Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with meal and diet

Food for good moods

LSK — Sun, 25 Nov 2012 13:21:40 -0800

I think my diet is affecting my mood. What should I cook to perk up my mood? I've been feeling a bit down lately (though not depressed) and I think it's because of an unhealthy diet.

I'm looking for dietary advice and food/meal recommendations.

I'm mostly vegetarian and I sometimes cook for friends, one of whom is vegan, so recommendations for vegan recipes would be excellent.

Met-Rx vs. Slim Fast

edbyford — Fri, 15 May 2009 01:39:03 -0800

Meal Replacement Shakes for weight loss - can I mix and match? I am currently wanting to lose about 10kg before my summer holidays start. I am going on a 5k jog every other day and doing pushups. This post is not about exercise though. I also decided to use a meal replacement shake to help control my calorie intake.

I ordered 3 tubs (12 servings per tub) of Slim Fast powder at a cost of £15. These have 218 calories per serving. Full Nutritional Details [PDF]

I received these and started taking one for breakfast, one for lunch, and then having a 600 calorie evening meal, as suggested by Slim Fast. I then did some more reading, and an article I found suggested that after I had stopped taking the Slim Fast, and gone back to solids, I would gain the weight back very fast.

So I ordered 20 servings of Met-Rx Meal Replacement Shakes at a cost of £20. These have about 250 calories per serving.
more details here.

So, my question comes in two parts:

1. If I just use Slim Fast, which I'd like to do as it's cheaper (even if not as filling as Met-Rx) will I gain the weight back fast after I stop taking the Slim Fast?

2. If so, might it be possible to have a Slim Fast for breakfast, and a Met-Rx for lunch, without any negative effects?

I'd like to Cook a non english breakfast

Baud — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 09:31:33 -0800

help me find some healthy *and* cooked breakfast possibilities. Dear hive, I would like to start my day with a real cooked meal (meat, vegetables, etc.). It seems that in my case hot food sends positive signals that cold food (non toasted bread) does not.

Traditionnal english breakfast (eggs, sausage, bacon, etc.) feels a bit fatty to me. I'm looking for something hot on my plate, healthy and balanced.

What do you suggest I cook myself while waiting for the first coffee of the day to kick in ?

Help me figure out how to stick to a good healthy breakfast.

actionpact — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 12:24:13 -0800

Eatingfilter: I'm an admitted chronic meal-skipper, trying to mend my wicked ways. Help me enjoy a healthy filling breakfast and stick to it! I know there were a few similar questions on MeFi, but none really solved it for me. So here goes!

When I was a kid, I ate normally. When I got into high school, I often skipped lunch for the library; and then the crazy schedules of college left me eating erratically and sometimes in all you can eat portions. Now, at 24, I'm finding it insanely hard to eat breakfast. My eating habits are okay, but need improvement. I sometimes don't feel hungry at all, and othertimes overeat in big portions/crave snacks/multiple meals. I'm trying to get fitter, but also regain more energy and feel more productive (as a freelancer who works from home, productivity and self-motivation are super-important!).

I am trying to eat healthy: I've cut out approximately 80% of high fructose corn syrup out of my diet, adding whole grains into the mix, as well as bulgur and beans to start. I don't each as much fruit and vegetables as I'd like, because I live with someone who doesn't care for vegetables, and lately the selection's been not so great. Still, I eat them when I can. But breakfast eludes me. I'm retarded about it-- even though I wake up from 8-9am each day (I am shooting for getting up between 6-7, but I think breakfast is a good first step? I find it hard to drag myself out of bed early just yet), I find it hard to put together a healthful breakfast without a lot of muss and fuss (read: dishes). Much less keep up at it consistently for longer than a week. Today I picked up a box of Kashi GoLean cereal and some organic milk and bananas, and while it's not very sweet and gives me a touch of heartburn, I'll eat it for now.

So what I'm looking for are your good suggestions for breakfast. If the three big factors are easiness to prepare, healthiness, and cheapness, I'll go with the first two, because even though I'm on a budget I'd rather spend a bit more to feel healthier than shovel junk down my throat. Of course, budget options are also appreciated :)

I know eggs are a good solution, but they seem to be more effort than I'm capable of in the morning. I don't want to eat bagels or granola, I'm not a fan of hot cereals or oatmeal, and certainly not cottage cheese (anything with that consistency, or is like mayo/cheese based typically makes me queasy). I am a big fan of foods I can batch-prepare/cook (perhaps in a crockpot?) and eat throughout the week with easy reheating-- would even be happy to learn a healthy muffin recipe or some such thing. I like almost all fruits except for grapefruit; and breakfast ideas can be savory or not typical American breakfast foods too. So what of it, Mefites? I know I'm picky on what I like, but you may be the thing that actually makes me like breakfast again. For that, I love you in advance!

3 BREAKFASTS = BREAKFAST + LUNCH + DINNER?

defmute — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 07:45:06 -0800

If I eat three breakfasts and then don't eat for the rest of the day, is that the same thing as eating breakfast lunch and dinner? lately (based upon a rumor i heard, the fact that i love breakfast, and having an erratic sleep schedule) i've been eating breakfast in large quantities (as in i eat till i feel pain) and then eating nothing for the rest of the day. is this okay for my body? will this kind of diet make me gain weight? lose weight? also, i should note that for the past week or so i've been sleeping at 11am and waking up at 7 pm. i've also been smoking about a gram of weed a day. i smoke cigarettes (about 5-10 a day) if that means anything.

Help with my high-metabolism food shopping list

sprocket87 — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 07:42:59 -0800

What are some sample meal plans or food lists for a high-metabolism, frequent small meal diet? Looking for specific ideas for the "eat 5-6 times a day" routine. I've been reading a lot about the benefits of eating less, more often. My eating habits as of late have been atrocious (lots of heavy dine-out foods and snacking in between). I can see the benefits of eating smaller portions designed to keep your metabolism working to your advantage (I think I'm subconsciously sabotaging my metabolism!).

So I ask your help in finding specific food shopping lists and food plans to help me get in the routine of eating this way. A sample of what I'm looking for:

• 7:30 a.m.—1/2 cup cooked oatmeal; one cup skim milk; one slice of whole wheat toast with one tablespoon peanut butter; one cup of blueberries
• 10 a.m.—8 ounces of non-fat yogurt with a tablespoon of walnuts or flax seeds
• 12:30 p.m.—Large spinach salad (two cups) topped with carrots, radishes, onion, cucumber and two ounces of tuna (packed in water), a teaspoon of olive oil and a tablespoon of vinegar; six whole-wheat crackers; one apple
• 3 p.m.—One cup of raw vegetables and one-quarter cup of hummus dip
• 6 p.m.—Three ounces of grilled, skinless chicken breast; one cup of brown rice; 1.5 cups of steamed broccoli; one piece of fruit
• 8 p.m.—One piece of fruit or three cups of light microwave or air popped popcorn

Source: http://www.clevelandclinic.org/health/health-info/docs/2500/2589.asp?index=9788

I'm NOT looking for generic "eat high protein/high fiber/low calorie foods". I need specifics. I need a shopping list. Foods I can stick to exclusively and know that I'll be relatively safe until I get into the routine. I don't necessarily need the specific schedule as laid out above (though it would be awesome and very helpful if you have some daily plans like that!), but specific food choices would be great.

Thanks all!

Please help me balance a busy schedule, heavy exercise, and dietary constraints by suggesting the perfect meal.

sequential — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 13:29:45 -0800

Please help me balance a busy schedule, heavy exercise, and dietary constraints by suggesting the perfect meal. First, I am operating under the assumption that meal replacement bars can not replace all meals. Though I have been through many days while traveling with just South Beach Meal Replacement bars, which contain 0g sugars, 5g fiber, 19g protein, 6g fat, and a smattering of 23 vitamins and minerals all for the low price of 210 calories per bar, I get the distinct impression this is not as healthy as I can be.

Second, I exercise at least six days a week, burning a minimum of 700 calories per day. My diet is 1400 net calories, which generally means 2100 total calories. Though the meal replacement bars are tasty, they are also filling. I can't eat 10 a day. When I am home, I eat better, but still rely on bars to get my caloric intake at its appropriate level.

Furthermore, I have food allergies (tomatoes, chief and most dangerous among them), intolerances (lactose is ok in small doses), and an over active set of taste buds (few veggies, no alcohol). This severely limits my food choices.

What I'm looking for is a meal that I can prepare in advance that can entirely replace of the traditional American meal. Such a perfect meal should be roughly between 200 and 300 calories. The meal should be nutritionally balanced when multiplied out to a 2,000 calorie diet, though I am not opposed to supplementing my diet with vitamins. Such a meal should use relatively easy to find ingredients at drug stores, grocery stores, or retail locations like WalMart or Target. (In other words, no specialty stores.) Such a meal should be low in sugars (close to 0g), relatively high in fiber (5g or higher), protein heavy (20g or higher), low in sodium, fat, and cholesterol.

Bonus points for preparation that can be done in a hotel room with no kitchen or whilst otherwise ill prepared. That said, if I can find a couple of perfect meals, I'll happily prepare meals well in advance.

Thanks for your thoughts and suggestions.

Meal Replacement Bar Question

Squid Voltaire — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 10:47:56 -0800

Is it really impossible to lose weight (in a healthy manner) by substituting two meals a day with some sort of bar? I find that I have pretty good dieting willpower, but only in black & white instances. So, if I say, "No sweets for two months", that's fine and I don't cheat. If I say, "Don't eat too many sweets", however, then it doesn't work for me.

As such, I've had extremely poor luck with diets. "Eat healthy food" is just too nebulous. I also don't have a lot of time, so I frequently cannot pack my lunch, which means I purchase (mostly unhealthy) food frequently.

What I want is a no-thought-required, eat-this-one-thing-twice-a-day meal substitute so that I don't have to worry about it, and will lose weight (this approach being coupled with thrice-weekly gym visits and reasonable dinner). I don't seem to be able to pack a healthy lunch, or measure out my salad dressing, or to remember how many croutons are permissible, &c.

There are a lot of energy bar threads on Ask, but they all seem to be either about snacks, or about how awful energy bars are. (Apologies if I missed the relevant thread that answers this question). It seems like we know enough about nutrition these days that one could manufacture the equivalent of a healthy, balanced fixed-calorie meal in a bar--is this not the case?

help me eliminate thinking about food.

radiosilents — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 23:10:57 -0800

a "food pill" meal, please. i'm trying to ease myself away from thinking about food as a was to derive pleasure and more towards thinking about it as a fuel.

does anyone have any recipies for a dish that contains enough of everything you need that if you ate it a couple of times a day you would get what you needed to maintain? vitamins, fiber, protein, carbs, the works.

or is this impractical/impossible?

i don't really much care about getting bored with eating the same thing all the time, as that is indirectly the goal anyhow. i just want to make something that my body will use and derive usefulness from and not hate me for having eaten.

How to eat when you've got long days

notjustfoxybrown — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 11:45:08 -0800

Please help me plan my daily meal times/menus given my long work hours. I'm running one of my family's stores and work from about 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. , Monday through Friday. This means I often dont' get home until after 8 and I still have to have dinner. I've got a sensitive stomach and generally, eating this late results in me waking up the next morning with tummy ache.
Is there a way I might schedule my meals so that I don't wake with the sour stomach? Anyone have any suggestions on light, wholesome and easy to prepare meals that I can make when I get home? Also, I'm thinking that I might resort to frozen, organic meals for lunch during the week. Maybe something like Amy's Organic? I know they're packed with salt but honestly, I just don't have time to cook and I figure the frozen meal option, coupled with a green salad, is at least slightly healthier than eating out each day.
Cooking large meals on the weekends is out. I have to have a life some time.

how can i advise a youth-mentorship organization to be sensitive to the cultural and religious needs of its young participants and their parents?

twistofrhyme — Sun, 14 Jan 2007 16:09:16 -0800

how can i advise a youth-mentorship organization to be sensitive to the cultural and religious needs of its young participants and their parents? this Q applies to a very diverse group of kids. the issues i've noticed so far have specifically affected the muslim kids. i work with a wonderful program that involves kids of varying faiths- definitely muslim and hindi, and i don't know what else- it's hard to say by guessing, and i don't want to ask the kids. i know there are kids from various african countries, including somalia and ethiopia, the west indies, the middle east, asia, southeast asia.... etc. this is in toronto, if that gives any clue as to how mixed this bunch is. there are relatively few white kids, and lots of first-generation kids and immigrants. the kids range from 8-14 years old.

the program is non-denominational, and organized by pretty secular people. i've observed some practices i suspect are inconsiderate to the religious kids- scheduling events on, or the morning after Eid, for instance, or serving pepperoni pizza for lunch. many of the kids and their parents are clearly uncomfortable making demands, and instead try to be accomodating (for instance, i saw a kid ask if the cheese contained rennet, and, getting no good answer, she only ate broccoli and fruit instead).

i would like the organization to be more sensitive to any relevant concerns, and i have no qualms about tactfully pointing out some of these issues- but i'd like to provide constructive suggestions when i do so. i'm specifically thinking about food and scheduling, but am very curious about other concerns i may not have thought of.

here's a quick rundown of the program:

lasts the duration of the school year. involves some saturday full-day activities (which are scheduled months in advance) and some phone activities (once a week for about 25 mins., flixible scheduling).
the kids all attend co-ed toronto-area public schools.
they wear their own clothes, with large program t-shirts overtop.
they are served bottled water, juice and milk in cartons, pizza (veggie, pepperoni, chicken, hawaiian) from a sponsor (pizza pizza, i think), fruit salad, veggies and dip, packaged granola bars and fruit snacks, and grocery store cookies (caramel, chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, M&M). the pizza is served by the latex-gloved hands of volunteer servers- so their gloves touch all varieties of pizza.
the authority figures are all adults, and all clearly jewish or christian-ish. although they are kind, i can see how a kid would be intimidated to make a religious request.

my question:
what can i suggest that will benefit these kids from now til may, and then to benefit all the kids forever after?
specifically, when are the religious holidays we'll need to schedule around?
how will we know when these fall in subsequent years?
any foods to try, or avoid?
things to find out about the foods we serve, so as to be able to answer questions?
is there anything i'm not thinking of?

my caveat:
please, no wrist-slapping here- i genuinely want to help, and am being reductive only so i can ask an answerable Q that doesn't drown in specifics (although, it's a pretty long Q, so i guess i failed there). also, please go easy on the program itself- they are *great*, and are doing incredible work with these kids. i'm 100% sure that the kids net way more benefit out of it than any non-denominational gaffe might cost them. besides, all mis-steps are due to ignorance, not insensitivity, and i know that if i suggest concrete changes, that they'll really try to implement them.

thanks in advance for your advice!