Need some help, with food.

[HAL9000]

I'm fed up of putting on weight from eating crap food, so I'm going to change my diet, and as such I need advice about some food. I need food that matches the following criteria:

It needs to taste nice (or as nice as can be)
It needs to be filling (or as filling as can be)
I need to be able to open a cupboard or fridge, pick it up and eat it, no preparation.
It needs to be savoury.

Any suggestions?

 

[Kaido]

Over the past couple of years, I've learned the 80/20 rule: food controls fat levels, exercise controls muscle levels. (I say 80/20 because if you exercise like crazy, like do 2 hours of cardio a day, you will burn off fat - see (1) runners or (2) Michael Phelps). So if you want to lose fat (the easy way), just eat right. What does eating right mean? Well, to me it means:

1. Eat whole foods
2. Prepared so they taste good
3. In small quantities
4. Every few hours
5. And stop eating 2-3 hours before bed

I lost 50 pounds by switching to a diet where I cooked all of my own food using "whole" ingredients (i.e. meat, veggies, fruits, spices instead of preservatives, chemicals, processed foods, and so on). I have an old list from a few years ago up on Scribd:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/6001510/14-Day-Menu

My meals have improved in tastiness since then as I've learned to use more spices...it's pretty demotivating eating bland food if you're not going for Mr. Olympia or trying to impress girls or something like that. I use my George Foreman and my fuzzy logic Tiger rice cooker quite a bit (the rice cooker does oatmeal plus makes brown rice platable).

The bottom line is, you can definitely lose weight while eating tasty meals. As you find good recipes, put them together into a meal plan. I usually rotate, at minimum, a 1-week meal plan so I'm not just eating the same thing over and over again and getting sick of it. Plus I can look forward to every meal and get the health benefits as a result. Win/win

 

[HAL9000]

Over the past couple of years, I've learned the 80/20 rule: food controls fat levels, exercise controls muscle levels. (I say 80/20 because if you exercise like crazy, like do 2 hours of cardio a day, you will burn off fat - see (1) runners or (2) Michael Phelps). So if you want to lose fat (the easy way), just eat right. What does eating right mean? Well, to me it means:

1. Eat whole foods
2. Prepared so they taste good
3. In small quantities
4. Every few hours
5. And stop eating 2-3 hours before bed

I lost 50 pounds by switching to a diet where I cooked all of my own food using "whole" ingredients (i.e. meat, veggies, fruits, spices instead of preservatives, chemicals, processed foods, and so on). I have an old list from a few years ago up on Scribd:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/6001510/14-Day-Menu

My meals have improved in tastiness since then as I've learned to use more spices...it's pretty demotivating eating bland food if you're not going for Mr. Olympia or trying to impress girls or something like that. I use my George Foreman and my fuzzy logic Tiger rice cooker quite a bit (the rice cooker does oatmeal plus makes brown rice platable).

The bottom line is, you can definitely lose weight while eating tasty meals. As you find good recipes, put them together into a meal plan. I usually rotate, at minimum, a 1-week meal plan so I'm not just eating the same thing over and over again and getting sick of it. Plus I can look forward to every meal and get the health benefits as a result. Win/win

Cheers dude, that's all very helpful and will be putting it into practice, but I need "snack" foods as well, stuff that doesn't require cooking or preparation. Suggestions?

 

[Kaido]

Here's one recipe I like - a Bison (Buffalo) Burger:

Ingredients:
Ground Bison Meat
Whole-Wheat Hamburger Buns
Boston Lettuce
Fresh Tomato
McCormick Hamburger Spice link

Instructions:
1. Pound the Bison Meat into a patty and coat with the hamburger spice on both sides
2. Cook until done on a George Foreman grill
3. Heat up the bun in the microwave and slice up the tomato
4. Assemble everything & enjoy

Tastes great, easy & fast to make, and very healthy. This past year I've been doing a lot more with non-red meat, but I still have a burger every week

 

[HAL9000]

Here's one recipe I like - a Bison (Buffalo) Burger:

Ingredients:
Ground Bison Meat
Whole-Wheat Hamburger Buns
Boston Lettuce
Fresh Tomato
McCormick Hamburger Spice link

Instructions:
1. Pound the Bison Meat into a patty and coat with the hamburger spice on both sides
2. Cook until done on a George Foreman grill
3. Heat up the bun in the microwave and slice up the tomato
4. Assemble everything & enjoy

Tastes great, easy & fast to make, and very healthy. This past year I've been doing a lot more with non-red meat, but I still have a burger every week

I'm sure it's great, but I'm looking for something that requires no cooking or preparation.

 

[Kaido]

Cheers dude, that's all very helpful and will be putting it into practice, but I need "snack" foods as well, stuff that doesn't require cooking or preparation. Suggestions?

Ah, same situation - what I ended up doing was cooking all of my meals in the morning. I wake up at 4:30, leave for work at 6, go straight to night classes, and get home around 7 or 8, so I have zero time for cooking & preparation during the day.

So #1, I cook all of the meals in the morning, and #2, I carry a giant lunchbag (the large insulated ones they sell for family trips that are about 15" wide and have a shoulder strap) with some freezer packs to keep it all cold, and I make sure that everything I cook can be eaten cold. It's not especially fun eating a cold burger when I can't get to a microwave, but it's not inedible, either. Stuff like fish, chopped chicken in salad, and veggies are fine cold, too.

A big benefit of eating small meals every few hours is that it really boosts your metabolism, so you start burning fat just from eating the right food in small quantities spaced a few hours apart during the day. Plus, you never have a chance to get hungry during the day, so it's a lot easier to ignore a craving for junk food because your stomach is already full. When it's empty and you want a cookie or a Big Mac, it's a lot harder to say no

 

[Kaido]

I'm sure it's great, but I'm looking for something that requires no cooking or preparation.

Hmm, so you don't want to cook at all? You want off-the-shelf healthy food that is savory, tasty, and filling?

 

[HAL9000]

Ah, same situation - what I ended up doing was cooking all of my meals in the morning. I wake up at 4:30, leave for work at 6, go straight to night classes, and get home around 7 or 8, so I have zero time for cooking & preparation during the day.

So #1, I cook all of the meals in the morning, and #2, I carry a giant lunchbag (the large insulated ones they sell for family trips that are about 15" wide and have a shoulder strap) with some freezer packs to keep it all cold, and I make sure that everything I cook can be eaten cold. It's not especially fun eating a cold burger when I can't get to a microwave, but it's not inedible, either. Stuff like fish, chopped chicken in salad, and veggies are fine cold, too.

A big benefit of eating small meals every few hours is that it really boosts your metabolism, so you start burning fat just from eating the right food in small quantities spaced a few hours apart during the day. Plus, you never have a chance to get hungry during the day, so it's a lot easier to ignore a craving for junk food because your stomach is already full. When it's empty and you want a cookie or a Big Mac, it's a lot harder to say no

Thanks again, some good suggestions. I'll get on it, I love the idea of eating small things a few hours apart. I just need to think of what those small things can be now, without preparation.

 

[HAL9000]

Hmm, so you don't want to cook at all? You want off-the-shelf healthy food that is savory, tasty, and filling?

In an ideal world, but I would skip tasty if need be.

 

[Kaido]

In an ideal world, but I would skip tasty if need be.

Ah, that was the point I was going to say was difficult. For starters, I'd recommend veggies - you can buy them off-the-shelf and eat them without preparation. Personally there really aren't any vegetables that I enjoy eating that aren't prepared or cooked in some way. I just prefer prepared food like a salad with sliced carrots or a baked potato, instead of just a whole carrot. Pre-made salads might be a pretty good option, but you have to be careful of what's in the dressings.

It's difficult to find pre-made food that isn't loaded with a bunch of preservatives, chemicals, and processing. Do you have a Whole Foods near you? They have soup and pre-made meals that are pretty healthy. Some grocery stores are starting to carry more health-conscious prepared meals. If you can get away from fried food and move into baked food, that would be a good starting step as well.

 

[Kaido]

Thanks again, some good suggestions. I'll get on it, I love the idea of eating small things a few hours apart. I just need to think of what those small things can be now, without preparation.

I dunno if it'd be relevant without cooking, but I use Smart Spin containers:

http://www.asseenontv.com/prod-pages/smart_spin.html

They're the cheapo plastic containers from the TV commercials (you can get them for like $15 on Amazon etc.). They are great for holding small meals, and you can easily sort what you need to eat at certain times because it's all in nice little plastic bins. When you get home, you can just toss them all in the dishwasher and be done with the dishes too :biggrin:

 

[bhanson]

For snack food, what about Triscuits?

They have fiber so it should help with your appetite and at the very least should be a better alternative to potato chips or cheese puffs.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

For snack food, what about Triscuits?

They have fiber so it should help with your appetite and at the very least should be a better alternative to potato chips or cheese puffs.

Still tend to be calorie dense and relatively high in sodium. Most things from a box aren't going to be a great choice for someone looking to change their eating habits.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Easy option is to make in bulk for easy to eat stuff.

Homemade granola is fairly easy, allows you to control what's in it, has a really long shelf life, and is easy to grab and snack on. Fresh fruit like apples, banannas, oranges, etc are also very easy and much better for you than any boxed things. Stuff like shake/smoothes are very easy and can be "snacked on" for a few hours while providing lots of nutrition/energy. These also can be measured out in pre-made containers the night before so you just have to toss in a blender and pour.

 

[darkxshade]

Not a lot of foods that taste good without preparation, off the top of my head here are the ones that I eat that I think fit into your requirements:

Popcorn
Fruits
Nuts
Yogurt
Tuna/chicken salad
Canned sardines in tomato sauce

 

[the DRIZZLE]

If you change your requirement from "no preparation" to "minimal preparation" you will get a lot further. I have a handful of things that I cook that are under 5 minutes of work and 10 minutes waiting for stuff to cook/defrost in the microwave.

What you want doesn't exist. You can't go the supermarket and buy "awesome tasting healthy dinner in a box"

 

[Murloc]

no preparation at all?
it means you'll be eating bread. Get genuine gray or dark bread, no white bread. There also are those dry disks made of puffed rice that look healthy enough.
In my experience cereals are the only thing that really fill you up for the day, so try bread made from different cereals, as long as they are not too refined.
Maybe nuts.

The rest is easy: tomatoes can be eaten directly after washing them if they're not huge. Pepperoni require a knife and you have to remove the seeds, but after that you can snack it all day and it's nice.
Bananas are caloric but healthy, so they help to fill you up.

Yogurt is good for breakfast, just take the habit of eating it with pure cereals (like the ones that horses eat)

Chicken meat is good because you can grill a chicken on the weekend and prepare some meat and you have meat for two days.
Ham is not that healthy but it doesn't require preparation and is not junk.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Chocolate or caramel flavored rice cakes are actually pretty decent. They're 60-90 calories so you can't pig out on them though.

 

[ElFenix]

i'll echo the move from no-prep to minimal prep and also cooking in alternator sized amounts so that you have several days of food with minimal additional work required (microwave). cooked chicken breast keeps for a couple days in the fridge, so make 6 and eat for the next 3 days.


veg requires little prep other than washing. much of it tastes better cooked.


cereal is also good stuff. add fresh fruit. i don't know what you have the UK but in the US we mostly have serious cereal and candy cereal. don't get the candy cereal. full of sugar.


if you really want to eat healthy stay away from anything in a box at sainsbury's and tesco.

 

[QuantumPion]

I'll go with cereal. Lots of carbs but at least low in fat and has vitamins. As long as you control your portions you can live off the stuff, along with some source of protein. And there's so many different kinds you never get tired of it.

Just make sure when you pour a bowl of cereal, close and put away the box right away before eating. Otherwise, you'll nom it down and go for seconds before feeling full.

 

[SociallyChallenged]

I'll go with cereal. Lots of carbs but at least low in fat and has vitamins. As long as you control your portions you can live off the stuff, along with some source of protein. And there's so many different kinds you never get tired of it.

Just make sure when you pour a bowl of cereal, close and put away the box right away before eating. Otherwise, you'll nom it down and go for seconds before feeling full.

Loads of sugar isn't really a proper suggestion, considering there are way better options. Veggies with hummus, fruits, apple/banana with peanut butter. Cereal should never be on a list of "healthier" items.

 

[Kaido]

Still tend to be calorie dense and relatively high in sodium. Most things from a box aren't going to be a great choice for someone looking to change their eating habits.

You know, I bet there's a pretty good market for prepared meals that are healthy, but are not full of preservatives, chemicals, and processing like most "healthy" TV dinners and whatnot. Someone showed me their Zone bar the other day and it had more sugar and chocolate than a Snickers bar did, lol.