I NEED to lose weight. I’m the heaviest I’ve been and I hate what I see in the mirror. I’m gradually going back to the gym (I have fibromyalgia so it helps that too). But food....argh!! My enemy and my best friend! Lunches at work are the worst. I work in a hospital so it’s a ‘grab what you can when you can’ at times but I usually get a full hour to sit down and eat. I’m not keen to join slimming world again as getting there is such a pain with my shifts.
Can anyone rummage up some easy lunch ideas or give me some inspiration? I’ve got a fridge and a microwave at work. Every time I say “oh I’ll make some of that healthy soup/low calorie ready meal/salad” I AWAYS end up getting a wrap from Costa 🤦🏼♀️ Does anyone have any tips or articles to help me have a better relationship with food and give me a bit of willpower? I’m hoping this group will give me some support! I think having somewhere to share my progress will be a huge help!
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Bloop45
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If you "slim smart" weight loss is not so hard! It is not all about motivation and masochism.
Some of us here find that what works is a combination of The Low Carbohydrate, High-Fat (LCHF) diet (see the forum here on Health Unlocked) and Not Snacking All Day AKA Intermittent Fasting (IF). See:
Hello Bloop45, and a very warm welcome to the forum!
I'm new here (2nd week), so I don't have a world of wisdom to share with you...however my husband has fibromyalgia, and he finds it really helpful to batch cook when he has energy, so that he can eat healthily when he's run out. That really works.
You obviously prefer the Costa wrap to the other options, so perhaps you could make your own healthier version, so that you actually enjoy what you eat, rather than eating salad or soup because you feel you should?
I'm sure you'll find this a very supportive forum 😊
Thank you!! I didn’t even think about making own, that’s a fab idea! I’ve just seen an ad for 0 calorie caeser dressing, low calorie wrap, some of that and some chicken with a little bit of salad and I’ve made it! (And probably for half the price!)
I agree, wraps are great for an on-the-go meal and it's easy to make your own.
If I happen to be in the office, that's my go-to choice. You can keep a bag of salad, packet of wraps, dressing, and some grilled chicken or whatnot in the office fridge. Make sure there's more filling than wrap, and choose something like sour cream, guacamole, or ranch dressing.
Don't buy "low calorie" or "low fat" stuff. Those low-fat dressings in particular are loaded with sugar and chemicals - there's nothing healthy about them at all. They're trash. The fact that the manufacturer is allowed to put a "healthy eating" label on them doesn't make them healthy.
Maintaining a low bodyfat ratio has nothing to do with either "calories" or dietary fat. If you're eating a healthy diet, your body will regain control over your appetite and bodyfat distribution. Humans need more fat, and a lot less carbohydrate, than is currently fashionable. When you get it right, it'll feel right, and you'll lose weight effortlessly.
All of the information you need about the forum can be found in Pinned Posts healthunlocked.com/nhsweigh... and I hope you'll be joining all the Events, Challenges and Clubs that we run, especially a weigh-in and the daily diary.
We've found active participation to be key to successful weight loss and, of course, it's a good way to get to know people, find inspiration and share support and encouragement.
I'm in the same boat - the heaviest ever and needing a packed lunch. I have just started back but have done slimming world before and find that diet fairly easy to follow . I have always found planning the week in advance a really good way to help me stick to the right choices. my grab and go is usually hummus and carrot sticks or Ryvita and laughing cow light. When I did slimming world before I'd cook extra potatoes or pasta with the evening meal on green days and have them in a salad the next day adding a healthy option of edam/ham, and free food of tomatoes, cucumber, celery, radish. If you have a microwave you could do extra from an evening meal and freeze and reheat in the microwave. There is also the "0ne you app" you can get which gives some meal suggestions too that might help. Good luck with your week ahead.
Welcome to you! You really do have challenges in your environment so my heart went out to you. I saw your post 2 days ago and wished to give you my oil free, Tahini-free, Low-fat Hummus recipe. But I had to find it first. Boy, did I have to rummage around a lot to find your post again! Here is the recipe:
1 x 15 oz (443 ml), can of Chick Peas, rinsed and drained
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
2-3 Tbls of fresh lemon juice (or half that amount of white vinegar)
1 tsp of low-sodium Tamari
3 Tbls of water or veg broth
1 tsp of smoked paprika (optional)
Blend or mix in a food processor until desired consistency is reached.
Store in fridge for 3-5 days. Can also freeze for 6-8 months.
Customize your hummus with one or more of these:
2 Tbls of toasted sesame seeds
1 red bell pepper, roasted, seeded , n chopped
1 cup of Kalamata olives
Use cumin instead of the paprika
Serve in a Pitta with shredded cabbage, (or baby spinach), cheese, etc
Or, serve in a Pitta with carrot, cucumber, pepper or celery sticks.
Or, serve on bread, crackers. Etc
Good luck and let me know if you have tried this recipe.
Ooooh thank you so much for finding this for me! I’m not too keen on hummus but I think the paprika is a good shout to give it some flavour!
The very first thing you need to do right now this minute is give up sugar. It’s stimulating your appetite, messing up your blood sugar & can be as addictive as cocaine. So cut all sugar, added or natural, honey & pretty much all fruit. Bananas are a stinker for sugar.
Then, there’s loads of advice on here about low carb high fat, intermittent fasting - which is essentially eating in a narrower window of time say 10-6 - planning what you are going to eat today & sharing it here on a daily diary, a weekly weigh in here and various other challenges. There is loads of support & stuff here & will take you a while to work out what you want to make use of & what sort of diet you want to adopt. BUT while you work it out just don’t put another grain of sugar in your mouth. I am not saying you will never ever eat yummy cake again, it’s just that right now, cutting sugar is the most helpful thing you can do.
My own experience is that planning is invaluable as is realism. If I think I am can exist on grilled chicken and vegetables I am completely deluding myself & I’ll be raiding the work tuck shop in the afternoon. If I want to keep off the carbs (that’s the approach I am using) but end up in Costa starving hungry, then I will eat a toasted sandwich the size of my head.
Come and join us - we’re a bit mad but quite jolly 💃🏼💃🏼💃🏼
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