Hunger
 

Let talk about hunger and how I have no idea what I want to put into my body! I am so tired of salad and baked chicken. I have been doing very well with my Special K Protein Shake for breakfast and lunch. Then I get home in the evening and open the refrigerator and stand there in front of it saying "What do I want" or "What can I have" that will not undo my day of being good. The answer is usually "There is nothing in here" or "We have nothing to eat in this house" then I just sigh and bake my chicken breast and vegetables. I guess the problem is I am bored with food. I really do not crave sweets, chocolate, salt or fast food. I just really don't know what I want to eat, or what I can eat that will not undo my whole calorie count for the day.

So I guess its time to search online for some new healthy food recipes. Anyone out there have any suggestions?

A special K shake has 190 calories. If you are having those for breakfast and lunch that is 380 calories. No wonder you are starving when you get home. And if you are just having chicken and vegetables no wonder you are bored by food.

How many calories are you allotting yourself for the day? What do you love to eat? Have you experimented with stirfries, pasta, soups, stews, tacos, casseroles? All of these things can be made with normal ingredients and eaten in such portions that you are within your calorie limits for the day.

Your plan right now sounds unsustainable, restrictive and sad. Healthy eating is not boring or plain or punitive.

I have started using the CookSmarts.com menu planning. You can download 3 free weeks of meals. They are healthy, really fast to prepare and really delicious. And since you are making them from scratch, you can track the calories and control your portions.

I know you only asked for suggestions for dinner but I'll toss in some for breakfast and lunch too.

For breakfast I love oatmeal cooked with milk, and I sprinkle in a tbsp of chocolate chips. It's really indulgent, and really filling. It's around 300 calories.

For lunch I really like whole wheat couscous mixed with a bunch of different fresh veggies for bulk and a can of flavored tuna. If you want it without meat it's also good with raisins and feta and a tbsp of italian dressing.

For dinner, there's a lot more that you can do than just chicken breast and veggies. You could have lean steak, maybe sauteed with some mushrooms. What about white fish with a mango salsa? You could also do a pasta or a soup? I love skinnytaste for great recipes.

I'm not sure what your target calorie goal is but it doesn't seem like you're getting too many in. I don't count, but I know I'm probably getting around 1800 calories. I'm still losing weight, and I'm not starving. Don't ignore your body if you're honestly hungry.

I would get very, very bored with chicken and salad very quickly. I get bored just thinking about it!

I like to eat well, and varied, especially when it comes to vegetables. I have learned that having a huge variety of vegetables helps me stay on track better than nearly anything else.

I started experimenting with making veggies taste fabulous. One of my favorite things to do is to roast a huge pan of them in the oven, at 400-degrees, tossed with a little olive oil, juice of a lemon, and seasoned with salt. I'll roast them till they get a little caramelized, because that's when the flavor really intensifies. I like to cook enough for a few meals, then put them into containers in the refrigerator for later. Some veggies that work for this are asparagus, artichoke hearts (the frozen ones), Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, eggplant, mushrooms, tomatoes, any summer squash and winter squash, carrots, parsnips, and beets (cook those in a separate pan because they bleed all over everything). For added flavor, you can toss some chopped onions and garlic in there and also fresh herbs like rosemary and thyme. You can even roast kale, chard, spinach and beet tops, although not for more than 10 to 15 minutes because they will burn.

One more thing that adds flavor to those roasted veggies is a bit of chopped up bacon. A little goes a long way. I like to get a package of the uncured organic applewood smoked bacon. I cut it up and put it in the pan first and stick it in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes to let it cook and render a little of the fat, then put the veggies in to roast. Chopped uncured salami is really tasty with greens!

When you get home, cook your protein for the evening and reheat your veggies. Add a salad (yes, eating even more veggies is good) and if you like, a whole grain like brown rice or quinoa, and you have a well balanced meal. Make sure to include healthy fats.

Change up your proteins too. Lots of people go for skinless-boneless chicken breast. Zzzzzzzzzz! I like to pan-broil chicken breast with skin on and bone in. More flavor! And chicken thighs with skin and bone is even tastier. Can also have turkey, duck, a variety of fish and other seafood, and red meat like pork, beef, lamb. Have you tried bison yet? If you can, stick with organic pastured, grass-fed, or wild-caught sources of proteins. The fat in that meat is so healthy for you. Full of omegas.

You definitely need to jazz up your meals. I love turkey or chicken bacon. Is only about 60-70 cal for 2 slices. Add to sandwiches, pasta, anything. I love East Side Marios and made a low cal version of their amatricana (sp). Was delish. Even pasta sauce from a can and add your own extra veggies. Or use as a base for chili instead. This morning for brekkie I had the bacon and 3 pancakes. Did the math for cal and measured the batter. Was oonly 70 cal/pancake. My DH and DD had the same. Was only 280 cal plus 25 for syrup. Yummy. Good luck.

My variety comes from protein. I eat every type of fish you can think of. Lean and yummy! Canned (lots of because of convenience) but also fresh and frozen when I have time.

Today, I had kippers, sardines, crab, smoked salmon, cockles and shrimp (with a rather wild salad).

Tomorrow I will have smoked trout, mackeral, anchovies, kippers and crab (with another crazy salad).

I add eggs too (scarmbled, poached, boiled).

Breakfast is always oats.

Hunger is a thing of the past.

Maybe try baked salmon?

Thanks for all the comments and I saw some great idea and suggestions. A lot of my lack of creativity comes from having a chronic illness, taking care of my elderly mother and my bf who has stage 3 lung cancer while holding down a full time job. I have been off work since January first on Medical Leave for my own illness so weight loss hasn't been hard since I pretty much throw up every time I move.

I guess I should have mentioned I am a very picky eater I don't do fish, seafood, or oatmeal. I bought a few healthy cookbooks and I am looking for things I will try when I am feeling better. I do hope that is sooner than later.

I'm also very picky about my meat and don't eat seafood, but I like chicken very much. You can make it interesting by preparing it with chilli, cream, carrot sause or curry ... or simply with different side dishes. Anyway, I'll try to write some good things I eat for lunch/dinner when I'm on a diet that don't include chicken:

- Buckwheat porridge with olives, greek (feta) cheese and arugula (if it's your cheat day, add pesto sauce)
- Spinach with eggs and mashed potatoes (made only with low fat milk and potatoes)
- Baked beans with a chicken frankfurter
- Salad with chick-pea or other leguminous plants, tomatos, corn, grated cheese or/and hard bolied eggs ... (I don't like salad dressings or vinegar, so I put plain yoghurt on it)
- Soup with mashed carrots and pumpkins with lentils and/or barley (not mashed) :)
- Home made falafel

You can get some ideas talking to your vegetarian friends! If you get some ideas, post them please! :)

Check up on my food diary in the vegetarian section for inspiration. I post my recipes and list my food in detail. I think i just called it a diet blog which admittedly is a very stupid and dull name.

Often when i start cooking, i just start with one item and have no idea where i am going to end up. I see a cauliflower and build a dish around it. Or potatoes. or pumpkin. I just start with one of my veggies and it can lead to very interesting and yummy dishes.

If i want ideas i go looking for ideas for cauliflower, or pumpkin or whatever. Or i make it up. Or i think ah that would go well in a soup or an omelette or a salad or a gratin or a tart or whatever.

I might be unusual, but I don't mind having the same dinner for several days in a row - makes things easy. A while back, I purchased several pounds of lean ground turkey and used Oprah's "Mar a Lago Turkery Burger" recipe to prepare patties for the freezer. I wrapped each one in wax paper and stored them in a freezer bag. They cook well from frozen in a covered non-stick pan and the recipe's ingredients really jazz up plain old turkey. I didn't make the whole recipe -- I think I had 3 lbs of turkey, and made somewhere around 20 dinner servings that I enjoyed for a long time with a side of steamed veggies. I don't do bread, so I just enjoyed them plain.

I second Skinnytaste for healthy recipes, and I search Pinterest for "weight watchers" and come up with great stuff! Weight Watchers has a new 15 Minute Recipe magazine out right now. I saw it on the news stand yesterday and gave it a look. I didn't purchase this one, but in past issues I've found several good recipes there -- makes the $12 investment worth it!

I purchase secondhand diet books, too -- mainly for the recipes. My latest is Jumpstart to Skinny by Bob Harper... really great one-serving recipes! All of the Biggest Loser cookbooks are good, too -- and they can all be found secondhand. Try Half.com if you don't have a Half-Price Books or thrift shop nearby.

eeeek shakes for breakfast and lunch?? How have you not gone stark raving mad!! I'd consider swapping out at least one of them for a meal, a quick healthy filling meal that you need to chew :D

The other half of the coin, being 'hungry' doesn't mean you'll die! That was my problem, I thought the second I got a hunger pang my life was in danger LOL it's ok to be hungry for a while!