Food: looking for alternatives to...

[Jeff7181]

I opened my wallet and sprung for P90X and I'm looking through the nutrition plan and there's a few things I don't like and would like to find substitutes for:

mushrooms
asparagus
avocado
any kind of fish or seafood
milk

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Substitutes for your ingredients are more dependent on the recipes they'll be used in than the specific items themselves.

 

[Jeff7181]

mushrooms in eggs for breakfast
asparagus in soup
avocado in salads
fish as a main course
milk as a beverage

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

mushrooms in eggs for breakfast
asparagus in soup
avocado in salads
fish as a main course
milk as a beverage

Seitan would be a good substitute for the mushrooms.
Any green veg for the asparagus in soup.
Cheese (good quality) for the avocado in salads.
You're screwed for fish/seafood. Why no seafood?
Water is your friend instead of milk.

 

[Jeff7181]

I don't like seafood. I've had lobster, crab legs, shrimp, salmon, talapia, white fish, grouper... never have been able to bring myself to even try muscles or other shellfish like that. I've had alligator tail too, but I don't think that qualifies as seafood even though it has a fishy taste. The only thing that doesn't make me gag is heavily battered mild fish like grouper and shrimp with tons of cocktail sauce to mask the flavor of the shrimp.

*EDIT* I guess my main concern is selecting foods to replace these that are nutritionally equivalent. I mean, I assume the fish is because of the high protein and low fat... so I could replace that with turkey and modify the recipe and even the sides to make it work.

By the way, where would one find seitan? Ethnic foods section?

 

[BigFatCow]

broccoli, brussel sprouts and asparagus are all pretty similar nutritionally.

 

[spamsk8r]

Ugh, no, don't touch seitan. It's super processed wheat gluten, and has a terrible nutrition profile, plus most people are at least somewhat sensitive to gluten from an inflammatory and gut-health point of view. Just skip the 'shrooms if you don't like them, they don't add a ton of calories anyway. As far as seafood goes, just eat chicken or lean beef or pork instead. Protein is protein, for the most part. Add some fish oil pills if you want to make up the omega-3s from the fish.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

I don't like seafood. I've had lobster, crab legs, shrimp, salmon, talapia, white fish, grouper... never have been able to bring myself to even try muscles or other shellfish like that. I've had alligator tail too, but I don't think that qualifies as seafood even though it has a fishy taste. The only thing that doesn't make me gag is heavily battered mild fish like grouper and shrimp with tons of cocktail sauce to mask the flavor of the shrimp.

*EDIT* I guess my main concern is selecting foods to replace these that are nutritionally equivalent. I mean, I assume the fish is because of the high protein and low fat... so I could replace that with turkey and modify the recipe and even the sides to make it work.

By the way, where would one find seitan? Ethnic foods section?

Have you tried grilled shark? Seitan can be found in your local health food store next to the tofu. Smoked Seitan is pretty tasty and a good texture.

Ugh, no, don't touch seitan. It's super processed wheat gluten, and has a terrible nutrition profile, plus most people are at least somewhat sensitive to gluten from an inflammatory and gut-health point of view. Just skip the 'shrooms if you don't like them, they don't add a ton of calories anyway. As far as seafood goes, just eat chicken or lean beef or pork instead. Protein is protein, for the most part. Add some fish oil pills if you want to make up the omega-3s from the fish.

We're looking at food from two different perspectives. You're from the blue pill camp and I'm a gastronome.

 

[Jeff7181]

Seitan makes me nervous... especially knowing that it's heavily processed. I'd like to keep things as close to the way they're found in nature as possible.

 

[spamsk8r]

We're looking at food from two different perspectives. You're from the blue pill camp and I'm a gastronome.

Not really sure what you mean by "blue pill camp" but even as far as tasty things go I think seitan is not high on the list, comparatively speaking. It's rubbery and weird, IMO.

 

[Jeff7181]

Just out of curiosity... what nutritional value do mushrooms provide? Is there something special about them that you can't really get from other foods?

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Not really sure what you mean by "blue pill camp" but even as far as tasty things go I think seitan is not high on the list, comparatively speaking. It's rubbery and weird, IMO.

It's always good to broaden your horizons. The 'blue pill camp' refers to the 90% of Americans who given the choice between eating and taking a blue pill that provided all their nutrition and kept them from being hungry, would take the pill and stop eating.

 

[darkxshade]

Must suck to be so picky with food? I eat just about anything except what I'm allergic to.

 

[Jeff7181]

Must suck to be so picky with food? I eat just about anything except what I'm allergic to.

The mushrooms and asparagus I might be able to get used to. The seafood just isn't going to happen... it was all I could do to keep from vomiting on the dinner table when I tried both lobster and salmon steaks.

 

[brikis98]

What food to substitute depends on what you like & what kind of meals you are preparing, but it also depends on what goals the P90X diet is trying to accomplish.

* If they are just trying to get you into a caloric deficit, then track calories and eat whatever you want without going over.

* If they are trying to meet certain macronutrient or vitamin demands - ie, a certain amount or type of protein or fat - then you'll need substitutes that meet these requirements. For example, fish is a fairly lean protein, so something like turkey might be a good substitute. Wild fish also has lots of omega-3 fatty acids, so you'll need something to replace that (fish oil is a simple option). Mushrooms are a veggie (well, a fungi, actually) and have a moderate amount of protein, so something like beans or chick peas could be a good substitute. Avocados are loaded with healthy fats, so nuts are probably a good substitute. Any veggie could replace asparagus. Milk is tricky: it has carbs, fat & protein. Do you like yogurt or cottage cheese?

 

[gar655]

Quinoa for everything! The only food you'll ever need.

Gene

 

[Jeff7181]

What food to substitute depends on what you like & what kind of meals you are preparing, but it also depends on what goals the P90X diet is trying to accomplish.

* If they are just trying to get you into a caloric deficit, then track calories and eat whatever you want without going over.

* If they are trying to meet certain macronutrient or vitamin demands - ie, a certain amount or type of protein or fat - then you'll need substitutes that meet these requirements. For example, fish is a fairly lean protein, so something like turkey might be a good substitute. Wild fish also has lots of omega-3 fatty acids, so you'll need something to replace that (fish oil is a simple option). Mushrooms are a veggie (well, a fungi, actually) and have a moderate amount of protein, so something like beans or chick peas could be a good substitute. Avocados are loaded with healthy fats, so nuts are probably a good substitute. Any veggie could replace asparagus. Milk is tricky: it has carbs, fat & protein. Do you like yogurt or cottage cheese?

It's a moderate caloric deficiency... 1800 per day. This "fat shredder" phase is high in protein and low in carbs and fat. After 30 days (phase 2), some of the protein is replaced with carbs, and after 60 days (phase 3), more protein is replaced with more carbs.

I can eat cottage cheese... never had just plain yogurt so I'm not sure about that but I could definitely try.

*EDIT* From the nutrition guide...

Phase 1 - 50% protein, 30% carbs, 20% fat
Phase 2 - 40% protein, 40% carbs, 20% fat
Phase 3 - 20% protein, 60% carbs, 20% fat

... and it isn't necessarily timed as I stated before... they say to monitor your weight and performance to see when you should switch from Phase 1 to Phase 2 to give your body more fuel for the intense workouts.

 

[brikis98]

It's a moderate caloric deficiency... 1800 per day. This "fat shredder" phase is high in protein and low in carbs and fat. After 30 days (phase 2), some of the protein is replaced with carbs, and after 60 days (phase 3), more protein is replaced with more carbs.

I can eat cottage cheese... never had just plain yogurt so I'm not sure about that but I could definitely try.

*EDIT* From the nutrition guide...

Phase 1 - 50% protein, 30% carbs, 20% fat
Phase 2 - 40% protein, 40% carbs, 20% fat
Phase 3 - 20% protein, 60% carbs, 20% fat

... and it isn't necessarily timed as I stated before... they say to monitor your weight and performance to see when you should switch from Phase 1 to Phase 2 to give your body more fuel for the intense workouts.

Alright, so it looks like you need foods that are nutritionally similar to the ones you don't like. The ones in my previous post are decent options, although obviously not the only ones. It sounds like you are going on a bit of a protein binge, so the low calorie, high protein foods thread will probably be helpful.

BTW, and 40 and 50% protein is kind of ridiculous... but if it works, keep it up.

 

[Jeff7181]

Thanks, I'll check it out. I'm not sure if the diet works or not... obviously they claim it does but I haven't really started the program yet. I did a couple of the workouts to see how it was but I'm going out of town this weekend so it's going to be difficult to stick to it... I figure I'll start the program next week or possibly the week after.

What I do know is that what I was doing last year wasn't working. I was doing 30-40 minutes of cardio and heavy lifting 3-4 times a week. Didn't change a whole lot about what I ate except that I cut out sodas and other unhealthy beverages, stopped eating snack foods and replaced them with fresh vegetables. After 3 months I lost about 15 pounds but hadn't gained any strength or seen any change in my body. I got discouraged and lazy and pretty much went back to my old ways. I haven't really put the weight back on, maybe 5 pounds, but I'm just generally out of shape. I really enjoyed day 1 and 2 of P90X though and considering I spent almost $150 on it, I think I'll have the motivation to stick to it.

By the way, it also looks like I'll fit into the second category and be eating around 2400-2500 calories per day rather than just 1800 to still maintain a slight caloric deficiency.

 

[Entity23]

1800 calories/day seems very low to me. I was put on 2400cals/day and I am 260lbs with 32% body fat, about 180lbs lean mass. I live a very sedentary lifestyle due to being unemployed and playing MMOs.
I've rollercoastered weight my whole life and I can say one thing in confidence, it is all about diet and exercise. It doesn't matter what the newest weight loss craze is, it all equates to cardio and calorie deficit. If you would have eaten clean last year you may have lost more weight.

 

[Jeff7181]

1800 calories/day seems very low to me. I was put on 2400cals/day and I am 260lbs with 32% body fat, about 180lbs lean mass. I live a very sedentary lifestyle due to being unemployed and playing MMOs.
I've rollercoastered weight my whole life and I can say one thing in confidence, it is all about diet and exercise. It doesn't matter what the newest weight loss craze is, it all equates to cardio and calorie deficit. If you would have eaten clean last year you may have lost more weight.

I agree... but I'm not just looking to lose weight. I'm only about 190 pounds and I'm 6 feet tall. I could probably lose 20 pounds or more of fat... but what I'd really like to do is build muscle at the same time.

 

[Entity23]

You wont build muscle with a caloric intake of 1800 cals. You will lose it. Not only will you lose it but your body will get used to 1800 cals a day and when you go off that diet you will gain weight back. Your body is constantly trying to achieve homeostasis. Bulk first, then cut after. You need to eat to grow. Here is a site to learn on. Please disregard the name as it isn't all about the title. There are a lot of smart helpful people and a wealth of information.

http://forums.steroid.com/

To answer the food question, try almonds as a replacement for avacados. Broccolli as a sub for asparagus. Mushrooms are only good for fiber and some minerals which could be had in other foods. I wouldn't even drink milk due to the high amount of sugars and the fact that 60% of people can't even digest it properly.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

Sounds like he's going for a recomp. Calories still sound a little too low for my liking.

 

[Jeff7181]

Yeah, after going over the nutrition guide again it's telling me I should be taking in 2400-3000 calories per day, not 1800. I'll probably keep it around 2400-2500 because I do want to try to drop some weight at the beginning of the program and it seems that's what the program is designed to do.

I just need to focus on eating better calories.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

Yeah, after going over the nutrition guide again it's telling me I should be taking in 2400-3000 calories per day, not 1800. I'll probably keep it around 2400-2500 because I do want to try to drop some weight at the beginning of the program and it seems that's what the program is designed to do.

I just need to focus on eating better calories.

It's better to start on the high end and adjust as needed.