spot check the peer-review literature
  • Spot check because there is far too much evidence to check all of it.
  • Read enough studies to get a feel for the quality of evidence.
  • Are there multiple lines of evidence?
  • This requires science literacy.

After a few weeks of reading, I came to the conclusion that whole-food plant-based (WFPB) diet has the strongest evidence for being healthy. Only then did I read a few WFPB books.

IMHO, the best WFPB books are:

• The best practical book for how to follow a WFPB diet is "The Starch Solution" by Dr. John McDougall.
• If you like science, "The China Study" by T. Colin Campbell Ph.D.

Disclaimer: I am the author of https://wfpb-wolf.netlify.app.

 

[wolfv]

My problem has been poor teeth, I have learned that cod liver oil supplements help them from decaying to rapidly.

Vitamins D and K2 are required for healthy bones, teeth, and immune system.
Vitamin D deficiency is common for people that don't get enough sun on their skin.
Vitamin K2 deficiency is common for people that don't eat enough greens.

Cod liver oil is rich in Vitamin D.
I supplement vitamin D3 in December-January and get sun the other 10 months of the year.
I eat plenty of greens.

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[vanbrat]

I love all these ideas and am not trying to convert anyone to "my" style of eating. Which is somedays really healthy and others ....Well. For the most part I have learned to make very good and dang healthy meals, but .... I also enjoy a good hot fudge sunday and great cookies homemade or not. I know what I eat has a lot to do with how I feel. I want very much to eat a GOOD repeat GOOD healthy TASTY meal each time I sit down to eat. But I also don't feel any guilt about going off and even way off that track once in awhile (Or more). The idea of going to my grave with a pristine skinny body is not my goal. My goal is to slide in sideways and say "DAMN THAT WAS A GOOD RIDE" With a tummy full of something yummy. Chocolate?, and with a good book on my lap after that one last adventure. So just don't forget to make sure what-ever you do it is worth the effort, big or small.
just my 2 cents worth

 

[Sky]

beans, greens, fruit, whole grain, nuts

Oh thank U yes very simple direct except may I add hemp nuts too and all organic seriously folks need to do some fasting if they are unable to get back to basics and appreciate the simple flavors of whole un-processed foods.

 

[Sky]

Doctors usually know very little about diets because that is not in the curriculum in the studies to become a doctor.

Cheers did you see that docu. called 'Secret Ingredients' or that guy that was Juicing his way to better health?

 

[wolfv]

what veggies lasts in the fridge still on day 12 or 14?

Vegetables:

• cruciferous vegetables (e.g. broccoli, Kale, Cauliflower, cabbage)
• roots (e.g. potato, carrot, onion, beets, radish)
• squash

Fruits:

• dried fruit
• apples
• citric fruit

Keep your most perishable foods in the front of fridge.

Source: Google search: shelf-stable vegetables

 

[Calaverasgrande]

Few years back I was very overweight.
Some guys I knew in 'show business' told me about this diet they all do to lose weight.
The original version of the diet you take a hormone injection to suppress appetite.
But now they have a seed extract orally administered that does the same thing.
The other half of the diet is that you eat basically just vegetables and meat.
I'm vegetarian so I consulted with a nutritionist friend. He didn't like the idea, but he suggested I substitute a diet of kale, tempeh and mushrooms.
For treats I was allowed apples or strawberries.
I lost a ton of weight. My back got better, but it involved eating only tempeh, kale and mushrooms for about 5 months.
After a while it's just fuel anyway.

 

[urbankid12]

I apricate all the input and suggestions! I have been improving my diet some since I last posted! I have switched from cow's milk in my coffee to almond milk. I'm working on moving away from cheese but that is going to take a bit longer, I been trying to find vegan sauces and I found a few I want to try to make. If they are good enough they might just help replace my cheese addiction.

Another thing is my mac and cheese addiction. I'm trying this week to make instead of just pasta but half pasta half cauliflower with a cheese mix and cheese melted on top. I have stopped eating bread, but I been wanting to try making my own bread from just wheat flour, yeast, and salt and water and see how that turns out. I am suspicious that if it's just simple ingredents and no processed crap then it would be much healtheir provided the flour was of good quality but then again how do you know if it is good flour or now?

My sweet tooth has been hard to kick, but im trying to eat much more fruit and to not be fearful of fruit. Bannans being quite cheap makes it affordable enough.. I still havn't been able to bring myself to start eating my salads again just yet, I wonder if when it warms up I can really force myself to get back into that habit. Yet, I still ad spinish and kale into my smoothies and my lunches are still quite healthy (brown rice, broccoli, and chicken) I have been adding in black beans and mixed veggies as well, come times canned tomatoes too. I want to see about removing the chicken so when I use the last bits up this week I will be trying to see how it goes without the chicken. It's quite expensive plus I want to go vegan so I think beans be cheaper anyways so that would mean I can spend more on my diet in other places.

My weightloss has been slow but in 6 months I lost about 30lbs. Im 5'8 and weight 265 now. Plus with my jogging 2-4 times a week I been able to slowly build up to jogging 50min out of 60 at 4.8MPH at 3% grade. I never been this in shape in my entire life!

I am starting to think that is might be a touch unrealistic to have an ultra healthy lifestyle out of a minivan but could be quite easily from a full-size van. Unless I were to live in town and go shopping near daily then im sure it could be done. Oh and I will say I do love mushrooms and they might make a good meat substution as well into my meals..

I wish there was an application that you could just plug in your typical diet and then it would start spitting out dishes to make that would slowly change your diet into somthing healthy over time that wouldn't be a big shock to your tastebuds. Eitherway hope everyone is having a wonderful day and stay strong on your healthy lifestyle no matter where in the journey you are! cheers!

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

My weightloss has been slow but in 6 months I lost about 30lbs. Im 5'8 and weight 265 now.

Slow weight loss is good. You are doing about 1.25 lbs a week. Not bad.

I am starting to think that is might be a touch unrealistic to have an ultra healthy lifestyle out of a minivan but could be quite easily from a full-size van. Unless I were to live in town and go shopping near daily then im sure it could be done.

I don't know why. I can keep veggies for up to 14 days in a 2 cu.ft. refrigerator. There are some fruits that don't need refrigeration.

 

[wolfv]

.. my cheese addiction. ... big shock to your tastebuds.

Neal Barnard likes to talk about cheese addiction. I used to like cheese and mayonnaise. I don't miss them after a year of WFPB. Give it time.

I been wanting to try making my own bread from just wheat flour, yeast, and salt and water and see how that turns out ... how do you know if it is good flour?

Any Whole Wheat flour is healthy. The main difference between brands is texture. Try different bands to see which one you like.
I bake this No-Knead Bread.
What do you bake your bread in? Do you have an oven in a minivan?

My weightloss has been slow but in 6 months I lost about 30lbs.

That is fast. Even 1 pound per week is considered fast. Slow and consistent is more sustainable.

I am starting to think that is might be a touch unrealistic to have an ultra healthy lifestyle out of a minivan but could be quite easily from a full-size van.

Do you have a refrigerator?

Sounds like you have really turned you diet around and are reaping the benefits. Nothing affects quality of life more than good health. Good to hear you are doing so well.

 

[scaredycat72]

What I'm doing is the Mediterranean Diet. It's followed by the longest living, healthiest people and it's working great for me. Basically I eat fish, beans, rice, veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds, and olive oil. I limit eggs to 2 to 4 a week and have chicken every blue moon. I eat 2 or 3 times a day and limit higher carb foods to before 1 pm.

I tried WFPB - which is a vegan, low-fat diet - and it wasn't for me. It was too high in carbs and too low in protein and fats. Vegan diets also require a lot of supplementation to not develop nutritional deficiencies. Moderation is my go too.

 

[scaredycat72]

Doctors usually know very little about diets because that is not in the curriculum in the studies to become a doctor.

I think that was in the past. Doctors do study nutrition now.

 

[urbankid12]

Slow weight loss is good. You are doing about 1.25 lbs a week. Not bad.

I don't know why. I can keep veggies for up to 14 days in a 2 cu.ft. refrigerator. There are some fruits that don't need refrigeration.

Weightloss has slowed down signifanctly since the cold spell over the last month or so.. im hoping once the warm weather hits I can hit it hard again. 2lbs a week avg would be ok. Ideally 2-3 per week is my desired amount at least until I get back down to around 200lbs. I'm still 100lbs over weight so I don't want to think about still being in weightloss mode 2 YEARS FROM NOW!

but anyways im in my mid 30's so I can't push my body as hard as I was in my early 20's I'm trying to get the best balance for me but anyways..

What veggies do you keep?

My salad greens always kept for about a week at best then they started to get soggy and decay. apples and oranges seem to be able to last. I think I stored them a bit to high and that may have caused them to wilt a touch sooner at times when I was in the early summer in central New Mexico. Bannanas I love, but they seem to only keep 3-5 days before they start to wilt. Plus the places I were it was quite impossible to buy 1/2 yellow and 1/2 green to help them last longer. Mostly because they were smaller ma&pa stores in small towns.