Trying to balance

I am a firm believer in taking the whole day rather than a single meal or ingredient as my yardstick to living well.

Yesterday I fancied a good old 'cooked breakfast' and had 2 rashers bacon, 1 slice black pudding, 150g mushrooms ( cooked in 1tsp oil), 1 large tomato and 1 poached egg. I thoroughly enjoyed it too. Now this all came to 430kcals, nearly 25% from fat. The oil, of course, is 100% fat. The bacon 16.5% fat, The black pudding 20.6% fat. OMG, all that fat. Even as a whole meal it was still 25% fat, of course a fair amount being saturated fat because of the black pudding and bacon.

Now lets take yesterdays total food intake. Breakfast as said 430kcals, 25% fat. Lunch, veg and barley stew was 245kcals and 1% fat, Dinner was a mixed leaf salad and chicken breast ( tomato, onion, red peppers and cucumber too) at 378kcals and 1% fat. Supper was homemade leek and potato soup ( eaten at midnight in work) 167kcals and 1% fat.

This daily intake totals 1220kcals and just 7% fat.

I usually eat more calories than this, but I was stuffed and refused to eat more for the sake of it. It also 'banks' me a few spare if I go a bit over on another day. I had roughly 8 portions of veg in the day too. I try to have a variety of meat, fish and veg. My days ( main meals) usually flowing as fish, white meat, vegetarian, red meat, then back to the start, but I am not strict to this. I also try to stick to a maximum of 1500kcals and a minimum of 1200kcals daily. Social occasions can, and do at times, play havoc, but I know that 1 day isn't going to ruin a week. I enjoy the day and get straight back to the plan as soon as the occasion is over.

I do not ban any food at all, as I feel I have to learn how to live life with more self control of what/how much of something I have and what certain foods do to the way they make my mind and body feel. That said, I am choosing not to have crisps in the house at the minute or consuming them elsewhere as my self control is minimal where they are concerned, masochistic i'm not!!! Oh I argue myself witless sometimes with 'just have 1, no don't do it, go on - 1 won't harm you........'. On the whole though I am winning through.

I walk a lot and recently bought myself a pedometer, switching from measuring steps or distance as I feel. I have surprised myself at the distance I cover in just an average day. I have dusted off my bike and pootle on that now too. I use the treadmill and rowing machine at the gym only - absolutely not interested in anything else there, have tried.

So that's me. As balanced a day as I want it to be, food and exercise. It suits me and I am happy with this at present. It isn't for some, it'd suit others. As individuals we have very varied ways of what and how we choose to get slim and get our bodies in a good place for, hopefully, a long life.

[Hidden]

No, not really. Just stating what I do. 😊

[Hidden]

That all sounds eminently sensible to me. I love your wholistic attitude. A lot of your food sounds so homely and comforting, probably because it is all made from scratch and your recipes and food combinations have been carefully honed exactly how you like them. This weight loss process needs to be enjoyable as well as sticking to the calories/nutritional guidelines etc. And I think this is really what you do, you make it enjoyable

[Hidden]

Thanks Ruth. I am not fanatical about food. It can all have its place, fat, carbs, even sugar, etc... What is fine for one can kill someone else quite literally. I can only speak for myself, but banging on constantly with'doom and gloom' would not get me to change - the opposite. If that makes me a fool in some eyes, so be it. We get one shot at this life, and if you fancy having the odd bit of cake in it or a bacon butty full of saturated fat every blue moon; well as far as I'm concerned, so long as it is a rare thing, have it. Believe me, staring death in the face makes you evaluate things very differently. By the same rule, if you choose to eliminate a group from your diet for health or because you choose too, that is your choice too.

Hey up, I'm turning fanatical!!!

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Hardcore antifanatical, more like

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

I like Ruth, just call me AF from now on lol 😊

[Hidden]

Hi ShellieL,

Do like your way of thinking, I do think that once we have found what works for us It seems to make it a bit easier.😃

Like you there are certain things that I don't buy because if did I would eat the lot. Last week bought a pot of 'reduced fat' peanut butter ( I love it !) , served self a portion it was tiny by the time I had spread a decent taste the cals and fat where huge, so binned it otherwise the whole jar would have gone !!

I have never thought of also recording fat intake, think will give it a go, could be a shocker though !!!

Love the thought of you poodle on your bike, love that word, never heard it before !! lol

Have a lovely weekend(if not at work)

😇

[Nsky24 in reply to Hidden]

Love nut butters, cashew at the mo, eat it as quick breakfast, 1 slice of toast with it, and fruit separately, filling, and protein to fill me up!

[Hidden in reply to Hidden]

Hey Flossie, I love 'pootling', just meandering aimlessly wherever my legs or wheels fancy taking me, lol. Go pootle, 'tis quite relaxing. Hehe. 😊

[Portlandprincess]

Love it, a sensible plan for life.....

[Hidden in reply to Portlandprincess]

Thankyou hun. It'll do me at present, and I will change it only if it seems to not be working in the future. 😊

[Dave1961 25kg]

So what you're telling me is that you enjoy a varied and balanced diet with some exercise thrown in and that seems to be working for you?

To be honest that just sounds a little far fetched for my liking and certainly not as credible as something like The Cabbage Soup Diet or The Eat 8 Lemons, Sprint For An Hour and Repeat diet which I plan to try next.

You know what Shellie if you want to enjoy your hippy weird lifestyle with its delicious foods and varied exercise thats fine but I don't think you should be flagrantly advertising to people ...OK?

And its funny you mention "pootling". I finally got my bike out of the shed and clean it off and went for a couple of very short pootles this week. Got halfway up a hill, front wheel wobbled as I slowed down and tried to remember how the gears worked and...well...that was it for this morning

But SO much better for my knees than walking so going to get serious about it.

[Hidden in reply to Dave1961]

Oh Dave, I am cut to the quick. Your words... well I'm at a loss..... Hippy indeed, Weird, moi......

I am reading this post after a rather 'poop' shift, and you have certainly brought the smile back to face. Cheers hun.

Oh, once you have started your cabbage soup diet your cycling uphill will no longer be a chore, you will be turbo charged from the rear end, lmao. Mind you will not have much of a social life, hehehe.😂😈

[Tracey19]

I, too, eat a varied and balanced diet and exercise each day. Yesterday was a year since I started to lose weight, and I have lost 7 stone 5lbs ... proof that when you find what works for you, stick to it. These fad diets, well, most people put back on what they lose, and then some!

[Hidden in reply to Tracey19]

Wow, over 7 stone. You rock hun, I take my mythical hat off to you. You are right though, 1 size certainly doesn't fit all but sensible eating with a variety of foods makes eating still an enjoyment, which in turn helps your desire for a healthy body - which does fit all. 😊

[ceejayblue]

Oh I so I agree ShellieL! Can't stand faddy diets (even those "recommended" by certain health people!). I'm T2 diabetic and so need to watch my carbs but LCHF doesn't work for me as I have tummy problems but that's not to say I don't eat any fat at all. I too have a cooked breakfast on Saturdays - full English but I don't use huge amounts of oil to fry things in. I sometimes have fish and chips, a small bag from our fish shop serves at least 3 and I remove the batter from the fish. Everything in moderation! I even eat cake occasionally

I read the book Till The Fat Lady Slims 2.0 The When Diet by Debbie Flint and it made me see food and the way I eat it in a totally different light. I eat when hungry, check if I'm thirsty first - a lot of what we think of as hunger is actually deyhdration! I watch what I eat and when to see if there are triggers for certain kinds of food. I put my hands up to the fact that I've always been a piglet and would always clear my plate - I don't do that now! I love my food but have a much better relationship with it since reading Debbie's book.

I now exercise every day, I use a Body Blade (developed by Bruce Hymanson) and I do Leslie Sansone and Biggest Loser in home walks most days too, its all part of the balance of what I put in and what I burn out.

Fad diets only work for a short time, healthy eating will last you the rest of your life and could even prolong it!

[Hidden in reply to ceejayblue]

You have made an important point here hun, sometimes we do mistake thirst for hunger. We also need to still love our food, just eating less of it at a time - like you say, it isn't sinful to leave food on your plate. We do seem to like guilt tripping ourselves rather than being kind. How many of us have had the phrase ' there are children starving in this world and would love a chance to clear that plate....' Heck, I've even said it to my own kids along with similar phrases!

Have a super day 😊

[sueper]

Great post and you certainly seem to have things under control in a balanced way. I too don't ban anything but no longer have biscuits in the house. Enjoy the rest of your weekend

[Jo4950]

That's a fab attitude. Healthy eating for life is what we are all trying to achieve and we have to have a balanced attitude to it. I know from previous experiences if I ban certain foods I crave them even more.

I too have that voice visit me from time to time and some times I succumb but hey I stopped feeling guilty a while ago as it just makes go into that all or nothing mode which is unsustainable.

With exercise you only keep it up if you enjoy it and it sounds like you like doing what you do and it works for you.

Keep at it and have a fab week.