In Which Food Adjustments Are Required

[serinde]

So, if no exercise, then must be strict food control. Thus I have started logging food with FitDay again.

Part of what tends to make me fall off the wagon is the nuisance of keeping track of everything. I can, and have, done it before; but it seems to be much harder to force myself back to it, as if by having succeeded once I have proved it and don't need to prove it again. Except that I'm not doing this as a symbol of how iron-willed I am, I'm doing it to be less of a wobbling pudgebucket. Stupid backbrain. ANYWAYS; since I am a creature of habit, and tend to eat the same damn thing every day, I created a "new custom food" which is the part of my daily consumption that doesn't change.

Thus:
* breakfast *
1 (large) egg
1 slice of TJ's sprouted wheat bread
a schmear of low-fat not-butter
2 splashes of half-and-half in coffee

* elevenses *
1 reduced-fat cheesestick
15 almonds

* lunch *
3 cups mixed greens
1/5 package of extra-firm tofu
2/3 of a bell pepper
1 T. salad dressing

All of this adds up to 628 calories: 37g fat, 39g carbs, 38g protein. This is too much fat, and not enough protein. Ideally I'd replace the tofu with a leaner protein, but that becomes a logistical issue (I don't always roast a meat over the weekend, generating leftovers for salad). The easiest solution is canned tuna; but eating a half can every day leads to the whole mercury question.

What to do, what to do.

Comments

[missionista.livejournal.com]

What about tuna 2 days a week, and tofu the other 3?

[syringavulgaris.livejournal.com]

But the problem is that I want/need to amend that balance for every day...

However, I may have found an alternative: canned salmon! Apparently it's ecologically managed AND low in unpleasant chemicals (http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=16960). It's higher-fat than tuna, but it's still a better fat:protein ratio than tofu.

[rainbear.livejournal.com]

Please *please* don't fall into the trap of "Fat = bad".

Our brains *need* fats--it helps to regulate our moods and keep our various brain chemicals in balance. Our bodies need them, too. And, honestly, I'd rather see you eating real butter than non-butter low-fat non-food. It's the same amount of fat and calories. And, at least butter is from a natural source. Y'know? Not cooked up in a lab somewhere.

In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto (http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/1594201455/ref=pd_ys_iyr5)--it's a seriously good read. The basics are:

Don't eat *anything* your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as being food. This includes margarine, anything with HFCS, low-fat anything.

Eat food, not nutrients. Nutrients != food. Anything with "Now with added x" is not food.

Yes, I know. Fat guy telling you how to eat. :-/ But I can tell you that my endos have been telling me since I started seeing them, that they'd rather see me eat & drink real foodstuffs than artificial stuff.

Anywho. Didn't mean to rant on. :HUGS:

[syringavulgaris.livejournal.com]

:) No, I know; I am not trying to say ZOMG NO FAT! However, left to my own devices I would live on butter, hard cheese, and bloody sirloins, and some form of balance must be imposed. My requirements are simply that less than 35% of the daily calorie intake should be sourced in fat; that the rest should be roughly equally sourced between protein and carbs; and that the day's calories should be <2000, or <1600 if I'm not exercising.

I don't think that's entirely unreasonable. :)

[rainbear.livejournal.com]

*nod* The normal ratio is 30% fat 30% protein 40% carbohydrates for a regular diet. For a diabetic, like myself, the ratio doesn't work, because 30% of my calories should come from carbs. So that leaves 10% unaccounted for, which usually gets made up with either protein or fat. Too much protein = bad (hard on your kidneys), too much fat isn't so bad, as long as it's a monounsaturated fat, such as extra virgin olive oil, per the dietitian--but hey, the Powers Who Be told us margarine was great for us, too.. and now we find out about trans fats.. yikes! :-\

The calorie range is good. You're pretty active, so even if you miss a day of exercise, your metabolism is still higher than most. :)

I will say, however, that when I last saw you, fat was not an adjective I would have used to describe you at all. Eating better, fresher foods, is a good thing for everyone, however! :) Now--you mention sirloins. Sirloins are actually one of the lower fat meats, along with fillets. Plus, as we both know, packed with lots of good beef flavor! :)

Anywho--I have to say I've been impressed reading your exercise blogging. :) If I were going down a dark alley, I'd definitely want you on *my* side! :D